Chili is a staple in our house, pretty much. I make it a couple of times a month and freeze it in single serving sized containers for a quick thermos lunch. Hubs and Jake like it with ground turkey, but you can substitute extra lean ground beef if you like.
I came up with this recipe when I was 19 years old, living in a tiny basement suite with only a hot plate and a toaster oven to cook with. It's been tweaked here and there through the years but it's pretty much the same thing.
The spices are extremely mild as well and you can add as much chili powder and cumin (as well as hot pepper sauce) as you like.
Serves 4
1 1/2 pounds lean ground turkey (or extra lean ground beef)
1 small onion, diced
1/2 large sweet red or green pepper, diced
3 tsp chili powder
1 tsp cumin
couple of dashes of hot sauce
1 tbsp brown sugar
1 tbsp red wine vinegar
2 (14 oz) cans of red kidney beans, drained and rinsed
1 1/2 jars of passata (strained tomatoes) or about the same of crushed or diced tomatoes
2 tbsp tomato paste (if it's not thick enough for you)
Saute the meat in the bottom of a large, heavy, pot over medium heat until mostly cooked and no longer pink. Push the meat aside in the pot and add the onion and green pepper, continuing to saute until the onion is soft and translucent. Add chili powder and cumin, continuing to stir and cook for another minute. Stir in the red wine vinegar and then the brown sugar.
Pour in both cans of tomato sauce and the kidney beans, stirring up the browned bits from the bottom of the pot. Continue to cook over medium heat until the mixture simmers, then turn heat down to about medium low and simmer for another 20 minutes. Taste and adjust the seasonings to your liking.
I love my chili served with grated cheese and some sliced green onion on top.
