Sunday, November 15, 2020

Chili

Hi there! Well IT has been a WHILE! The truth is - life looks quite a bit different than it did the last time I published a recipe. I’ve been a little busy… that’s my story and I’m sticking to it:

These two little cuties are mine! I was pregnant with the one on the right last time I posted lol! Time flies when you’re having fun. To catch you up on the last 4 years of my life real quick – I had two babies, quit my job as a software developer to be a stay-at-home mom, and moved to Southwest Florida! Some of these huge life changes occurring during a global pandemic. 2020 has been a YEAR hasn’t it?

I’m ending my hiatus to share this Chili with you today because it’s some of my finest work, but the recipe has been living on a scrap piece of paper and then a note in my phone, which just ain’t right! I HAD to document this recipe on the blog and share it with the world, because it’s been 5 years in the making, and I’ve finally perfected it. 

The first iteration was in 2015. I usually make it on the first cool day of the fall, however this year in SW Florida I settled for “gloomy and rainy” as “chili weather” lol. Each year I scribbled down my notes on the ingredients and tweaked things here and there. And the last 2 years or so, I’ve left it mostly unchanged. It’s basically perfect, if I do say so myself! 


 I like a chunky chili with some veggies that you can actually see. This chili has onions, bell peppers, green chiles, and diced tomatoes which give it tons of texture and flavor. Not to mention they make it more appetizing to look at I think! The veggies give this chili a little somethin’ somethin’ without straying too far away from a classic chili.

The proportions of the spices and seasonings are just right. Bold, tangy, a little kick without too much spice. I’d definitely consider this a mild chili. If you wanted a little bit more heat, you can absolutely throw a diced jalapeno in when you’re sweating the onions and bell peppers. I usually do this when I’m not cooking for kids!

Another optional but awesome ingredient is a sweet potato. Our sweet friend Savanna made us chili after our daughter was born (side note – food is one of the greatest gifts you can give to sleep-deprived new parents) and she included a diced sweet potato in her recipe. The little bit of sweetness is such a nice contrast and surprise in a robust and savory dish like chili! I didn’t include a sweet potato in the batch pictured here, but I often do. Simply dice it into small chunks and sauté it with the peppers and onions, and proceed with the rest of the recipe.

I always serve this chili with cornbread adapted from this recipe. I always cut the sugar in half, and usually I tweak the proportions just slightly in order to not waste any canned cream corn and muffin mix lol. I’ll get that recipe written out fully here eventually, but that’s a post for another day.

*Pictured here is a double batch! I usually double the recipe and freeze a bunch.

Full disclosure – going forward, this blog is going to look different than it did when I first created it. In all likelihood, my posts won’t be very frequent (and they won’t be this long either)! And I probably won’t include step-by-step photos (at least not as many as I used to) because they increase the amount of time and effort it takes to publish a post significantly. I’m incredibly lucky that my days and nights are quite full right now, enjoying motherhood and building our life in SW Florida (if you need AC work done, I know a guy!). So I hope y’all can forgive me if I take the quicker route to posting, and if I duck out for long periods of time lol! I’m trying not to let *perfection* get in the way of *just*doing*things* lately. Anyone else?

But if I feel the need to shout a recipe from the rooftops (I can think of a handful of others that haven’t quite made it to the blog yet) and I take the time to take some pictures and write it up, you can count on it being a damn good recipe! I can promise you that!

Hence – my awesome Chili recipe:

 

Chili

Chili
By
A classic mild chili recipe with beef and beans plus chunky vegetables for tons of texture and flavor
 
Ingredients
  • 1 lb ground chuck
  • 2 Tbsp extra virgin olive oil
  • 2 bell peppers
  • 1 yellow onion
  • 3 cloves minced garlic
  • 4 oz diced green chiles (canned)
  • 14.5 oz diced tomatoes (canned)
  • 15 oz dark red kidney beans (canned)
  • 15.5 oz pinto beans (canned)
  • 28 oz crushed tomatoes (canned)
  • 3 Tbsp chili powder
  • 1 Tbsp cumin
  • 1 Tbsp paprika
  • 1 tsp ground mustard
  • 1 tsp Worcestershire sauce
  • 1 tsp black pepper
  • Salt to taste (I usually use 3 or 4 tsp depending on the salt content of my canned ingredients)
  • 2 cups water
1. Brown the ground chunk in a large pot over medium heat. Drain the meat and set aside. Discard most of the fat and excess liquid. 
 
2. Dice the onion and bell peppers. Add olive oil, onions, and bell peppers to the pot and sauté over medium heat until softened, about 10 minutes. 
 
3. Add minced garlic to the pot and sauté until fragrant, about a minute or two. 
 
4. Drain and rinse the beans (do NOT drain the green chiles or tomatoes). Reduce the heat to medium low, add all ingredients to the pot and stir. 
 
5. Simmer for at least 30 minutes. 2 – 4 hours is ideal! Stir occasionally. I like to start this recipe right after lunch and let it simmer all afternoon if I’m making it for dinner. Serve with cornbread and your favorite toppings (sour cream, shredded cheddar cheese, hot sauce, etc).
 
Prep time:
Cook time:
Total time:
Yield: 6 - 8
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