After taking a Holiday Hiatus, we are back with a few new recipes to try! In honor of the cold weather, here is my newest attempt at homemade chili:
What you'll need:
Crock pot (mine is a 4 quart model)
Large Skillet/Fry Pan
Ingredients:
1 Tablespoon Extra Virgin Olive Oil
1/2 large Onion, diced
3 cloves Garlic, diced
2 Tablespoons Honey
1 pound Mince Pork (or your favorite mince meat)
1 pound Hot Italian Sausage, de-cased and crumbled
1 can of Diced Tomatoes (28 ounce), drained
1/4 cup Green Enchilada Sauce (optional)
1 can Pinto beans (14 ounce), drained
1 can Black beans (14 ounce), drained
1 can Kidney beans (14 ounce), drained
2 Jalapeno peppers (or your favorite varietal), de-seeded and diced
1 Red Bell pepper, chopped
1 Tablespoon Crushed Red Pepper flakes
1/2 Tablespoon Chili powder
1/2 Tablespoon Cayenne powder
1 Tablespoon Paprika
1 Tablespoon Oregano
Salt and pepper to taste
1. In the skillet, saute the onion, garlic, bell pepper and jalapenos in heated olive oil. As the onions turn glassy, stir in the honey and all of the spices. Let simmer for about a minute.
2. Pour the vegetable and spice mixture into your slow cooker. Stir in the cans of tomatoes and beans.
3. In the same skillet (without cleaning it), brown up your mince meats. You shouldn't need more oil.
4. Add the meat to the slow cooker. At this point the chili looks very chunky and dry. Do not add water! As it cooks, the moisture in the ingredients will moisten the mixture. If you add water, it will be too runny!
5. Cook on low for about 8 hours. It will be ready to eat after about 2 hours on high, but this really tastes better the longer and lower its cooked.
Serve in a bowl with your favorite garnishes (diced onion, shredded cheese, sour cream, cornbread, etc.). I found this tastes really good with a nice piece buttered sourdough bread.
It cost me about $12 to make this and fed me for three days (about 8 large bowls). I like a little heat in my chili and found that the jalapenos without their seeds created a nice moderate burn. If you like it less spicy, try a milder pepper like New Mexico Hatch Green Chilis or Anaheim Chilis and decrease the amount of chili/cayenne/red chili flakes. If you like it hotter, try Serrano Chilis and increasing the spicy herbs.
~Tiffens
