My Favorite Winter Chili
Growing up, I didn’t know we were broke. We always had what we needed and most of what we wanted. I can’t ever remember the lights being off or seeing my mom struggle but apparently behind the scenes we were a little broke. We had food stamps for a while and on occasion we had to split a dollar among the three of us at the store but I thought all families did that.
After having my own kids, I learned that kids don’t remember the struggle. It’s like their tiny bodies and huge hearts never fully absorb the struggle. They remember the traditions and memories, eating big bowls of chili and cornbread in the living room watching T.V. That’s what this is, a winter memory for me. A two meat, two bean, warm memory.
Now my mom was more of a chili traditonalist. She used ground beef and kidney beans. I like using a variation of meats and beans. I find that the pink and black beans get tender faster and have a more subtle bean flavor. Typically I’ll use ground pork but this recipe uses ground chicken. You can use whatever you like, its your chili.
Ingredients:
2lbs Ground beef (80/20)
2lbs Ground chicken or pork
3 Green onions, chopped
1 Serrano pepper, chopped
3 Garlic cloves, minced
1 TBSP Tomato paste
1/4 cup Olive oil
Chili seasoning (chili powder, garlic powder, ground cumin, white pepper, black pepper, celery salt, umami seasoning blend (trader joes), crushed red pepper flakes, herbes de provence, cajun seasoning, kosher salt)
2 TBSP Worcestershire
1 quart of Chicken/beef stock
2 cans crushed/diced/strained tomatoes
1 can Black beans, drained and rinsed
1 can Pink beans, drained and rinsed
Step 1:
In a large dutch oven, add olive oil, serrano, green onion, garlic and tomato paste until fragrant. Add about 1-2 teaspoons of each spice EXCEPT SALT to the dutch oven.
Step 2:
Add ground meat to the softened veggies and brown. After meat has browned, drain off fat, taste and adjust any seasonings. Add your worcestershire to the stock pot.
Step 3:
On medium heat, add beans, crushed tomatoes, and chicken stock to the dutch oven. Let chili simmer on medium for one hour and taste. If you like a spicier chili please feel free to add more chili flakes, and chili powder. Add salt as needed.
Serving Suggestions:
Cheddar & Green onion cornbread
Blistered chili dogs
Ladle over white rice
Loaded cheddar chili tots
Suggested toppings:
Avocado
Cheddar
Sour cream
Sliced Serrano/Jalapeno peppers
Cheddar & green onion cornbread with salted honey butter
Ingredients:
1/2 cup unsalted butter, melted
1 cup AP flour
1 cup yellow cornmeal
1 TBSP sugar
2 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp kosher salt
1.5 cups buttermilk
2 large eggs
1/2 block cheddar cheese
3 green onions, minced
1/4 cup salted butter
1/4 cup honey
Step 1:
Preheat oven to 400. Whisk dry ingredients in a large bowl and add in buttermilk, melted butter, and eggs. Stir in cheddar cheese and green onions and spoon into prepared cast iron skillet.
Step 2:
Bake for 20-25 mins. Melt salted butter and honey and spread evenly on cornbread after it comes out the oven. Let it cool 10 mins before slicing.
Serve & Enjoy!