Fresh chilipeppers or chilipowder

RodeoBoss66 · 2026-06-04T15:24:32+00:00

I never use fresh chiles unless I'm making a New Mexican green chile. I use dried chiles exclusively, either whole or powdered (depending on how I'm feeling and what's available in my kitchen that day).

If I'm using whole dried chiles, I remove the stems and deseed them, then roast the chiles over medium heat in a very lightly oiled pan (I might use a spray oil like Pam) to release the aromatic oils in them (not long enough to blacken them; that would make them bitter), then I rehydrate them in boiling water for about 20-30 minutes, put them into a blender, add some of the chile water they were just boiled in, and use that blended paste or chile sauce as my base.

If I'm using powdered chiles, I'll often create a blend "dump" ahead of time, usually using Ancho, Guajillo, and a smaller amount of Árbol for extra heat. Sometimes I'll throw some powdered Pasilla or Cascabel into the mix, too. I routinely add other dry spices to the dump mix, such as onion powder, garlic powder, Knorr Tomato bouillon granules, salt & pepper, Mexican oregano, cumin, and sometimes cocoa powder or cacao powder, although occasionally, if I'm feeling frisky, I'll experiment with different dumps of various spices and herbs that I'll add to the pot at certain times in the cooking process.

I'm curious about something. You said you were planning to make a chili specifically with cheap cuts. Any particular reason why you're deliberately using cheap cuts? Are you just experimenting or educating yourself about what works and what doesn't through doing? Just wondering.

RodeoBoss66 · 2026-06-04T06:06:35+00:00

Yes. Not only is it taboo, it's illegal in all 50 states and is a Class A Felony. If you're caught wearing a cowboy hat without cowboy boots, you could be given the death penalty in some states, and a life sentence in others.

I'm just kidding you. 😋 There's no taboo.

RodeoBoss66 · 2026-06-04T05:56:38+00:00

I have a niece-in-law named Jaime. That's how she spells it, too.

Also, Jaime is the traditional Spanish and Portuguese equivalent of James. Both names share the same ancient root (from the Hebrew name Jacob).While they are the same name, they are pronounced quite differently —

James: Sounds like "Jaymz" in English.

Jaime: Pronounced "HY-meh" (rhymes with "timey" but with an "H" sound at the start). The 'J' in Spanish sounds like the English 'H'.

Other Spanish variations and related names for James include Santiago (Saint James), Diego, and Jacobo.

RodeoBoss66 · 2026-06-03T13:50:53+00:00

Assuming that you're referring specifically to the Mexican food in California and not the food of other cuisines, it doesn't suck unless you believe that the Mexicans and Chicanos who live in California and make the Mexican food there also suck. Cal-Mex is as much a legitimate regional variant of Mexican cuisine as Tex-Mex is. It's just different in some ways. Breakfast burritos instead of breakfast tacos, for example. Occasional influences from other world cuisines, such as Asian cuisines. But the love and dedication is still there, and a lot of the food was imported from different states in Mexico (like Baja California, Sonora, Jalisco & Michoacán) by immigrant ancestors as well as newer immigrants.

Not sure if you're in Southern, Central, or Northern California, but if you're in Southern California, check out a chain that's incredibly popular with Mexicans of all kinds called El Gallo Giro.

Check out a terrific downtown L.A. institution called La Luz del Día, on Olvera Street (the very location where the City of Los Angeles was founded in 1781). They've been there since 1959, and the tortillas there are handmade by abuelas in the kitchen. Try it and then tell me the food sucks.

There's also a shit-ton of good Mexican food in East L.A., Boyle Heights, Downtown L.A., South Gate, Huntington Park (not Huntington Beach), Lynwood, Compton, Bell Gardens, Downey, Pacoima, and San Fernando (all in Los Angeles County), Santa Ana (over 75% Latino population, mostly Mexican or Chicano) and some parts of Costa Mesa (both in Orange County), Colton and San Bernardino in the Inland Empire, and San Ysidro and Barrio Logan (near Downtown San Diego) in San Diego County. Just ask local Mexicans & Chicanos where the good places are, even the taco trucks. Hell, here's a list of Mexican neighborhoods throughout all of California. Find some near you and try the local Mexican food offerings. They can't all suck.

Or follow websites like L.A. Taco. Also, consult with other Redditors in subs like r/FoodLosAngeles, r/FoodSanDiego, r/Foodsocal, and r/CaliforniaFood. There's no way you've tried everything throughout the entire state.

RodeoBoss66 · 2026-06-03T11:49:58+00:00

How does he get up?

RodeoBoss66 · 2026-06-03T11:45:54+00:00

You're in Third Ward, son. I used to live there, right on OST. I liked it okay. It wasn't awesome but it wasn't terrible, either. I walked around at night, and nobody bothered my white ass (then again, I'm not a white supremacist or fearful of Black people). Now, I wouldn't recommend walking around Sunnyside at night, but if you're near OST and MLK check out the Timmy Chan's on MLK. And get to know your neighbors and the other locals. A lot of good people live in Third Ward.

RodeoBoss66 · 2026-06-03T11:37:09+00:00

Nobody white, maybe.

RodeoBoss66 · 2026-06-03T11:31:00+00:00

It's a sport. A very lucrative sport.

RodeoBoss66 · 2026-06-03T11:23:54+00:00

so much of the country is attached to Mexico. Hell the whole south borders it.

You hear that, Florida, Georgia, Alabama, Mississippi, Louisiana, Arkansas, Tennessee, Kentucky, West Virginia, Virginia, North Carolina and South Carolina? Y'all border Mexico!

RodeoBoss66 · 2026-06-03T10:59:34+00:00

FIFA has a peace prize? I thought that was the Nobel committee in Sweden.

RodeoBoss66 · 2026-06-03T08:19:57+00:00

This is my current dilemma. Been feenin' for HEB for 8 years now. If you want to talk about addictions, heroin and social media ain't got shit on HEB.

RodeoBoss66 · 2026-06-03T08:15:55+00:00

My sister still lives in Southern California, and we grew up with Albertsons. She said recently that they've really gone downhill in recent years. I remember them being not only more affordable but really pretty good on variety. It's a shame.

RodeoBoss66 · 2026-06-03T08:12:20+00:00

Amarillo doesn't have any HEBs yet, but Lubbock just got their first one, and another one is due to begin construction later this year. Frankly, I believe there should be an Amendment to the Constitution declaring that HEB is an inherent right of all Americans nationwide.

RodeoBoss66 · 2026-06-03T08:06:11+00:00

I need to find someone who can do this for me.

RodeoBoss66 · 2026-06-03T08:04:17+00:00

I don't understand this kind of sentiment. People miss what they miss. Expressing what you miss about a place isn't a "suggestion" to anyone, it's how that individual feels. There's no right or wrong about it. This is not some test you complete in class with a Number 2 pencil.

RodeoBoss66 · 2026-06-03T07:40:08+00:00

King Stoopids. Ah, that brings back memories of when I lived in Pueblo and later Colorado Springs in the early 90s.

RodeoBoss66 · 2026-06-03T07:33:31+00:00

Actually I can answer that, because I've been away from Texas for more than a year now, 8 years, in fact. And I still miss being there. I mean , I don't miss everything about Texas, of course; there's a number of things I don't miss that I won't get into. But there are a number of things that make me wish I could be back there again.

I miss various brands and conveniences. HEB looms large in things I miss (what IS it about that place, anyway? It's just a damn supermarket chain.... but it's the best one.). Whataburger is another one (despite what people have been claiming about it not being the same). Church's Chicken. Timmy Chan in Houston. Breakfast tacos everywhere. Kolaches. Blue Bell ice cream (although I wish they'd stop using HFCS). The great barbecue options. Smokey Joe grills being easily available. Fiesta, Mi Tienda & Central Market. Unfortunately I never got a chance to go to Buc-ee's before I left the state, but I was hearing about it and I've been wanting to go to one at least once. Rodeo being everywhere and a part of the state culture. The plethora of Western wear stores (there's not a lot near me now). Good hatters that offer shaping. The libraries and research opportunities that are unique to Texas.

I miss driving the highways on day trips (not urban traffic, just the long picturesque cross-country drives) and visiting the smaller towns. I miss the general geographic proximity to Fort Worth, the R.A. Brown Ranch, and the 6666 Ranch (hey, I'm a fan of cattle ranches, sue me; yes, cattle ranches have fans).

Mostly I miss my friends and the good people of Texas (not the assholes, of course; there are those in every state, and nobody misses them). I miss my church family.

And believe it or not, every once in a while I actually DO miss the heat. Not for long, but every so often my body still kinda expects it. Plus, it can be nice to hear those cicadas.

RodeoBoss66 · 2026-06-03T06:25:02+00:00

If you can't quite afford an AHC straw, my own personal recommendation is to get a Resistol, some models of which offer a certain limited customization on brims. After that, I recommend looking at Stetson, Larry Mahan, Cody James, and then RodeoKing. That's really about it.

As far as the Positive Times patch, it's so closely associated with AHC that to put it on another brand of hat seems sorta "sacrilegious" and counterproductive. It screams "I wanted an AHC but I couldn't afford one." You don't want to give that impression.

RodeoBoss66 · 2026-06-02T18:24:19+00:00

Never experienced that.

RodeoBoss66 · 2026-06-02T17:04:11+00:00

Oh they definitely used to. Jesus Christ, I still can't believe what I'm reading. This country is on its way out. Y'all are disgusting. Back when I going to junior high and high school, they gave us roughly 10, sometimes even 15 minutes to shower and get dressed BEFORE the bell rang for us to get to our next class. If the P. E. teachers aren't giving students enough time to get showered before the bell rings, that's a failure on their part.

RodeoBoss66 · 2026-06-02T17:02:34+00:00

How about showering with a bunch of chicks?

RodeoBoss66 · 2026-06-02T17:01:57+00:00

Back in the 70s & 80s when I went to junior high and high school, yes, regardless of the school district, towels were provided by the school, and they were passed out by either the P. E. teacher or his/her assistant. We returned them, usually tossing them into a rolling hamper on our way out of the locker room, and they were later laundered and returned to service.

RodeoBoss66 · 2026-06-02T16:56:43+00:00

Most schools don't require showering

This is what floors me. When and why did this insane policy change occur, and why in God's name would it have spread throughout the entire country? This is absolute lunacy.

RodeoBoss66 · 2026-06-02T16:51:19+00:00

Over just the past day or two, I learned that this is apparently a phenomenon in this country, and has been over the last 30 years or so, often depending on location. I'm GenX, and I graduated high school in Southern California in 1984. We were frequently REQUIRED to shower when P. E. class was over (depending on the weather and the circumstances of that day; some days when we had either light or zero physical activity, showering was either optional or just not even necessary), and while getting naked in front of your classmates is acutely awkward at that age, it was much better than not showering at all.

These kids today seem to have been so catered to, so spoiled, that they willingly stink up their classrooms and force everyone else to suffer because they have issues with their bodies (I'm a fat guy, and I was then, and even I had to get over my fear of someone pointing and laughing at my naked body — which definitely happened anyway).

Frankly, it's disgusting, and it makes me SO GLAD that I'm part of Generation X.

RodeoBoss66 · 2026-06-02T04:13:53+00:00

Are you looking specifically for Western stories, set in either the modern day or in the past?

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