Soup Weather - Recipe #2, Chili

In November I shared my love of soup, as well as a recipe for a favorite cauliflower one. This past Monday, in order to do something with the ground beef I had thawed in the fridge, I made chili to have ready for Stew's conjugal visit this weekend. While cooking it, I took some pictures and thought I'd share again. A little background first...

The inspiration for this chili was from a fave meal of Stew's served by a bar we used to visit regularly in Raleigh. Let's see if google can help me out here... ah yes, Mitch's Tavern across Hillsborough Street from NC State. We ate there fairly regularly for a while, usually once a week with Uncle Nick, before going to see an independent movie. A scene from Bull Durham was filmed there, sadly youtube fails to provide a clip. Anyway, Stew always liked to get "The Feast," which was a spicy thick-n-chunky chili served over penne noodles with a big chunk of garlic bread and a few tortilla chips on the side. Around that time we were trying out either South Beach Diet or something else low carb-ish, and chili was a fairly "good" thing to eat (not drenched over penne noodles, but hey). So we tried to replicate it at home. I think I started out from an online SBD forum chili recipe and went from there, making it a bit hotter and spicier by experimentation. Nowadays I kind of wing it, using what we have on hand (i.e. might have baked beans instead of chili beans, or a big can of tomato sauce instead of crushed tomatos, etc.). On Weight Watchers, a bowl of chili can be kind of pointy, but usually one big bowl is enough.

What you'll need:

• dutch oven or large soup pot
• high heat tolerant spatula
• 2 lb ground beef (or equivalent weight cubed chicken breast or beef stew meat)
• one green bell pepper
• one medium red onion (or fave color)
  
• extra virgin olive oil
• spices of choice- chili powder, cumin, salt, black pepper, garlic powder, crushed red pepper
• 28 oz can crushed tomatoes
• 1 can diced tomato w/ green chili or jalepeno
• 2 cans black beans (drain one can, use liquid from other)
• 1 can red chili beans
• worcester sauce
• hot salsa
• hot sauce (shh... secret ingredient)
• other stuff I've added: green chilies, mushrooms, corn, garden grown tomatoes & peppers, etc.
  

I like to use the dutch oven because A) it is big enough and B) it just looks like the proper vessel for a hearty chili and C) a little bit of rust is good for you right? But I'm sure it would work to fry the ground beef separately and then simmer all in a big soup pot too. You just won't be as cool as I am. :)

Chop up the green pepper and onion.

On medium heat, warm a bit of olive oil and garlic (powder in my case) and then I add in 1/4 of the chopped onion, sauteeing until lightly browned. Add the ground beef, squirt some worcester sauce over it and use spatula or device of choice to break up the beef as preferred. Cover and cook for a minute or so, then stir/chop until beef is pretty much browned. We've been buying 1/2 of an organically raised Iowa beef cow to store in the deep freeze, so our ground beef cooks up with very little fat. Otherwise you might need to drain a bit, but you might leave a bit of in for extra "flavor."

Add more garlic powder and a tablespoon or so of chili powder, another 1/4 chopped onion and maybe 1/4 green pepper. Stir/chop until beef is completely browned and you are inclined to sneak a chunk out to taste, as it should look like taco or sloppy joe stuff at this point.

Now add all the juicy stuff- crushed tomatoes, diced tomatoes, salsa and hot sauce. Those last two can be optional if you can't tolerate spice/burn, and their measurements I think are as preferred as well. I usually dump at least half a jar of salsa in and a good heavy dousing of our secret ingredient hot sauce (imported from NC).

I typically add spices now too... more chili powder, maybe a teaspoon of cumin, salt, pepper, crushed red pepper and garlic powder. Also add the rest of the chopped pepper and onion. Stir it all up and let simmer about 10 - 15 minutes, possibly increasing the heat a bit.

After that first 10 - 15 mins, do a taste test and add more spice/salsa/hot sauce as you see fit. Otherwise, add in the beans and set back to medium-low heat. Let it simmer for 30 - 40 mins, stirring occasionally. You want it to have that nice slow bubble for a while. There should be a little pondscum buildup occurring on the top before you stir it the next time.

We've eaten it early before, like maybe after only 20 minutes of simmering, but I think it is best if it sits for a while (up to an hour in some recipes) on low heat. Also that way it cooks down and thickens a bit, which can be nice.

If only serving two adults, this batch makes two grab-it sized bowls (2 cups each I think?) and two quart sized take-out containers of leftovers. Usually I'll leave one in the fridge for a day or so later, and I'll freeze the other one. You'll need to let the container thaw in the fridge a day or more before reheating.

Like "The Feast" it is good over penne noodles, otherwise we eat it w/ shredded cheese and soup crackers. Sometimes with a dab of sour cream (that can help tone down the spiciness also). Yummy too as dip w/ thick tortilla chips.

If using a dutch oven, remember- don't wash with soap. Clean out as much as you can and then set it back on the stove with a cup or two of water in it. Cover and boil until all residue can be removed easily. Sometimes I'll wipe it down with a dab of olive oil before storing.