I’ve been eating chili all my life, so imagine my surprise upon moving to Lexington, Kentucky for college and finding chili-themed restaurants seemingly on every street corner. I went in thinking I’d get a bowl of savory, meat based chili rich in pepper and spices, maybe with smoked brisket. I was wrong. Instead, the chili of choice from about the middle of Kentucky up through the middle of Ohio is served Cincinnati style, with a slightly sweet, cinnamon based meat sauce served over pasta.

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Cincinnati style chili has an almost cult-like following in northern Kentucky and southern Ohio. Try it with ground venison to see if you agree. Images by author

“How do you want it?” the proprietor asked. While my first inclination was to answer, “in a bowl and without beans,” I instead asked my options. Apparently it’s all about the ways: 2-way is straight meat sauce over spaghetti noodles, 3-way adds shredded cheese, 4-way tops that with diced onion and 5-way adds kidney beans.

I’m going to be honest, that first experience didn’t impress. I stayed away from Cincinnati style chili for for while. But local friends couldn’t get enough and it eventually grew on me as I tagged along to Skyline or Gold Star, the two main chain restaurants serving this mixture up. Interestingly, most local folks fall firmly in one camp or the other on those two, but to me, they taste about the same.

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If you are interested in trying this regional specialty, break out some ground venison and give this one a go. Just don’t expect Texas style chili when you do. For the record, I’ve settled on 4-way as my favorite.

In a dutch oven, brown the ground venison and most of the diced onion (save some for topping).

Use a bit of oil to get it started, if needed. Once the venison is browned and the onions soft, add the chocolate, garlic, chili powder, oregano, cinnamon, allspice, cloves. Cook for an additional minute.

Add the broth, tomato sauce, vinegar, tomato paste, brown sugar and Worcestershire sauce.

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Brown the ground venison and onion, then add stock, spices and tomato paste.

Season to taste with salt and pepper.

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Bring the mixture to a simmer.

Bring the mixture to a simmer and cook for 20 to 30 minutes or until thickened slightly.

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Cook the chili until slightly thickened and serve over cooked spaghetti.

Serve over spaghetti noodles with your choice of topping.

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