Cincinnati Spiced Meat Chili over Spaghetti

What you need

• 900 g (2 lb) lean ground beef
• 1 l (4 cups) water
• 170 g (6 oz) tomato paste
• 2 yellow onions, finely chopped
• 4 cloves garlic, minced
• 4 tbsp chili powder
• 1 tbsp unsweetened cocoa powder
• 1 tsp ground cinnamon
• 1 tsp ground cumin
• 1/2 tsp cayenne pepper
• 1/4 tsp ground allspice
• 1/4 tsp ground cloves
• 1 bay leaf
• 2 tbsp apple cider vinegar
• 1 tbsp Worcestershire sauce
• 1 1/2 tsp salt, plus more for the pasta water
• 450 g (1 lb) spaghetti
• 200 g (2 cups) mild cheddar, very finely shredded
• 1 white onion, finely diced, for serving (optional)

Method

Restated from the original video

1. 1

   Pour the water into a large heavy pot and whisk in the tomato paste over medium-high heat.

2. 2

   Crumble the raw beef into the pot in small bits with your fingers, then stir hard so it breaks into a fine, loose texture. Do not brown it first.

3. 3

   Add the chopped yellow onions, garlic, chili powder, cocoa, cinnamon, cumin, cayenne, allspice, ground cloves, bay leaf, vinegar, Worcestershire sauce and salt. Stir well.

4. 4

   Bring to a boil, then lower the heat to a gentle simmer. Cover partly and cook for 2 hours, stirring every 15-20 min, until thick and saucy and the beef is cooked through. Add a splash of water if it gets too dry.

5. 5

   Turn off the heat and let it sit 10 min. Spoon off the layer of fat that rises to the top and fish out the bay leaf.

6. 6

   While the chili rests, boil the spaghetti in well-salted water until just tender, then drain.

7. 7

   Taste the chili and adjust the salt. It should be thinner than a Texas-style chili, closer to a meat sauce.

8. 8

   Serve on plates: spaghetti first, a ladle of chili over it, then a tall mound of cheddar. This is a three-way; top with diced onion for a four-way.

Imported from anaffairfromtheheart.com. Recipe Grab pulled out what you need to cook it; the video stays where its author put it.