Wednesday, September 12, 2007

Oh, we love chili...now.

In my family, chili is not something that is popular - we are not a family of tailgaters, or football sundays (more baseball - go Yankees!), or potlucks. I never grew up with Mom making a pot of chili, so I'm not sure what possessed me to make this chili recipe a few years ago. We usually host an "open house" type party on Christmas Eve and I guess I thought this would be an easy dish to have out and people could serve themselves. I made it a few weeks earlier and it turned out to be a total hit and the rest is history :) It is commonly requested by my mom, my husband, and the rest of the (recipe-critical) family.


I based my recipe off this recipe from Emeril Lagasse. Instead of posting the entire recipe below, I'm just going to post my edits to the ingredients (the process is essentially the same since its really a chop, drop and cook-type recipe).


Jade's Ingredient List
2 tablespoons vegetable oil
2 cups chopped onions
Salt
Cayenne
~ 1 lb diced beef (usually top round; must be cut small in order for it to be tender)
1 package ground turkey (93% lean; I don't usually use the 99% lean because it can tend to be dry)
2 tablespoons chili powder (spices are really to taste; I prefer a lot of chili powder and cumin)
2 teaspoons ground cumin
1 teaspoon garlic powder
Crushed red pepper
2 teaspoons dried oregano
2 tablespoons chopped garlic (could use more!)
3 cups crushed tomatoes
1/4 cup tomato paste
2 cups beef stock (or whatever kind you have; I used homemade veggie)
2 tablespoons Wondra (I find that you don't always need this step; usually thick enough)
4 tablespoons water
1 can chick peas
1 can black beans
2 ears fresh corn (off the cob; you can also use frozen)


Note: you could really add whatever kind of beans (or amount) that you like; I usually use whatever I have in the house.

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