Football is Back! Time for Chili

This weekend marked the return to football. Thank God. Honestly, what would we have done with our lives if they didn't play? This recipe is the perfect thing to make to feed a crowd that's over to watch the game.  We spent about $35 on all of the ingredients and fed ( I mean stuffed)  8 people, with a couple bowls leftover. 

Although this recipe may not fly with chili purists, I like adding all of the vegetables and beans.  They add heaps of flavor and I guess nutrients, although I can't say I find myself too concerned with nutrient intake on football Sundays. 

If you don't have a crock pot, it's fine to cook this on the stove top. Just be sure to keep and eye on it and stir it every so often to prevent it from burning on the bottom of the pan. 

Sunday Chili

Serves 8

1/4 cup extra-virgin olive oil

2 small(or one large) onions, diced

4 large garlic cloves, minced

Kosher Salt

Freshly ground black pepper

2 large carrots, diced

5 celery stalks, diced

2 green bell peppers, diced

1 large red bell pepper, diced

1 large poblano pepper, diced

2 serrano chiles, minced (You can use jalapenos instead. Stem and seed the chiles if you don't like things too spicy)

2 pounds ground beef

1/4 cup chili powder

1/2 teaspoon cumin

1 cup dark beer (Sam Adams Boston Lager is perfect)

2 chipotle peppers in adobo, roughly chopped, plus two tablespoons of adobo sauce

2 28-ounce cans diced tomatoes

1 28-ounce can crushed tomatoes

1 14.5 ounce can stewed tomatoes

2 14.5 ounce can red kidney beans, drained and rinsed

1 14.5 ounce can black beans, drained and rinsed

Sour Cream, Grated Cheddar Cheese, Chopped Cilantro for serving

Directions

1)  Heat olive oil over medium-high in a large heavy bottomed  stock pot.  Add onions and garlic and cook about 3 minutes, until the garlic is fragrant.  Season with salt and pepper.   Continue to cook onions and garlic until softened, about 5 minutes.  Add carrots, celery, peppers and serrano chiles and season with salt and pepper.  Cook until the vegetables become soft but retain their shape, about 10 minutes. 

2) Meanwhile, heat a large saute pan over medium high heat.  Add beef and break up with a fork.  Add 1/4 cup of the vegetables to the beef to add flavor while cooking.  Season beef with salt and pepper. Cook until beef is nicely browned, about 5-7 minutes.  With a slotted spoon add the beef to the large pot of vegetables, discard the excess fat.

3)  Mix in the chili powder and cumin and cook until fragrant and the vegetables and beef are coated in seasoning. Add beer and cook until the liquid is reduced by half, scraping up any brown bits from the bottom of the pan.  Add chipotle, adobo sauce and tomatoes and bring to a boil. Stir in the beans and transfer the chili to the crock pot. Simmer on low for 4-5 hours.   Serve chili with sour cream, cheese and cilantro.

A few notes:  My crock pot is 6-quarts and this entire recipe did fit, but it was tight. If you have a smaller crock pot, I would suggest cutting the recipe in half or cooking it on the stove top. Also, I always serve this with my secret guilty pleasure: Jiffy cornbread. Take two boxes of the cornbread mix and prepare it according to the package directions.  Stir in 1 1/2 cups of grated cheddar cheese and two pickled jalapenos, minced. Bake in a lined muffin tin . Yum.