As the reigning queen of country music, Reba McEntire has made Oklahoma pop culture her own culture, with platinum records, a hit television series, and – following in the footsteps of Toby Keith and Blake Shelton – the launch of her own restaurant, Reba’s Place in Atoka.
A true country icon to many in the Okie world, Reba's star was still rising up the charts in the late '80s and early '90s, when she was crossing over from mainstream country singer into the megastar she is today. Back then, she had no qualms about submitting her favorite chili recipe to the 1991 Oklahoma Celebrity Cookbook.
As you may know, I’ve been recreating recipes from this Oklahoma Celebrity Cookbook over the past few months, and with Reba's music on my mind, I decided to try her Hot ‘n’ Spicy Chunky Beef Chili. Much like her discography, it's a hot country night in a small town, only with far more belching. Pass the ammo...and the Tums!
Reba’s recipe required an extensive lineup of ingredients: beef chuck steak, hot chili peppers, bell peppers, onions, minced garlic, and various cans of tomatoes and spices. The only ingredient I couldn’t locate was the word-bubbling explosion of Bake-Rite, a Made in Oklahoma supplier of canned lard that, sadly, is no longer in business.
I started by browning the lean boneless beef chuck, cut into inch-long pieces. Adding the onion and garlic to the mix created a tear-inducing moment that made me cry like Cathy's Clown.