Tommy's Chili

This recipe needs some background. This is the recipe for the chili to Original Tommy's Hamburgers, located in the Los Angeles area. It has a number of devotees. Thus this chili belongs on your hamburger, hot dog, or french fries, not eaten alone. I am not affiliated with him, but he should get the credit for a job well done. It tastes just like the real thing, and we enjoy it immensely.

So where do I start.... First off, I do believe the Tommy's Recipe is worth making; but not to be eaten, rather to be used as a base for other chili. With that said, The two star rating is for the outcome of the original recipe. To call the final product a paste is quite generous. I would classify it more like a chili cake. This recipe contains way too much flour and the cooking process doesn't account for all of the flour in the recipe. The final product was dense, and almost inedible. HOWEVER, I took advantage of the density and the thickening capability of this "chili cake" and used it as a flavor and thickening base for another chili. If interested, continue reading and take a look at the recipe I made using the Tommy's Recipe as a base. **RECIPE** 1. 1 small onion, 2 TBS Olive Oil, 3 Cloves of fresh garlic...pureed in blender or small chopper. 2. In large pot over medium heat, saute puree for 3-4 minutes. 3. Add 2 TBS Chili Powder, 2 tsp paprika, and one large beef bouillon cube; saute until bouillon is dissolved. (make sure to stir as to not burn the spices) 4. Add 12oz of very lean ground beef to the pot and saute just until brown. 5. Add 1 TBS of tomato paste, 2 cups of the "Tommy's Chili" and 1 cup of water to the mix. 6. Whisk mixture until well combined and let simmer for 20 minutes. NOW you have an excellent, thick, dense chili capable of using for hot dogs, burgers, or just eating straight.

Thanks to JasonN for helping "salvage" the Original Tommy's recipe. By using your variation, the chili turned out to be delicious!

Tommy's Chili Recipe. I really love Tommy Burgers and being 2000 miles away from Cali now I really miss them. 3 Years ago I ordered 1 gallon of chili from Tommy's and had it shipped. I parted out all the chili and froze it. I just made this recipe exactly as the directions said and I've got to say although it's a good chili it's definitely not Tommy's Chili.

You Have to and I stress 'Have' to use ground beef with fat. Lean ground beef will not give you enough fat for the rue that is needed. The Recipes tells you stir flour and drippings until golden brown. That is a must to create the flavor base or else you will end up with a floury paste. Brown the hec out of it without burning it and it will taste like Tommy's chili intended for a topping on dogs and fries. As the other reviewer states it is not a chili to be eaten alone. Top that dog with it and a pile of onions, cheese and jalapenos and enjoy.

I think the point of the recipe was tomato-less chili. Not everyone can have tomatoes due to allergies. Thanks for the input on changing things around. Do you have an appropriate substitute for tomatoes?

a floury paste

The recipie was not bad, but PLEASE do not use 2 teaspoons of salt! I think my hearts gonna explode! I'm still trying to water it down.

Overall it was a very good base for chili, I liked the idea of sneaking in carrots, BUT I did doctor it up quite a bit-- added more spices, as well as beans, and peppers. :)

This recipe tasted EXACTLY like Tommy's chili! Anyone who rated it down didn't understand what they were cooking. I will definitely make this again!

I give this recipe four stars with the qualification that it needs some serious modification. Since this is a topping for hotdogs, burgers, and fries, NO BEANS! Chili-Beans are for flatlanders! Modify as follows: 3/4 c. flour, 6-8 tbs. (or more) of chili powder, 1 tsp. salt, 1 tbs. (or more) garlic powder, 1/2 tsp. (or more) ground cumino, and one 6oz. can of tomato paste. I also add more onion and garlic when I cook the beef. This mixture will render a nice thick chili that clings to what you put it on but isn't paste-like and has a rich chili taste.

awesome!! just like tommy's chili :-D rather than spending $100 bucks on the real stuff, it's way better just making your own. thanks.

Had to doctor this up ALOT because it just tasted like hamburger. Added more spices and ketchup, not bad after the adjustments.

After reading some of the other reviews I changed the spices to 4 Tbsp chili powder, 1 Tbsp paprika, 1 tsp garlic powder, 2 tsp sugar, 2 tsp salt, 2 tsp dried minced onions, and added 1/4 tsp cayenne pepper, and 1 tsp cumin. I also changed the flour to 1 1/4 cup flour and substituted the beef broth for 2 bouillon cubes and 1 1/3 cups water. And followed the recipe for the remaining ingredients and steps. Do cook the roux to a warm golden brown. We had some Tom's chili available to compare this recipe to. It tastes almost exactly the same!! My husband said I nailed it! I hope this helps you and enjoy!

If anyone made this chili and came out with a “brick” or a flour-tasting mess, they were either using lean ground beef or they didn’t follow the recipe directions as written. Perhaps a combination of missteps. In any case, the most important thing is to not use lean beef. Remember, you need to end up with at least 1/2 cup of rendered fat after the browning step. If the salt level and spice mix are not to your taste you can certainly make adjustments, but then, you aren’t eating the Original Tommy’s Chili. (Tip: If you’re not averse to using lard- try making this with ground pork or turkey. Just brown the meat in 1/2 cup of lard.)

This is close to the chili used to accompany the hamburgers, chili fries, and hot dogs at the famous Tommy's Hamburgers in the LA area. With a few tweaks, you can get it even closer. If you are unfamiliar with Tommy's, please understand; as a standalone chili, it is not good to eat. Choose another chili recipe to eat from a bowl with a good chunk of cornbread on the side. This is meant to be served on top of a burger garnished with mustard, chopped onion, sliced dill pickle, sliced tomato, and cheese (if you want a Tommy's cheeseburger) on a toasted bun. This combination (and don't stray from it) is heaven. Part of the reason it works as a garnish and not as a main entry is that, technically, it is a gravy with meat and spices. It has a roux base that is cooked with the broth, meat, and seasonings. That's gravy. This all said, I have altered just a few things in the way of seasoning and a small change to the cooking process to get it closer based on my own recalibration with the real thing. If you make it the way as described, it comes out a little too pasty and not quite the full seasoned flavor the original Tommy's chili has. On the seasoning side, I add a full tablespoon more of chili powder, plus a teaspoon of cumin, a full tablespoon of paprika, a teaspoon of granulated garlic and a half teaspoon of Cayenne red pepper. The Cayenne pepper isn't necessary, but I like a little bite and it helps the chili keep longer in the fridge. For the roux step, I cook the hamburge

I did not care for this recipe.

For starters--I'm a SoCal native. I grew up eating original Tommy's in LA. This chili has no tomatoes and no beans. That is intentional. This is NOT New Mexico or Texas chili. The problem is that there is way too much flower in this recipe. Cut down the flow to 1/4 cup only and simmer it for at least an hour with no lid. I prefer the traditional New Mexico stuff, but this works way better on dogs and burgers. This is classic greasy spoon fair.

It's interesting to see that several posters, myself included, recommend adding 1 tsp of ground cumin, so there must be something to it. It tastes more authentic to me with the cumin. You can doctor it up all you want (adding KETCHUP — seriously?) but then you're not making authentic Tommy's chili. I don't use any sugar, whole onion or garlic. I made it with chopped onion once and it was awful! Cayenne pepper would add some heat but then it wouldn't be authentic Tommy's, which isn't that hot. One on-line recipe calls for masa harina (corn flour). I don't know if that's in the original recipe but it seems to work well.

Good recipe. I was looking for a chili recipe that is not tomato based or contains beans. My husband has chronic kidney disease and cannot have either one. I did double the chili spice and it is a good substitute.

This recipe is bland. Color is more red than brown. I double the chili, increased the salt, and added a generous helping of olive oil. Closer but still off the mark. Mind you I had a quart of the real stuff on hand to compare.

Taco gravy. I will not be making this again.

Not a great recipe. It needed a lot of doctoring up. It was very very thick and didn't have a lot of taste.

I was so looking forward to making this chili. I am from California and love Tommy's chili. Unfortunately this was a huge disappointment. I am back to the kitchen to try and salvage this recipe according to Jason's feedback.

My husband grew up eating Tommy's. It is not meant to eat alone but is amazing on everything. We now live in Michigan and cannot go to LA for Tommy's whenever we like it's perfect.

I added a can of rinsed chick peas and a can of hominy

Just for my own notes: Good base recipe. Deleted sugar, vinegar and chili powder . Used real garlic and onion, sauteed first and then added ground beef. Used gluten free flour and added shiitake mushroms. Good comfort food and healthy.

It's a good chili. I didn't find it to be to thick and did think it taste to much like hamburger and needed more spices. 2 star because it was good but I wont make it again.

Awful recipe. There are other recipes for this same chili that don't turn into a flour liquid and are less complicated. I thought I would give this recipe a shot having not used it. Each step makes you wonder. And then after the process is complete you realize why you had to think about each step before doing it

I would like to start by saying I have been eating at Tommy's for over 40 years. We tried to make this recipe at home in hopes of getting a decent hot dog and hamburger chili but we were disappointed. Adding all that four made it taste more like gravy than chili. Actually it just tasted like four. I am still looking for a good hot dog chili because I can't stand the canned stuff and Tommy's charges so much for the chili. If I made this again, I would just thicken with a tablespoon of corn starch in water and adjust the seasoning to pack a little more flavor.