[Diplomat]

You poor young man. Everyone needs to know how to make a great chili.

1 pkg ground beef or ground veal (I prefer veal)
1 pkg beef shoulder (or other tough, fatty cut of meat). The problem with stewing beef is that it is often has a fair bit of sirloin in it, which tends to be too lean and consequently dry out while simmering.
1-2 hot italian sausages
1 bottle of dark beer
1 glass of red wine
2 shots of borboun (because everything needs bourbon)
1 can of peeled tomatoes
1/2 can tomato paste
1 can of mixed beans (or just kidney beans)
1 small can of corn
1 large onion
7-12 jalapenos
chili powder
cayenne pepper
cumin
black pepper
salt

That's my basic recipe, add spices, meat, and veggies as you like. Often I'll add some pepper extract to really fire it up, but not many people like that sort of thing. The spices are to taste, but you usually need lots of chili powder, less cayenne, and even less cumin. I usually do this in a crock pot; first brown the meat in a frying pan, then throw everything into the crock pot. Usually I'll reserve 1/2 the spices and 1/2 the veggies though and add them after after a couple hours so they still have some bite to them.

-Diplomat