I say that every morning when I get up.
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There’s chili and there’s “shit masquerading as chili”.
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All of us should, and add “thank you.”
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If you really wanna have some fun I recommend getting a Korean clay pot called a ddukbaegi or ttukbaegi. They’re easy to find these days on Amazon or wherever. Their thermal properties are amazing and you can cook just about anything in them. Yes, I’ve even made chili (no beans).
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So I’ve been cooking stuff in pressure cookers for years, and then got the instant pot when that craze happened. But I hated it because it would never get hot enough for me to, say, brown the onions in it before pressure cooking the rest of the ingredients. I ended up giving it to Goodwill. Did I have a clunker or is that your experience with the instant pot? (Asking because my old pressure cooker finally gave out yesterday when cooking… Wait for it… Chili and it wouldn’t seal. So I’m wondering if I should just get another pressure cooker or try the instant pot again.)
I use the sauté function and it gets pretty hot quickly. I got the Instant Pot Duo Crisp which comes with an air fryer attachment and a bevy of other functions. I think it is a newer version?
We got one (Zucor?) a couple of years ago, and I find it annoying precisely because it’s so difficult to control saute temps. But using it to prepare beans is a big help (I like to buy different kinds of dried beans from Rancho Gordo).
Oops, typed this last night but failed to hit Reply.
Anyone that has a problem with the 21st century globalized economy has clearly not had caprese in January. It was delish!
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Yum!
Caprese salad is one of my favorite uses for my homegrown tomatoes.
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The richest kings and emperors of antiquity could not even have imagined living as well as the median American in 2024, and nothing makes that fact hit home like a stroll through HEB.
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Rancho Gordo is amazing!! I don’t frequent their store near downtown often enough, if only because they’re local and we have easy access to them almost everywhere.
I love Rancho Gordo beans. I’ve been ordering them for years after receiving a box from my sister for Christmas a decade ago. Her brother in law owns The Fatted Calf in Napa and sent her and his brother a box which inspired her to do the same.
The Rancho Gordo chili powder is the ultimate cheat code when making a pot of red.
I had this fascinating convo with a neighbor a number of years ago. She was one of 10 or so people in her house, had been on public assistance for 10+ years and was pregnant with her 4th child “since each new kid increases her monthly $$ from the government” (her words). She was complaining about her standard of living and was deeply offended when I suggested that her current situation far exceeded that of 90% of people in the world right now and far exceeded the living circumstances of the wealthy (in food security, health, wellness and medical care, leisure time, access to information and housing comfort) for the thousands of years in human history leading up to this point. She instead chose to focus on the fact that her car needed a brake job, her TV was too small and she was going to have to have the baby in a room with one of her daughters. I was friends with her and her family for a number of years. They never backed off of their “woe is me” stance. The capitalistic dissatisfaction training of Americans over the last 70 years has been a staggering success.
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I’ve known some folks in the same mindset you describe here.
All of the division, ire, angst tribalism in this country is set against the truth you noted: we are richer than any humans that have ever lived.
We are committing a monumental unforced error.
I’m gonna have to order some of those Rancho Gordo beans just for variety’s sake. I make a pot of beans (pintos) and ham hocks monthly or so. I have had the Ayocote Morado beans from a grower in New Mexico and they were a nice change of pace.
In Houston at least they sell Rancho Gordo’s at Central Market now. I don’t know if they’ve migrated to HEBs or not.
The 2 big things Rancho Gordo offers are freshness and variety. For the freshness, they claim that regular store-bought beans may be as old as three years, and that Rancho Gordo’s will not be more than a year old (as I recall). I always brine beans beforehand, and honestly can’t tell the difference.
The variety thing is fun though. Some I’ve liked, some I haven’t, but it’s been fun trying them.
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I bought a couple of 5 pound bags of pinto beans in a COVID panic when the grocery supply chain appeared to be threatened. It took me two years to finish them off and I could tell no difference in quality from the first batch to the last batch. My understanding, if properly stored, dried beans don’t really have an expiration date.
Try the pinquitos, they’re among my favorites. They’re like tiny pintos, and I suspect they’re what the California tri-tip crowd serve with their grilled tri-tip. The yellow-eye and Marcella varieties are good white beans, too.
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Oh man, Fatted Calf is such a great place. Kara and I are there several times a month and I can honestly say that we are more than happy to pay your sister’s in law’s salary.
That’s great! I have yet to make it out there but dream about it regularly. Taylor Boetticher is the owner. His brother is married to my sister.