Chili con carne is a dish with probably as many different recipes as there are people who fix it. And there is usually much debate among aficionados as to what ingredients are used, or omitted. I made a batch for myself last week, while my wife was on a bus trip to visit the International Quilt Festival. Since I was the only one eating it, I made it the way I like it!
Using homegrown ingredients really brings a lot of flavor to this dish. I used tomatoes, tomato sauce, tomato puree, roasted chili peppers, and bell peppers from the freezer, plus dried oregano from our herb garden. And I make chili powder every year from our dried peppers, so that was homegrown as well. We’re out of onions from the garden, but we still have plenty of garlic. So most of the ingredients except the meat and beans came right from our gardens.
chili ingredients (click on any image to enlarge)
One thing I like to do when I have time is cook my own dried beans instead of using canned ones. Canned beans are usually loaded with salt, and often have an ‘off’ taste to me. For this batch of chili I cooked small red beans in the pressure cooker, then froze the beans for later use.
chili, topped with optional cheese and scallions
Happy Acres Chili
Print This Recipean original
1 lb lean ground beef
1/2 cup diced onions
1/2 cup diced red bell pepper
1 tbsp chili powder
1 1/2 tsp ground cumin
1 tsp dried oregano
2 cloves minced garlic
2 cups cooked kidney beans, rinsed and drained
1 can diced green chilies
2 cups tomato sauce
1 pt tomatoes
1 pt tomato puree
cheese and green onions for topping (optional)
1. Brown beef in skillet then drain off grease. Add onions and red bell pepper and saute until onions are transparent.
2. Add beef mixture to saucepan then add remaining ingredients.
3. Bring to a simmer. Simmer on low for about 30 to 45 min.
Servings: 8
Yield: 1 cup
Nutrition Facts
Nutrition (per serving): 245 calories, 67 calories from fat, 7.3g total fat, 35.2mg cholesterol, 430.2mg sodium, 1177.1mg potassium, 29.7g carbohydrates, 8.6g fiber, 10.4g sugar, 16.8g protein, 84.2mg calcium, 2.6g saturated fat.
I so love chili. Maybe some year I’ll be able to eat it again. It is nice that you grow your own chili powder.
That is very similar to the recipe I use ( or the way I make it I should say since I rarely follow a real recipe when making chili ).
Your post is inspiring me to make some chili this coming week!
Yum chili! I probably should make a batch with some dried beans from storage before the weather gets too warm!
It’s the perfect time of year for chili! Your mostly home grown dinner looks delicious.
I haven’t tried to grind my own chilli powder yet but I’m thinking this could be the year. Do you deseed the chillies first?
I grind mine up seeds and all. I guess you could remove the seeds to reduce the heat, but I use milder chilies any way, so the seeds don’t seem to hurt anything.
We throw in a Tbsp of unsweetened cocoa powder to add a little richness and depth of flavor.
Bon Apetit