Cooking With Columbo | The Johnny Cash Chili Bowl Cook-along

Cooking with Columbo20 February marks the 50th anniversary of Prescription Murder – the first pilot episode of Columbo, the US murder mystery series starring Peter Falk as the raincoat-wearing sleuth that ended up running for 10 seasons until 2004. And what better way to celebrate than with the launch of a fantastic new culinary tome from Silver Screen Suppers’ Jenny Hammerton, the author of the Cooking with Joan Crawford Cookbook.

Cooking with Columbo: Suppers with the Shambling Sleuth is a treasury of 100 recipes, collected from Peter and his many co-stars, served up episode by episode alongside a selection of tasty side dishes and kitchen tested tips.

To accompany the book’s release, Jenny has been hosting the Columbo Bowl Chili Cook-Along (which ends on 20 February and everyone is invited to join in so check it out here), in which foodie fans are whipping up a chili dish based on a recipe by country and western star Johnny Cash (he was the guest in the 1974 episode Swan Song).

Chili was a big favourite of Columbo’s; although he got quite the surprise when Johnny’s version in the episode turned out to be made from squirrel meat. Thankfully Jenny asked everyone to either use beef (or try out the vegetarian version) for the cook-along. I opted for the former and you can see the results that I made live for the cook-along in the video below. Plus, I’ve included the recipe at the bottom on this post.

So what’s the Vincent Price link? Well, not only was Vinnie a big foodie himself (and the author of a number of cookbooks), he was also one of the many guest stars and appeared in Lovely But Lethal alongside Vera Miles, whose recipe appears in the book. Jenny has kindly provided that extract and I’ll be doing a post real soon.

In the meantime, here’s Johnny’s Chili recipe – and as it calls for beer as one of the ingredients, I have of course used a bottle of Hopdaemon’s Vincent Price Ale: Black Cat.

Johnny Cash ChiliJohnny Cash’s Chili
1 lb / 450g ground/minced venison (if available) or ground/minced beef (chuck or sirloin)
1/2 lb / 225g venison steaks (if available) or beef steaks, such as sirloin, or a rump roast, cut into bite-sized pieces
1 large onion, finely chopped
1 and 1/2 cloves of garlic, peeled and chopped
1 tablespoon canola/rapeseed oil
24 oz / 680g canned tomatoes
1 large green bell pepper
1/2 large red bell pepper
2.5 jalapeño peppers (optional)
1/2 habanero pepper (optional)
1 packet McCormick’s Mild Chili Seasoning Mix (or your favorite brand)
Salt and pepper
1/4 cup / 32g chili powder (New Mexico chili powder if available)
1/6 cup / 21g cumin
1/2 tablespoon sage
3/4 teaspoon oregano
1/2 tablespoon cayenne pepper
15 oz / 400g can black beans, drained
15 oz / 400g can pinto beans, drained
15 oz / 400g can chili beans/kidney beans in chili sauce
12 oz / 340g can kidney beans, drained*
6 oz / 170ml beer
1/8 cup / 25g sugar
A handful of self-rising cornmeal*

In a large pot, heat the oil over medium-high heat. Brown the steak in the oil in batches, draining off some of the fat if necessary. Remove from the heat and set aside. In a separate frying pan, brown the ground meat over medium-high heat. Drain off the fat and set meat aside.

With the oil remaining in the pot, brown half the onions and garlic over medium heat until they are caramelized. Now add the well-drained ground beef and steak. Stir and heat it all up. Add the cans of tomatoes, the bell peppers, hot peppers (if using), and the remainder of the onions and garlic. Heat to a brisk simmer, stirring often.

John Carter Cash says that his dad would normally add the spices in the following order, first the chili packet, followed by some salt and black pepper, chili powder, cumin, sage, oregano, and cayenne pepper. John advises tasting the chili and once the spicing it is to your liking, drain the cans of beans and add to the mixture. Now taste again, as the beans mellow the flavor of the chili. Once the chili is to your taste, pour in the bottle of beer. Stir well. Cover and simmer for at least 30 minutes, stirring occasionally. Add sugar to your taste. Simmer, covered, for at least another 30 minutes, making sure to stir so the chili does not burn. Now add the cornmeal and stir in.

* If self-rising cornmeal is unavailable, you can make it yourself. Just combine 1 cup / 120g of cornmeal, 1/3 cup / 40g all-purpose/plain flour, 1 & 1/2 teaspoons of baking powder, and 1/2 teaspoon of salt. Put the leftover mix in a sealed container and save for your next batch of Johnny Cash chili.
Serves 6

 

Save

Save

Save

Save

Save

Save

Share This:

Black Cat Vincent Price Ale is just ‘purr-fect’ for these Hammer glamour scream queens

Hammer's leading ladies Martine Beswick, Caroline Munro and Madeline Smith give their best cover girl pose with bottles of Black Cat VPA
Martine Beswick, Caroline Munro and Madeline Smith loved our Black Cat VPA

Check out these fun snaps of Hammer legends Martine Beswick, Caroline Munro and Madeline Smith happily posing with bottles of Black Cat, the first officially licensed Vincent Price Ale, at the recent film fair in Camden, London.

Hammer Glamour meets Vincent Price Ale
VPA creator Peter Fuller with Martine Beswick, Caroline Munro and Madeline Smith

Munro and Smith had the honour of appearing in the Vincent Price classics The Abominable Dr Phibes and Theatre of Blood, while two-time Bond girl Beswick appeared in the 1980s anthology From a Whisper to a Scream – Vincent’s last horror film.

These scream queens were all good friends with Price and loved the concept of a British ale made in honour of the horror icon and self-confessed Anglophile who called UK his second home for over 20 years, beginning in 1964 when he came to London to film the Roger Corman Poe film, Masque of the Red Death.

For the purr-fect Halloween tipple order Black Cat VPA now online at ALES BY MAIL

VPA label designer Graham Humphreys with Caroline Munro, who also appeared in the Vincent Price horror classic, The Abominable Dr Phibes

Illustrator Graham Humphreys, who designed the Black Cat label, is also working on a series of fab retro-looking limited edition Tees dedicated to some of Hammer’s leading ladies, beginning with this homage to Dracula AD72. You can order it online here.

caroline-art-purple-spoiler-2

 

 

Share This:

Catch Theatre of Blood on the big screen at Curzon Canterbury this Halloween

Curzon CanterburyThe Curzon Canterbury is proud to bring you a Vincent Price evening, screening Theatre of Blood, with a special Q&A with poster artist extraordinaire Graham Humphreys (who designed the original UK quads for pretty much every iconic horror film of the 80s and also created the fab label on the Vincent Price Ale, Black Cat), and Peter Fuller, curator of the Vincent Price Legacy UK!

Join us for a classic horror, unique competition prizes, a great panel discussion and an unforgettable evening – and let’s not forget some Vincent Price Ale.

Tickets ON SALE NOW

Share This:

Victoria Price loves our Black Cat ale dedicated to her horror legend dad

Victoria Price gives her seal of approval to the wicked new brew, Black Cat. Pictured here with the label's designer Graham Humphreys
Victoria Price gives her seal of approval to the wicked new brew, Black Cat. Pictured here with the label’s designer Graham Humphreys

Vincent Price Ale: Black CatVictoria Price was in London, UK this week giving an inspirational talk on her legendary dad and his legacy. The event, at the BFI Southbank, which followed a screening of the rarely-seen 1960s western The Jackals, also gave her the opportunity to give her seal of approval to the first-ever British-made Vincent Price Ale, which has been especially created by Kent brewers Hopdaemon in honour of the Horror King, and whose label has been designed by the equally legendary Graham Humphreys (aka The Quadfather).

Black Cat, so named because of Vincent’s brush with meddlesome moggies in the film classics Tales of Terror and Tomb of Ligeia, is now available to order online. So if you fancy stocking up the perfect Halloween tipple, then check it out now: www.alesbymail.co.uk

 

 

 

 

Share This: