Chili

I made this chili for my boys last week.  We loved it.  The layers of flavor in this chili are amazing.  I definitely suggest that you try it.  I left out all the seeds from the chilis so my chili was not hot at all.  It was just flavorful.  If you want it to be hot, then leave in the chili seeds.  

The Best Chili You Will Ever Taste

www.food.com

Servings: 6-8

Ingredients:

2 teaspoons flavorless oil (canola or safflower)

2 onions, chopped

3 cloves garlic, minced

1 lb. lean ground beef

¾-1 lb. sirloin beef, cubed

1 (14-1/2 ounce) can diced tomatoes

1 can dark beer

1 cup strong coffee

2 (6 ounce) cans tomato paste

1 can beef broth

½ cup brown sugar

3-1/2 tablespoons chili sauce

1 tablespoon cumin

1 tablespoon cocoa

1 teaspoon oregano

1 teaspoon cayenne

1 teaspoon coriander

1 teaspoon salt

4 (15 ounce) cans kidney beans

4 chili peppers, chopped

Directions:

1.       Heat oil.

2.       Cook onions, garlic and meat until brown.

3.       Add tomatoes, beer, coffee, brown sugar, tomato paste and broth.

4.       Add spices.  Stir in 2 cans of beans and peppers.

5.       Reduce heat and simmer for 1-1/2 hours.

6.       Add 2 remaining cans of kidney beans and simmer for another 30 minutes. 

Turkey Corn Chili

This chili recipe is from Rachael Ray. When I found this recipe, I also noticed many comments about it being very soupy. I would recommend reducing the amount of stock or broth. You could even just cook the chili longer. I think that because this recipe calls for left-over turkey rather than ground turkey, it doesn't absorb as much of the broth quite as quickly as we might like it to. If you don't mind a wet chili, then follow the recipe. If you like your chili drier, then reduce the amount of stock by half. I used ground turkey which helped the problem of "wet" chili. Check out the comments on www.foodnetwork.com for this recipe and see what others had to say.

Turkey Corn Chili
by Rachael Ray

Serves 4

Ingredients:

1 tablespoon extra-virgin olive oil
1 medium onion, chopped
1 large bell pepper, red or green, chopped
1 jalapeno pepper, seeded and chopped
1 bay leaf, fresh or dried
1-1/2 pounds light and dark meat cooked turkey, diced
1-1/2 to 2 tablespoons chili powder
1-1/2 to 2 tablespoons ground cumin
1 teaspoon to 2 teaspoons cayenne pepper sauce
course salt
2 cups frozen corn kernels or leftover prepared corn
1 (32-ounce) can chunky style crushed tomatoes
2 cups prepared chicken stock or broth, paper container or canned
2 scallions, white and greens, chopped

Directions:

Heat a deep pot over medium high heat. Work close to the stove for your chopping. Add oil to your pot, 1 turn of the pan, and add vegetables as you chop them.

Add bay leaf and cook vegetables 5 minutes, stirring frequently, reducing heat if veggies start to stick. Stir in diced turkey meat and season with chili powder, cumin, and cayenne sauce. Season with a little salt, to taste. Add corn, tomatoes, and broth. Combine your chili well, adjust seasonings, reduce heat to medium low, and simmer for 7 to 10 minutes. Garnish chili with chopped scallions.

Enjoy!

The Creative Cook

Pumpkin Turkey Chili

When it gets chilly, I like to eat chili. I have a bunch of chili recipes to share with you this week. I have tried all of them. I did make changes where I felt necessary. My family doesn't like super-spicy chili so I reduced the amount of heat in this chili. Don't let the pumpkin put you off because it does taste really good in there. I also added a cube of bakers chocolate and a dash of cinnamon to give some interesting flavor to the chili. I got this recipe from www.seriouseats.com.

Pumpkin Turkey Chili
Serves 6

Ingredients

1 tablespoon vegetable oil
1 cup chopped onion
1/2 green bell pepper, chopped
1/2 yellow bell pepper, chopped
1 (4 oz.) can chopped green chiles
1 large clove garlic, minced
1 pound ground turkey
1 (14.5 oz.) can diced tomatoes
1 (14.5 oz.) can red kidney beans
2 cups (1 14.5 oz.) can pumpkin puree
1-1/2 tablespoons chili powder
1/2 tablespoon cumin
3/4 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
cayenne pepper to taste (at least 3 good shakes)
1/4 cup fresh cilantro, chopped
1/2 cup shredded Cheddar cheese (optional)
1/2 cup sour cream (optional)

Procedure

1. Heat oil in a large skillet or Dutch oven over medium-high heat.

2. Saute the onion, green bell pepper, yellow bell pepper, green chiles, and garlic until tender, about 10 minutes. Make room in the center of the skillet, add turkey and brown, about 10 minutes. Stir in tomatoes, beans and pumpkin. Season with chili powder, cumin, pepper, salt and cayenne.

3. Reduce heat and simmer for at least 20 minutes. Stir in fresh cilantro. If preferred, serve topped with Cheddar cheese and sour cream.

Enjoy!

The Creative Cook

Maui Chili

I am still on the luau wave!! A few months ago I was surfing the web and found a recipe for something called Maui Chili. It is a recipe created by a Maui native named Mickey Steinborn. He has a Hawaiian shirt website as well as a website for this chili. Check out his website at http://www.mauichili.com/ I read through the 3-1/4 page recipe (it is very entertaining) and decided that I HAD to try making this chili. I was thinking about the January 30 luau for the teachers at Winfield Elementary but I didn't want to make it for them without trying it myself first. I went shopping and bought most of the ingredients over the weekend. I did have some of the items in my pantry. I didn't use all the Hawaiian items he suggests because they weren't available at my local market. It would have been nice to be able to buy a Hawaiian pineapple or a Maui onion but I didn't have that option. I reduced the amounts of everything by 1/3 because I wasn't making 20 quarts of the stuff. I will give you the portions that I used so you don't have to take the time to do it yourself. I reduced the amount of all the spices because I couldn't bring myself to use 1/3 or 2/3 of a cup of chili powder or cayenne pepper. If you have the "guts" to do it, then please do and let me know how it turns out. In Mickey's recipe, he indicates that we should chop the whole jalapeno pepper and include the seeds but I didn't do that. He is right about the seeds adding the heat. I was afraid to add them but at the end when the sauce was a bit too mild, I added several dashes of Tabasco sauce to spice it up. I guess I should have gone ahead and added the seeds or more of the cayenne pepper. I'll work on adjusting the spices next time I try making this chili. Please go ahead and add the seeds if you like your chili hot. I really did buy and cut up a whole pineapple although it was from Costa Rica not Hawaii. I also bought, peeled and chopped fresh ginger root. I guess you could use the powdered stuff but it was a good excuse for me to try using the fresh kind. I put everything into a slow cooker on high for about 2 hours and switched it to low for another 4 hours. I cooked this chili for a total of about 6 hours in my slow cooker.

I had plenty of doubts that this chili would be any good. I almost decided not to make it but I forged ahead anyway. I didn't find any reviews from people who had actually tried the recipe and that made me even more nervous but believe me this chili is really amazing.

Maui Chili Recipe (reduced by 1/3)

2 lbs chicken breast
6 oz. beer
4 oz. water
2 large organic bell peppers (red, green, yellow or orange)
6 to 8 cloves garlic (crushed)
1-1/2 tablespoons fresh shredded ginger root
1 sweet onion
1/3 of a fresh pineapple (about 1 cup)
2 shredded organic carrots
2 green jalapeno peppers (chopped)
2 stalks of organic celery (chopped)
1 tablespoon basil
2 tablespoons oregano
1/2 tablespoon thyme
2 tablespoons chili powder
1 tablespoon cayenne pepper
1 tablespoon cumin
1 tablespoon soy sauce (light)
1/2 teaspoon sea salt
1 8 oz can tomato sauce
1 14-1/2 oz can whole peeled tomatoes
1 15 oz can stewed tomatoes (chopped)
1 6 oz can tomato paste
2 tablespoons honey
2 Bay leaves
2-4 tablespoons yellow corn meal
1 tablespoon olive oil

1. Put the olive oil into the slow cooker and let it heat up.
2. Add onions and other vegetables and pineapple.
3. Add all liquids.
4. Add chicken.
5. Add all spices.
6. Add all tomato ingredients.
7. Add honey.
8. Add yellow corn meal slowly throughout the cooking process to thicken the chili.

Don't be afraid to try this chili because of the ginger and pineapple. It has a really nice taste. The combination of ingredients sounds like it would be terrible but it blends well in the end and tastes fantastic. We especially enjoyed this chili over jasmine rice. B and I both thought that if we could have added peanuts it would have been a nice touch to give the chili a bit of crunch. It isn't recommended in the recipe or on the Maui Chili website but we thought it would be a nice addition. Of course, we can't because of D's allergy to peanuts. Too bad.

Enjoy!

The Creative Cook

Three Bean Chili

Last week, I had to organize an October Teacher Appreciation Luncheon at my son's elementary school. It was nerve racking! I had high hopes until I walked into the teacher's lounge on Friday morning and saw that they teachers were having one of their poor Friday breakfasts, too! In September, I had "nicely" asked if they could reschedule those breakfasts or let me know when they are scheduled so I could reschedule my lunches but, apparently that never happened. Last month, I had a pizza party on the same Friday as their poor Friday breakfast and I wound up with 5 left-over pizzas! I hate to waste food not to mention the fact that all the money comes from the PTA. When I do a chili and casserole luncheon all the parents cook and bake and deliver their goodies to the school. That means if we have a bunch of wasted food, the parents have done all that work for nothing. Needless to say, I was upset and this time I wasn't very nice. I told them that I wouldn't be doing any further luncheons at all. I changed my mind by the end of the luncheon, though and pretty much had to "eat my words." Almost every bite of food that we put out was eaten. There were two partially eaten casseroles and a small batch of vegetarian chili left out of 8 casseroles and 4 crock pots of chili. There were quite a few desserts left but somebody cleaned those out by Tuesday morning when I went into school and checked the fridge. After all the talk about chili and casseroles I decided that I definitely needed to make some chili for myself. I couldn't believe that I had 4 crock pots of chili under my nose and I couldn't even taste a bite. I did eat some chili at the Halloween party we attended on Saturday night but I still wanted to make a batch of chili. One of the moms made a 3 bean chili for the teacher appreciation luncheon which really interested me. I found a recipe for 3 bean chili online and I made it. It was really delicious. These are the changes I made: I substituted pinto beans for Lima beans because I have a terrible aversion to Lima beans; I reduced the amount of meat in this recipe to about 3/4 pound of meat. and I used a combination of organic ground beef and ground turkey; I didn't use the oil to cook the meat and I left out the salt altogether. Try this chili on a cold fall day!


Three Bean Chili

Ingredients:

2 teaspoons vegetable oil
1-1/2 pounds ground beef (or ground turkey)
1 small onion, chopped
1/2 teaspoon minced garlic
1 (16 oz. ) can red kidney beans
1 (16 oz. ) can cannellini beans or Lima beans or pinto beans
1 (16 oz. ) can Great Northern beans
1 (15 oz. ) can crushed tomatoes
1 (15 oz. ) can tomato sauce
2 tablespoons chili sauce or ketchup
1 tablespoon oregano
1 tablespoon chili powder
1 teaspoon salt

Preparation:

Drain and rinse all beans. Brown ground beef or turkey with vegetable oil; drain. Add remaining ingredients to slow cooker. Cover and stir occasionally. Put on low heat, can be fixed ahead and left on all day.

The Creative Cook

AUSTRALIAN DINNER

Dinkum Chili and Rice Salad

I finally made our third international dinner. I was sick with a cold that turned into bronchitis for over three weeks. I am sick of being sick! I am finally starting to feel better! Fortunately, the meat for this recipe was already in my fridge and I didn't want it to go to waste so I had to make the meal. I reduced the amount of meat and hot chile pepper in the chili substantially from the original recipe. I also reduced the amount of rice in the rice salad. You can go with the original amounts or reduce them as I did. It is totally up to you as far as how much food you need to make and how "hot" you like your chili.

Dinkum Chili (Beef)

1/2 lb bacon, packaged (I used Nature's Promise brand and reduced the amount to only 2 slices)

2 tbsp Oil, vegetable (I just cooked the meat in the bacon grease that was already in the pan)

2 Onions, medium, course chopped (I reduced by half)

1 Celery stalk, coarse chopped

1 Bell pepper

2 lbs top sirloin beef, 1" cubes (I reduced by more than half)

1 lb ground beef (reduced to half pound)

1 lb ground pork (I used ground turkey and reduced the amount to half pound)

4 tbsp red chile, hot, ground (I just used a sprinkle or two from my grinder)

3 tbsp red chile, mild ground (I used 1 teaspoon cayenne pepper)

2 garlic cloves, medium, finely chopped

1 tbsp oregano, dried, preferably Mexican (I used 1 tsp)

1 tbsp cumin, ground (I used 1 tsp)

2 12 oz cans beer, preferably Australian (I reduced to 1 can)

1 14-1/2 oz can whole tomatoes

3 tbsp brown sugar (I reduced to 1 tbsp)

1 Boomerang

Fry the bacon in a skillet over medium heat. Drain the strips on paper toweling and cut into 1/2" strips, dice and reserve.

Heat the oil in a large heavy pot over medium heat. Add the onions, celery and green pepper and cook until the onions are translucent.

Combine all the beef and pork with the ground chile, garlic, oregano, and cumin. Add this meat-and-spice mixture to the pot. Break up any lumps with a fork and cook, stirring occasionally, until the meat is evenly browned.

Add the beer, tomatoes, and reserved bacon to the pot. Bring to a boil, then lower the heat and simmer, uncovered for 1-1/2 hours. Wave a boomerang over the pot 14 times each hour from this point on. (This is definitely optional adding no noticeable flavor, just a touch of authenticity and fun.) Stir for 3 minutes. Taste, adjust seasonings, and add more beer if desired. Simmer for 2-1/2 hours longer. (I used a crock pot after I browned the meat.)

Add the brown sugar and simmer for 15 minutes longer, vigorously waving the boomerang over the pot.

Makes 8 servings

Aussie Rice Salad

3 cups jasmine rice, cooked

1/2 cup peas

1 onion, chopped

1 small can corn

1 red pepper, diced

some bacon bits

1/4 cup soy sauce

1 tablespoon mayonnaise

1 tablespoon Allspice

1 tablespoon fresh coriander

Combine rice, vegetables and bacon bits. Mix soy sauce, mayonnaise, Allspice and coriander. Stir sauce into the rice mixture.