How to make Deep Fried Chili Balls

Colin Joliat

 

If you’re man enough to make your own food for Super Bowl Sunday, make sure it’s absurd enough to be remembered. Deep Fried Chili Balls should fit the bill perfectly, plus they have whiskey in them.

Can you believe it’s been a full four days since the Guyism Grill has featured a recipe with booze in it? Crazy, I know. The whiskey was a last second addition to these Deep Fried Chili Balls, but it was a welcome one. It wasn’t booze for booze’s sake either. Balcones Brimstone is has an amazing sweet smokey that’s a perfect compliment to the spiciness of the chili.

Check out more awesome food from the Guyism Grill.

Colin Joliat

 

I used fancy pants Tostitos because they were leftover from my party during the Michigan Wolverines’ epic Buffalo Wild Wings Bowl debacle, and I desperately needed them out of my house.

Advice: Use your favorite beanless chili. I’m a sucker for Hormel. It’s far from the greatest and smells a little like dog food, but it’s my comfort food. Definitely stick with something spicy though.

Colin Joliat

 

In case you were wondering why there wasn’t whiskey in the initial picture, it’s because this was the moment when I realized Balcones Brimstone would make a great addition to these Deep Fried Chili Balls. It made regret not having Texas chili to match the distinctly Texas whiskey, but I wasn’t about to abandon everything.

Colin Joliat

 

This isn’t the first time I’ve made what are essentially meatballs on Guyism. What can I say, I’m a sucker for balls. First it was Jim Beam Whiskey Meatballs, and more recently I managed to make Deep Fried Mac & Cheese Balls.

Colin Joliat

 

Unlike normal meatballs that get simmered in BBQ sauce, these Deep Fried Chili Balls are getting coated in tortilla chips and deep fried. That’s right – deep fried chili. It’s like a sketchy carnival in your own home.

Obviously lil’ old me wasn’t about to eat 24 meatballs at once. Luckily you can cover them and store them in the fridge until you’re ready to use them. I had chili balls for breakfast and then dinner. It was glorious.

Colin Joliat

 

I know what you’re thinking. What about the cheese and sour cream? It’s not chili without those. Luckily Deep Fried Chili Balls are built for dips. In the first picture I have sour cream with a little Sriracha Sea Salt. In the last one I used the Bacon & Beer Cheese Dip, and let me tell you that was delicious. There’s nothing like two stand alone recipes coming together to form the Voltron of Super Bowl snacks.

The original recipe comes from Rachel Ray, but she failed to use the most important ingredient – whiskey.

Ingredients:

  • 1 15 ounce can beef-only chili
  • 8 ounces lean ground beef
  • 3 cups finely crushed tortilla chips
  • 3 shots Balcones Brimsone
  • 2 teaspoons chili powder
  • 3/4 tsp Sriracha Sea Salt
  • Vegetable oil, for frying

Instructions:

  1. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper.
  2. In a large bowl, stir together the chili, ground beef, 1 cup tortilla chips, whiskey, chili powder, and salt.
  3. Roll the meat mixture into thirty 1-inch balls; place on the prepared pan and refrigerate.
  4. Fill a large pot with enough oil to reach a depth of 2 inches and heat until it registers 375 degrees.
  5. Realize you should have a tiny deep fryer by now.
  6. Place the remaining 2 cups tortilla chips in a shallow dish.
  7. Coat the chili balls with the crushed chips.
  8. Working in batches of 5 to 7, fry the chili balls until deep golden, about 2 minutes.
  9. Drain on paper towels.
  10. Serve hot with Bacon & Beer Cheese Dip (or lame sour cream).

Check out more awesome recipes from the Guyism Grill.