Easy Chili Recipe

This is the house chili here at my kitchen. It’s a great allpurpose chili with just enough spice and heat to please adults yet mild enough to keep kids happy. As I said on yesterday’s blog, all the normal accompaniments were served with it, cheese, diced onions, sour cream, avocado, fritos and the perfect side of Buttermilk cornbread.

The great thing about chili is once it’s in the pot simmering, other than the occasional stir, you can pretty much forget about it. In fact the longer it cooks the better the flavors get. And for those of you who love your slow cooker, chili is perfectly designed for it. So grab a bowl, gather your family around the table and dig in. Enjoy!

Ingredients

1¼ pounds ground chuck
½ pound bulk mild Italian sausage (no casing)
1 onion diced
1 red bell pepper diced
2 ribs celery diced
1 anaheim chile seeded and diced
1 jalapeno chile seeded and diced
3 garlic cloves minced
2 tablespoons chile powder (any mild, pure chile powder)
1 teaspoon smoked paprika
1½ teaspoons dried oregano crumbled
2 teaspoons ground cumin
½ teaspoon cayenne
¼ teaspoon ground allspice
¼ teaspoon ground mustard
2 15oz cans chili beans in sauce
1 28oz can petite diced tomatoes with their juice
¼ cup tomato paste
1 teaspoon worcestershire sauce
1 teaspoon sugar

I started by dicing all my vegetables – 1 onion, 2 ribs of celery, 1 red bell pepper, 1 anaheim chile seeded, 1 jalapeno seeded and 3 garlic cloves minced then set them aside in a bowl.

I measured out my spices and herb – 2 tablespoons chile powder, 1 teaspoon smoked paprika, 1 1/2 teaspoons Mexican oregano crumbled, 2 teaspoons ground cumin, 1/4 teaspoon ground allspice, 1/2 teaspoon cayenne and 1/4 teaspoon ground mustard.

In a large dutch oven over medium high heat I browned off 1 1/4 pounds of beef chuck and 1/2 pound of mild Italian sausage for about 8 minutes then drained off the excess fat.

I added the diced veggies to the browned meat and cooked them for 10 minutes over medium heat to soften. I stirred in the spices then added 2 15 oz cans of chili beans with sauce, 1 28 oz can of petite diced tomatoes with their juice, 1/4 cup of tomato paste, 1 teaspoon worcestershire sauce and 1 teaspoon sugar. No salt is needed as there’s plenty in the chili beans. I stirred it well then covered the pot and let it simmer over low heat for 2 hours stirring occasionally. After 2 hours, I set the lid slightly askew to vent and continued simmering for another hour.

And this is it! Enjoy!