Cincinnati 5-Way Chili
Cincinnati 5-way chili: cinnamon and allspice-spiced beef chili ladled over vermicelli, then crowned with beans, onions, and cheddar. Greek-influenced Midwestern original.
YIELD
10 servingsPREP
30 minCOOK
4 hrsREADY
4½ hrsCincinnati chili is the Greek-Lebanese answer to Texas chili: thinner, sweeter, layered over spaghetti, and spiced with cinnamon, allspice, and clove rather than the usual cumin-and-chile heat alone. Five-way means five elements stacked in the bowl: vermicelli, chili, beans, onion, and cheddar.
The spice profile is the dish’s defining strangeness. Cinnamon and allspice in chili sounds wrong until you taste it, then you understand why Cincinnatians are religious about it. The warm Mediterranean spices are the immigrant Empress brothers’ fingerprint on what would otherwise be standard ground beef.
Cooking the meat in water rather than searing it is also non-traditional. The beef stays loose and fine-grained instead of clumping, which is why proper Cincinnati chili pours like a thick sauce over spaghetti rather than sitting in mounds.
Pro Tips
- Don’t brown the meat hard, gentle simmering in liquid gives the right loose texture
- A long simmer is non-negotiable, two hours minimum for the spices to meld
- Use a fine grater for cheap shredded cheddar so it falls like fluffy snow over the top
- Skoline beans (red kidney) drained and rinsed, not stewed in, this is a five-way not chili-mac
- Vermicelli or thin spaghetti underneath, not chunky pasta which fights the loose chili
Variations
- Three-way skips beans and onion (just spaghetti, chili, cheese)
- Four-way adds either beans or onion
- Substitute oyster crackers on top for the classic Skyline-style finish
Ingredients
Directions
Heat the butter in a large heavy skillet over medium-high heat.
Add the meat to the skillet.
Break up any lumps with a fork and cook, stirring occasionally, until the meat is evenly browned.
Stir in all the remaining ingredients up through the water.
Taste and adjust seasonings.
If the flavor is too sweet, add a small amount of vinegar; if not spicy enough, add a small amount of ground chile.
Bring the mixture to a boil, then lower the heat and simmer, uncovered, for 2 to 4 hours.
Add the kidney beans to the mixture ½ hour before serving.
Place a small amount of the cooked vermicelli in individual bowls.
Spoon on a generous amount of chili.
Top with grated cheese and raw onion or pass in individual bowls.
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