3 oz Dry red chiles (about 1 --
Dozen ancho or New M
Chiles)
4 c  Unsalted beef stock
1 lb Chili grind ground beef
1 md Onion -- chopped fine
2    Garlic cloves -- minced
2 tb Bacon drippings
2 ts Cumin seeds -- toasted and
Ground
1/2 ts Mexican oregano
1/2 ts Salt
1 tb Masa harina

Preheat the oven to 300 degrees. Break the stems off the chile pods and
discard the seeds. Place the pods in a single layer on a cookie sheet and
roast them for 5 minutes at 300 degrees. Watch carefully as they scorch
easily. Break each chile into several pieces and put them in a blender
with the stock. Puree until it is a thick smooth liquid. In a medium
saucepan or skillet, brown the meat with the onion and garlic. Drain the
meat of excess fat and add the bacon drippings for flavor. When melted, add
the cumin oregano, salt and pureed chiles. Simmer the mixture for about 1
hour, stirring occasionally until the meat is tender and the liquid has
thickened slightly. In a small bowl, mix the masa harina with 2 tbsp. of
the liquid and stir back into the gravy. Cook 5-10 minutes longer. You can
skip the meat if desired, and you can speed up the process by using 1/2 C
chili powder instead of the chiles. If you use chili powder, reduce the
oregano and cumin by half.