Instructions: VENISON CHILI as served at the California Grill located at Disneys 1997. Original recipe used more oil and trimmed venison from the leg or shoulder. We tested with lean beef sirloin steak; nut brown ale; roasted green chili peppers. VARIATIONs: Suitable for lean lamb, pork or turkey; adjust the baking time. Served with cornbread and slaw.

[1] In a shallow bowl, stir together chili powder, paprika, cumin, salt and pepper. Dredge meat with spice mixture. Cover and marinate in the refrigerator for 1 hour or overnight.

Preheat oven to 325F. In a Dutch oven (stove top and oven proof casserole),
heat one-third of the oil over medium high heat. Add half the meat and sear until browned on all sides, 5 to 6 minutes; transfer to a plate. Sear remaining meat in another third of the oil. Set aside.

Reduce heat to medium and add rest of the oil; add diced onion and celery and cook, stirring, until softened, 3 to 5 minutes. Add garlic, jalapeno, oregano and bay leaf; cook, stirring, for 1 minute. Add beer and bring to a boil. Cook, stirring, until liquid is reduced by half, 3 to 5 minutes.

Add tomatoes and their juice and bring to a simmer. Add browned meat.

Cover, transfer to the oven and bake for 1-1/4 hours, or until meat is very tender (up to 2 hrs).

Meanwhile, spray a nonstick skillet, place over medium high heat. Add bell peppers and saute until tender, 3 to 5 minutes. When the meat is tender add the bell peppers, black beans and chopped cilantro and parsley to the chili; cover- or partially cover if the stew is too moist. Return pot to oven and bake another 15 minutes.

Remove chili from oven. Discard bay leaf. Stir in lime juice. Adjust seasoning with salt and pepper. Serve in bowls, garnished with a dollop of sour cream and cilantro and parsley sprigs.

MAKES 5 CUPS or enough for 4 SERVINGS, EACH: 332.7 cals, 10.9 g fat (29.6%

NOTES : Hi! decided to try that baked chili recipe. We used a sirloin beef steak (sale item, very lean). "Dry marinade" for 1 hour. Baked 1 hour then added the peppers and beans. Result: should have baked longer!-(

I added more time to the recipe.

The steak was chewy, but we used 1/3 less oil than the restaurant.

So maybe it would be more tender with more oil. Recipe intended for venison - without oil, might come out tough, too. I was wrong about the beer- it was used to flavor the sauce, not tenderize the meat. Chili had "circle the oven kind of aroma" - might make good dish to serve at party cause you can put in the oven and forget for awhile. Also let it bake longer.

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