Here's mine, and what I did before the ALDS. I know it's not "authentic" but it did get me invited to Terlingua.
per 2 lbs meat (I like a mix of diced and very course ground, you have to ask the store to grind it as course as they can, unless you have your own). I typically use venison and add some course ground pork belly or butt, but if using beef with a good amount of fat in it you shouldn't need to.
Dutch oven
small food processor (coffee grinder will also work, you may have to use it in batches. Clean out by chopping up cubes of staleish white bread)
2 cups liquid (any combination of water/beer/broth, I use Shiner Black and beef/venison broth)
3/4 teaspoon baking soda
6 dried ancho chiles, 2 dried pasilla chiles and 3 dried red fresnos/chile colorados or comparable, stemmed, seeded and torn into 1" pieces
1/4 c ground tortilla chips
2 T cumin seeds
1 T coriander seeds
1 T each: paprika, dried mexican oregano
1 t fresh ground black pepper
1/2 t dried thyme
2 T beef tallow
1 medium onion, chopped fine
3 garlic cloves, minced
2 T canned chipotle chile in adobo, minced
4 oz tomato puree
2 t sugar
2 T cider vinegar
Heat oven (smoker and a propane camp stove work just the same) to 275 with rack in lower middle. Toss meat with 2 T water, 1 t salt and baking soda and set aside for 30 mins. Baking soda changes the ph of the meat, makes it retain moisture better and brown more evenly.
Heat dutch oven on med-hi heat on the stove, add dried chiles and toast about 5 minutes, stirring frequently, lower heat and remove if they start to smoke. Remove and let cool (makes them crisp up a bit). Add cumin/coriander seeds, toast until fragrant.
Add tortilla chips, toasted chiles and seeds, paprika, garlic powder, oregano, thyme & black pepper to food processor and grind until fine.
Heat tallow in dutch oven. Cook onion until softened, add garlic & cook 1 minute. Add meat and cook until browned & fond (black sticky bits) begins to form on bottom of pot (12-15 mins). Add ancho mixture and chipotles in adobo, mix well and cook, stirring for a couple of minutes.
Add 2 cups liquid, sugar, and tomato puree, bring to a boil, scrape bottom of pot to loosen browned bits, stir, cover & transfer to oven/smoker for 1.5 to 2 hours, stirring every 15 mins to prevent sticking.
Remove from oven, let stand uncovered for 10 mins. Add vinegar and salt to taste, stir. Do not skim off any fat, most spices are fat soluble, so that little orange slick is pure flavor.
Garnish with whatever you want: cheddar/jack/whatever cheese, diced onion, serranos, avocado, lime juice, cilantro.
Serve with whatever you want: fritos, corn chips, beans, rice, cornbread, tamales, crackers
