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Prep Time: 30 Minutes Cook Time: 120 Minutes |
Ready In: 150 Minutes Servings: 8 |
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Chili is one of my fall and winter stand-by recipes. I start it before noon, and by early afternoon my family full of men is standing in the kitchen with bowls at the ready. Thank you to Ed Heller (Chili with Chocolate) for giving me the idea to add a little cocoa to the recipe. It adds a whole new dimension of flavor. You can't actually taste the chocolate, but it acts as an enhancer to the other wonderful flavors in this recipe. I had never written this recipe down, so amounts are approximate and can, of course, be adjusted to individual tastes. This chili has a nice, slow burn that is pleasant, not painful. In my humble opinion, food should not hurt, or require a towel to wipe one's face while eating it. My Brit husband likes this over rice, while my lumberjack-sized sons like it straight-up with grated cheddar on top. It also freezes well. Enjoy! Ingredients:
2 lbs ground beef |
2 cups onions, diced |
1 cup green bell pepper, diced |
3 fresh jalapeno peppers, seeds and membranes removed, finely diced |
1 serrano chili, seeds and membranes removed, finely diced |
2 (28 ounce) cans diced tomatoes |
1 chipotle chile in adobo, finely diced (from can, with 1 tbsp. adobo sauce) |
3 tablespoons chili powder |
1 teaspoon ground cumin |
1 tablespoon sugar |
1/2 teaspoon salt |
1 ounce unsweetened baking chocolate (1 square) |
1 tablespoon unsweetened cocoa powder |
1 (16 ounce) can pinto beans in chili sauce |
Directions:
1. Saute ground beef with onion, bell pepper and chili peppers.
2. Drain rendered fat and broth into bowl and place bowl in refrigerator to allow fat to separate and harden. (There's lots of flavor in the broth after the fat is removed! Minus the fat, this will be added back in later.).
3. Stir in the 2 cans of diced tomatoes, chipotle chili with adobo, chili powder, cumin, sugar and salt.
4. Simmer for 1 hour.
5. Remove bowl with drained fat and broth from refrigerator and discard hardened fat. Add remaining liquid or semi-jelled broth to chili.
6. Stir in chocolate and cocoa until fully incorporated.
7. Stir in chili beans with chili sauce.
8. If chili is too thick, add tomato sauce, chicken or beef broth to desired consistency.
9. Simmer 1-2 hours.
10. Serve over rice, or with shredded cheese, diced onions and sour cream. Great with fresh bread or rolls!
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