We chat to Lincoln Chilli's Matt Glassman

Meet Matt Glassman, the co-founder of Lincoln Chilli. His specialty of real chilli con carne, is not the lazy TexMex version we know over here where tortillas are piled high with cheap mince and sour cream. Instead Matt carefully sources meats before slow-cooking them to create richly spiced dishes, of which there are countless regional varieties in America. Matt was born and raised in Virginia, and has joined forces with his friend Dan Gibney to form Lincoln Chilli, a supperclub that’s sold out all its events. They’re set to host a Thanksgiving dinner on November 21st ahead of opening their first restaurant next year.


Just to give us Brits a sense of how big a deal Thanksgiving is in the US, is it as huge as Christmas?

I think in many ways it’s bigger. I suppose technically being a secular country it’s the one holiday that all Americans truly celebrate. While statistics alone can’t prove it being ‘bigger’, I do know that more Americans travel to be with their family for Thanksgiving than any other day. I think it’s our own little creation and something we can be proud of as a nation.


Your Lincoln Chilli is a family recipe, did you have this at Thanksgiving or did you stick to traditional turkey?

As most of my family origins have come from the South, I think our palates demanded something a bit bolder than just turkey. So there was always a pot of our slow cooked brisket chilli cooking 24 hours before dinner time. We had the traditional things on the table but it was pretty easy to see what the real winners were.


Where does the ‘Lincoln’ in the name come from?

This really depends who you ask at our family Thanksgiving dinner table. The recipe is almost 100 years old and originates from where my grandfather grew up in Encinal, Texas. The story I’ve been told is that the ingredients to feed his large family could be purchased with a $5 note, which bears the image of Abraham Lincoln. I like this legend- so it’s the one I’m going with!


What can you reveal about the restaurant you’re opening next year?

The restaurant is going to be awesome. We are taking all the key elements from our supper club successes and putting them into our restaurant. I love the interactive elements of American bars, so want the friendliness of the service to be part of the experience, as well as that of your fellow diners.

Expect on the menu delicious slow cooked chillis to please carnivores and vegetarians alike, including some more interesting creations like venison and bison chilli, all with cornbread made from scratch of course. Craft beers both local and American served ice cold, a lengthy selection of small batch Bourbons and Ryes, and some California wines both bold and finessed to match our chillis.


Can you share one of your upcoming supperclub recipes with us?

I love this pumpkin pie recipe. Which I can’t wait to serve on the 21st!

Ingredients:
1 small pumpkin
1/3 litre of milk
3 eggs
175 grams of sugar
100 grams of olive oil
Half teaspoon of salt
1.5 teaspoon cinnamon, ground
Half teaspoon of nutmeg, ground
Half teaspoon of clove, ground
1 teaspoon of vanilla extract
Pie crust

Method:
Wash the pumpkin, slice open and remove the seeds. Cut the pumpkin into small pieces and place into a pot with a colander, fill with 5cm or so of water, bring to the boil, then reduce to a simmer.

Check it’s in a mashable state after 30 minutes,and repeat if necessary until complete.

Drain water, cool and separate skin from pulp of pumpkin.Hand mash pulp into 500 grams of pumpkin.

Mix and stir all remaining ingredients. Pour into pie crust and bake for 60 minutesat 175 degrees.

Cool down and served in slices with a dollop of whipped cream.


Lincoln Chilli’s Real American Thanksgiving takes place at Maple & Fitz on November 21st, get tickets from grubclub.com