And we're off and running... Firstly you will need an adequate sized pot. I use a 12 quart stainless steel stock pot. It is a bit thin and doesn't spread the heat well, but what the hey. I also use a 6-quart dutch oven to start out with and transfer everything over to the stock pot later. The dutch oven is thicker and handles the initial cooking better. If you don't add the mushrooms the 6-quart pot is probably adequate for the whole batch. Note: This takes forever to make so why make a little bit. Freeze most of it and use it whenever the urge strikes...

Put the oil in the (in my case) heavy pot and bring it up to fairly hot while cutting the meat. I usually use round steak or stew meat if it is really lean. You don't want a bunch of beef fat in this. The olive oil is the binding for it all and beef fat just makes it greasy -- so use the leanest and least expensive meat you can get. Cut the meat into about 1" pieces and brown well in the oil. Add black pepper and bouillon granules (or salt) to taste.

While the meat is cooking, chop the onions and bell peppers. Nothing fancy is needed. The onions will cook down well but the bell peppers will only become soft, so cut the peppers into not more than one inch sections. When the meat is brown and most of the moisture has cooked out, add the Chiles Japonese, garlic, onions, bell peppers, and mushrooms. Note: Leave the mushrooms whole as they will be reduced in size down to nickel sized nubs. If you use sliced mushrooms they will just disappear into the brew -- which is OK also if you just want the added flavor -- but I find that the whole mushrooms become pure flavor nubs -- ambrosia ambrotos!

Pour in enough red wine (I use Carlo Rossi Burgundy; hearty and inexpensive!) to come to the top of the ingredients -- and light the fire. Cook it (initially) using a high heat, boiling and reducing the whole thing down until there is almost no liquid left, stirring every so often. This process will take an hour or more depending upon how high you have the heat set and how often you are prepared to stir it and keep it from burning.

Watch that heat setting, though, because as the amount of liquid is reduced the temperature of the mixture will increase. If you don't reduce the heat periodically you will burn the bottom, but don't despair if you do. Just transfer the unburned part to another container -- without disturbing the charcoal lump on the bottom -- clean the pot -- pour the stuff back in and continue -- the part that burns is caramelized sugars and a little bit of scorching only adds more flavor! (That's why it's called Food with an attitude!)

Once the mixture has cooked down to where almost all the liquid has been removed, turn off the fire and add all of the canned tomatoes. At this time I transfer the whole mess to the 12-quart stock pot. Stir it and mix well then turn the fire back on high. Bring the whole thing up to a simmer, reduce the heat, and let it cook until all that tomato red turns into more of dark brown sugar color, stirring occasionally but vigoursly (to break up the chunks and lumps).

I find that the cooking time varies depending on the type of tomatoes you buy. The Progresso brand seem to cook fairly quickly while some of the cheaper brands have harder/greener tomatoes and so they take longer. I find that it will usually be done within 12 hours or so... By this time you will have reduced it by about a quarter to one third of it's volume. There should be some free liquid, but the consistency should be about that of a thick, chunky, spaghetti sauce.

Again, be warned that as it cooks down, it will tend to burn. You will need a thick pot or some way to spread the heat if you are using a gas stove. You want an even heat across the bottom of the pot so that hot spots don't develop. I let it cook over night and that means several hours without being stirred, so be warned that it does burn easily. But, again, if you burn it a bit, no harm, no foul...it just tastes a bit more interesting.

Notes:

• You can put in more or less Chiles Japonese -- these are dried red peppers akin to the Arbol chile pods which may be easier to find -- they are often found in hot oriental dishes -- those long red things that don't cook down. I sometimes make this without the chilies when I expect to have company that doesn't eat hot food (I can assure you that these are folks that have married into the family.)
• If you don't use the meat, cook the onions and garlic in the oil prior to adding the rest of the stuff. This improves the flavor as it brings out the sugars in the onions and gives it a chance to caramelize.
• Wait until the sauce is done prior to adding the final seasoning, if any. If you think it needs salt, add some more bouillon granules if you are using it -- otherwise just use salt. It usually doesn't need it, but sometimes it does. Also, sometimes it turns out with a bit of an acid tang. You can take the edge off of that with some brown sugar if you are so inclined. There is usually pleanty of sugar that cooks out of the ingredients, but if there isn't, the brown sugar does the trick.