Chili
It’s the chili-time of the year and I made a batch last week. Here’s the basic recipe…
- 1 Tbs. canola or vegetable oil
- 1 1/3 lbs. ground beef
- 1 lb. Jimmy Dean spicy sausage
- 2 cups chopped onion
- 4 cloves of garlic, chopped
- 2 15 oz. cans of tomato sauce
- 1 28 oz can of chopped tomatoes
- 2 Tbs. ground cumin
- 2 Tbs. chili powder, more or less depending on your taste and the heat of the chili powder
- 1 Tbs. Worcestershire sauce
- 1/8 tsp. ground cloves
- salt and pepper to taste
- 1 15 oz. can of red kidney beans or black beans
- 2 oz. dark chocolate.
Heat the oil over medum heat in a large pot. I use a 12-quart stock pot. Sweat the onions for 3-5 minutes then add the garlic and sweat for 2 more minutes. Turn the heat up to medium-high, add the beef and sausage, break up into small chunks and brown thoroughly. Move the mixture to one side of the pot, tip the pot up a little and, using a turkey baster, remove the accumulated fat.
Add the tomatoes, cumin, chili powder, cloves, and Worcestershire sauce and stir. Turn down to low and simmer for 1 hour. Add salt and pepper to taste. Drain and rinse the kidney beans and add to chili, cooking an additional 10 minutes on low. Just before serving, stir in the chocolate until melted. The chocolate adds a layer of flavor; you can’t taste it, but it enhances the taste.
Serve with any or all of the following: grated cheddar cheese, sour cream, chopped green onion, cilantro or crushed tortilla chips.
Hi Scott! Your blog is terrific! I certainly hope you get a huge following. Your recipes look easy to implement and sound like they have loads of flavors. The Dutch Oven chicken must have been delicious. Mike and I are in Novato, about 20 miles north of the Golden Gate bridge, and very close to the wine country. We’d love to see you and Lisa if you ever get this way. Hugs, Karen Hingson – http://www.quiltedelegancebykaren.com
Hi Scott
We love chili at our house and cannot wait to try your recipe. I know if it gets the green light from you…it’s got to be tasty!
Deb Laurie
Hello, Karen. It’s been quite a while. Thanks for your kind words. Two young children and a desire to make easy yet interesting food were what drove us to seek out and develop recipes like that. Lisa and I talk often about our next trip to wine country. When we get up there, we will definitely look you up. Thanks for reading. xoxox, SB
Thanks a lot, Debbie. I appreciate you taking a look at BSR. That recipe is basically my Mom’s recipe that she’s been cooking forever, so it’s been thoroughly tested. She uses whole cloves, but I think they’re too much of a pain to dig out of the chili. Nice to hear from you…
Assume it will work with ground turkey which is defrosting as we email — you have improved and embellished my basic receipe and it sounds good. Will definitely follow your instructions. xxxooo Mom
It was hard to improve on greatness, but I got the chocolate tip from a chili cookoff show. I’ve made this with turkey before and it was pretty good. I find the ground turkey that’s just breast meat is a little dry, sometimes. Thanks for the comment.