There is a Right Way to Eat Cincinnati Chili

I live in Cincinnati Ohio, but I am not from here. One of the first things people had me try when I arrived in the Queen City was the city’s local chili. We went to the closest Skyline, and I ordered a couple of small cheese coneys.

I was not a fan.

As the years have gone on, I have given Skyline, and less often Goldstar, a chance. Many people, my wife included, have said I will get used to it. I have not.

Cincinnati chili has become kind of a joke outside of Ohio. Some people call it prison food, others have objected to its weird flavor profile. The fans of Cincinnati chili say it is misunderstood and say you cannot think of traditional chili when you eat. I have tried and tried but I can never get on the Cincinnati Chili bandwagon. Today I did have a dish made with the strange stuff and decided I have finally found the one good way to eat Cincinnati Chili.

My son and I bought a small package of Skyline dip this afternoon. It is a very simple dish of cream cheese with Cincinnati chili layered on top and a large amount of mild cheddar cheese on top of that. I got out some ruffled potato chips and took a dip. This is the way Cincinnati Chili was meant to be served. Something in the cream cheese and mild cheddar compliments the flavors of the chili so well. Add in the salty chips and this dip is a top tier party dip. The only unfortunate thing is when you buy the prepackaged dip and cook it, the cream cheese and chili meld into a gray looking nightmare goop. Once the cheddar is added the goop is hidden and the tasting can begin. I am not kidding; it is an incredible tasting dip.

I know there are many people out there that still think the best way to serve Cincinnati chili is to throw it straight in the trash. I do not totally disagree with that sentiment. I do encourage the haters to try some of this dip next time you pass a Cincinnati chili parlor. I think you will be pleasantly surprised that something so awful on its own, or over spaghetti, can be so divine.

RD

RD is the founder and Head Editor for SeedSing and the other host of the X Millennial Man Podcast.

Come and support us and the podcast on Patreon.

SeedSing is funded by a group of awesome people. Join them by donating to SeedSing.  

Chili Has No Need for Beans

Today I am coming at you with a semi hot take on food. I have done this from time to time on the site and have gotten a little bit of a reaction from some people online and in my home. My hot take for the day today is, chili is better with no beans in it.

I have felt this way for quite some time, but the chili that I made for dinner last night, and finished for lunch today, made me fully realize this. I know there are other people in my family who feel the same way, namely my dad. He has actually said this for a while now. He will change his order if the place we are ordering from has beans in the chili. And there are a very few chilis out there with beans that are good, most notably the veggie chili at the excellent local diner Morning Glory. But I feel like it is a fact that all meat chili is the way to go.

The chili I made yesterday has no beans because it is low carb, and I try to eat as low carb as possible for my three meals a day. And it is a pretty simple chili to make. It has 2 1/2 lbs of ground beef, a red onion, celery, jalapenos and all the other seasonings that go into your regular chili. But instead of straight up chili powder I used chipotle chili powder. I also put the chili in the crockpot after browning the beef and let all the veggies and seasonings and meat marinade for eight hours. It made for an excellent tasting chili goop. It almost had more of a sloppy joe feel than a chili. But damn if it wasn't tasty as hell.

No beans isn't just the chili that I make at home. There are a few restaurants in town, mostly steak houses, that have no bean chili and it is always a great surprise. My eyes light up. When we would go to restaurants, even if I was not craving chili, I would order it just to taste it. The chili at Skyline in Ohio, while using cinnamon, has no beans and it is really awesome, especially on hot dogs and pasta. There is a hot dog spot in Saint Louis called Steve's Hot Dogs, and when they make a chili dog they use no bean chili. It makes the chili dog that much better. It is like the Skyline chili dog but with a way better tasting frank and chili. In fact, if any hot dog place uses beans in their chili I will not order chili dogs.

It is not that I dislike beans. I think they are great. They are an excellent source of protein. I know people who choose to not eat meat love beans, as they should. But for a meat eater such as myself, the beans add too much starch to a chili. It almost takes away from the flavor of the chili. I feel like the beans soak up all the good seasoning and juice. That is what I want the meat to do in a chili. I want the meat to bathe in the juice and add even more flavor. It makes for an excellent meal.

All meat chili is the way to go if you are a meat eater and you want a hot side dish, or even if you want it as a main dish. It makes for a filling and delicious tasting meal. At least that is how I feel.

Ty

Ty is the Pop Culture editor for SeedSing and the other host of the X Millennial Man Podcast.

Come and support Ty and the podcast on Patreon.

Follow Ty on instagram and twitter.

SeedSing is funded by a group of awesome people. Join them by donating to SeedSing.

Love it or Hate it, Cincinnati does have some Interesting Chili

Baby, if you ever wondered what became of the most interesting chili. It is in Cincinnati.

I just spent the last 3 and a half days visiting my brother and his family in Cincinnati over the 4th of July. We go there occasionally on the fourth for our family vacation. Cincinnati, in my opinion, is kind of a dull town. But, there is some good food and some cool things to do.

For one, if you go there, check out Findlay Market. It's a very cool farmers market with great shops and equally great food. Reds games are cheap and they have a cool playground for young kids inside the stadium. Cincinnati is the home of Grater's Ice Cream, which may be the best ice cream in the whole United States. Loveland, the town my brother lives in, is very cool and hip with some neat downtown stuff to check out.

The thing I look most forward too, besides seeing family, is Skyline. Skyline is just like any other fast food restaurant, but it has a very special niche. Skyline is famous for their chili. I think it has chocolate or cinnamon, or both, and it's very interesting. I know that a lot of people do not care for their take on chili. My brother, RD, will not eat it when we go there. I believe Drew Magary,of Deadspin, called it "prison chili". Then, there is just a lot of random people that just don't enjoy the taste. I am not one of these people. Skyline is one of my highlights and must hit spots when my family visits.

Now, I don't eat the chili just plain, in a bowl. I am not a big fan of soups, stews, anything like that, so chili in a bowl is not my thing. But, put that chili on a hot dog with some cheese, or put it on fries with cheese, I'm in. What sets Skyline apart, aside from the sweet chili, is the hot dog and the bun. The hot dogs are very tiny and they appear to be steamed. This steaming technique gives the hot dog a very juicy taste. It's very tasty. The buns, also small, are steamed as well. The whole chili dog experience has a juiciness to it that is exquisite. The icing on the chili dog cake is the finely shredded cheddar cheese they they load on top of the dog. It is so god damn good. This is the best part of the whole eating experience. When you take that first bite and get a bit of sweet chili, steamed hot dog and bun, and finish it off with a big bite of cheese, man, my mouth is watering just thinking about it, and I ate three of them no less than an hour ago. I LOVE these chili dogs. The sweetness of the chili offsets the saltiness of the rest of the food perfectly. The same thing with the chili fries, instead the salt portion is the fry. These are almost as good as the dogs, almost. The best part of the fries is, once again, the heaping portion of cheese on top. I think the cheese at Skyline may be the best shredded cheese on Earth. It's dynamite.

I know that outside of, and even inside, Cincinnati, the chili can get a bad rap, but I think it's great. If you have never been to Cincinnati and are planning a trip there, you have to go to Skyline, get some chili dogs and chili cheese fries. You will thank me later. And thank you Skyline for always coming through every time I visit Cincinnati. You guys are the best.

Ty

Ty is the Pop Culture editor for SeedSing and the other host of the X Millennial Man Podcast. He wishes Skyline had breakfast, then he would only have to visit one restaurant in the Queen City. Follow Ty on twitter @tykulik.