RECIPE: Vancouver Foodster Chili Challenge

Chef Sue Culm from Darby’s Pub makes Beer Brined Turkey Chili, her entry in the Vancouver Foodster Chili Challenge.

Description: Serve hot with a couple of slices of the Bacon Cheddar bread. You may enjoy the chili topped with some sour cream, shredded cheese and thinly sliced green onion.

Beer Brined Turkey Chili

1 lb brined turkey leg or thigh, ground
2 cloves of garlic, minced
1/2 yellow onion, diced
3.5 cups of tomato sauce
1 cup navy beans
1 cup black-eyed peas
2 small green bell peppers, diced
4 stalks of celery, diced
1 cup of corn kernels
2 tbsp chili powder
1/2 tsp fine sea salt
1/2 tsp ground black pepper
5 oz. of your favourite stout

In a large frying pan over medium-high heat, cook the ground turkey with a small amount of olive oil until cooked through.

In a medium stock pot over medium-high heat, sautee the onion, bell pepper and celery until soft.

Add the turkey, garlic, chili powder, salt, and pepper. Cook for another 5 minutes, or until fragrant.

Add the remaining ingredients and bring to a simmer, stirring occasionally.

Allow the chili to slowly simmer for 45 minutes to an hour to allow the flavours to develop.

Serve hot with a couple of slices of the bacon cheddar bread. You may enjoy the chili topped with some sour cream, shredded cheese and thinly sliced green onion.

Beer Brine

2 cups of your beer of choice
2 cups of water
1/4 cup of fine sea salt
1/3 cup brown sugar
1 bay leaf
2 cloves of garlic, smashed
1/2 yellow onion, sliced
1 tsp of whole peppercorns

Mix all ingredients in a large container until the salt and sugar have dissolved.

Allow turkey thighs to brine for 4 to 6 hours.

Once the allotted time has passed, discard the brining liquid and dry the turkey with a clean, dry cloth or paper towel.

Pass the turkey through a meat grinder on a large die and then again with a small die.

Store the ground turkey in the fridge until you are ready to start making the chili.

Bacon Cheddar Dijon Ale Bread

For the dough:
55g unsalted butter
140mL stout or winter ale
355g + 75g all-purpose flour
25g white sugar
1 packet instant yeast
1 tsp salt
2 eggs, room temperature

For the filling:
1 tsp mustard powder
1 tsp smoked paprika
1/2 tsp salt
A pinch of ground black pepper
170 shredded cheddar cheese
3 ounces of chopped, cooked bacon

For the glaze:
42g butter, melted
1 Tbsp Dijon mustard
1.5 tsp Worcestershire sauce
1/2 tsp hot sauce

Method

In a stand mixer using a paddle arm, add the 355g of flour, sugar, yeast, and salt.

In a small saucepan, melt the butter and heat beer to 110 to 116 degrees Fahrenheit. Measure with a thermometer as proper temperature is crucial to the activation of the yeast.

Add the warmed butter and beer mixture to the dry ingredients and mix on a low speed setting until the flour is moistened. Add the eggs one at a time with the mixer running. Add the rest of the flour, slowly, until a slightly sticky dough is formed. Add more flour in small increments if necessary to achieve the right consistency.

Switch the paddle to a dough hook and continue to mix until a smooth dough has been formed. This step can be done by kneading the dough by hand for 8 to 10 minutes on a lightly floured work surface.

Cut the dough into 2 equal pieces and form into balls. Lightly coat in oil or melted butter and allow to rise, covered, in a warm environment–I put it on top of my stove while the oven is on– until the dough has doubled in size. This should take about an hour.

While the dough is rising, mix the filling and the glaze in two separate small bowls.

Assembly

On a lightly floured surface, flatten each piece of dough into rectangles. Brush each piece generously with the glaze and top with the evenly divided filling, leaving 1/2″ at the bottom without glaze or filling, in order to seal the loaf. Tightly roll each rectangle from top to bottom, and allow to rest with the seam facing down on a parchment paper lined baking sheet.

Using kitchen-grade scissors, make 9 evenly spaced cuts on a 45 degree angle along the loaf, cutting almost all the way through. With each cut, flip the cut section of dough on alternating sides of the loaf and position so that the filling is facing upwards. Once all the cuts have been made, you will be left with what looks like a braided loaf. Brush the outside of each loaf (you will have two loaves) with the glaze. Cover with plastic wrap and allow to rise for a second time, again in a warm environment, for about an hour.

Bake the loaves at 300 degrees Fahrenheit for 12 to 15 minutes, making sure the internal temperature of the loaf has reached 100 degrees Celsius/212 degrees Fahrenheit.