National Chili Day by Jenn McKinlay

 

Jenn McKinlay: Y'all, National Chili Day was on Thursday, and I missed it! Darn it. Not gonna lie, I have been having a heck of time keeping track of the days lately. How is it the end of February?! 

Ah, well, is there ever a bad day to have chili? No, there is not. To celebrate, belatedly, I'm sharing some chili trivia:

1700's: It is believed that immigrants from the Canary Islands introduced chili to the residents of San Antonio after settling in the region.

1828: The earliest written description of chili was by Houston based author J.C. Clopper.

1880's: Chili queens worked food stands that served chili, making it even more popular in San Antonio.

1893: The popularity of chili exploded when Texans set up a chili stand at the Chicago Exposition.

1952: The first world championship chili contest was held at the State Fair of Texas (naturally). The author of the definitive chili book WITH OR WITHOUT BEANS, Joe E. Cooper, was the chairman of the event.

1977: Chili is declared the official dish of Texas by the state legislature.

Oh, and I dug into the archives and found Hallie's Chili Recipe and Deb's Chili Recipe as well.

And finally, we must address the controversy surrounding chili. Yes, I know it can get heated but let's be civil about it, shall we? It's a safe space here and no matter how you feel, there'll be no judgment. (This one is for you, Joe E. Cooper)!

All right, Reds and Readers, here goes -- When you make chili, do you add beans or no? 

I suspect, our Lucy, with her Secret Bean Society membership (okay, I made that up but still her bean post is hilarious) is a vote for beans, but I'll wait to see her answer.