FRANK X. TOLBERT'S ORIGINAL BOWL OF RED

Steps:

• Break off the stems of the chiles, and remove the seeds.
• Place chiles in a small saucepan and cover them with water.
• Simmer for 30 minutes.
• Purée the chiles in a blender with a tiny bit of cooking liquid to make a smooth, thin paste.
• Use as little liquid as possible, unless you want the chili to be soupy.
• Pour the chile purée into a Dutch oven or large, heavy pan.
• In a heavy skillet, sear the meat in two batches with the beef suet until the meat is gray.
• Transfer each batch to the chile purée, then pour in enough of the chile cooking liquid to cover the meat by about 2 inches.
• Bring the chili to a boil; reduce heat to a simmer.
• Cook for 30 minutes.
• Remove the chili from the heat, and stir in the rest of the ingredients.
• Return chili to the heat, cover and resume simmering for 45 minutes, keeping the lid on except to stir just occasionally.
• (Too much stirring tears up the meat) Add more chile liquid only if you think the mixture will burn otherwise.
• After 45 minutes, you may add the masa harina, if you wish.
• The masa adds a subtle, tamale-like taste, but it also thickens the chili.
• Cover the chili again and simmer for another 30 minutes.
• Do a lot of tasting to see if seasoning suits you.
• Add more seasonings as you like, but go easy on the oregano to avoid ending up with a spaghetti sauce flavor.
• Take the chili off the heat, and refrigerator overnight.
• Skim as much fat as you wish from the chili before reheating it.
• Serve hot.