Note: This recipe will work with just about any type of ground meat: turkey, chicken, beef - I haven’t tried sausage yet, but I imagine it’d be just fine, as well.
What you need:
- 3 Tablespoons olive oil (don’t skimp, get the good stuff - cold pressed)
- 1.5 cups chopped onion (a large white onion works well)
- 6-8 large garlic cloves, chopped (more or less to suit your taste. Just note in the grand scheme of this recipe, 8 large cloves might seem like a lot, but it cooks down and into the chili)
- 3 pounds ground meat (see note above)
- 4 good sized jalapeños, seeded or not - depending on how much of a kick you want
- 1 packet taco/chili seasoning of your choice (there’s a lot to choose from, so have fun here)
- 1 teaspoon dried basil
- 1/2 teaspoon dried oregano
- 1/2 teaspoon dried thyme
- 1 15 oz. can tomato sauce
- 3 cups chicken OR vegetable broth (or live on the edge and go 1.5 cups of each)
- 1 6 oz. can tomato paste
- 2 15 oz. cans of kidney beans - drained
And let the madness fun begin!
Step One:
Heat oil in a sauce pan. Don’t take it over a medium heat or you’ll burn the onions and garlic you’re going to throw in next.
Do I have to say it? Really?!
Add the garlic and onions and sauté for 8-10 minutes.
The beautiful smell, at this point, will already drive you nuts so prepare yourself.
Step Two:
Add ground meat into the garlic/onion mix and cook until brown, and break up meat with a spatula as it cooks. DO NOT over-cook the meat as the meat will continue to cook in the next steps and over-cooking it will severely dry the meat out. If you can say to yourself, “The meat will be done in the next couple of minutes…”, go ahead and move on to the next step.
Step Three:
Add all dry mix ingredients (taco/chili seasoning, basil, oregano, and thyme). Stir around for approximately two minutes.
Step Four:
Now it’s time to bring in the wet ingredients. Mix in the tomato sauce and paste, and the broth.
Let this simmer for about 2 hours, or until it’s thickened to your desired consistency. Be sure to stir it around occasionally to prevent it from sticking to the pan.
Mix in beans AFTER the simmering stage.
Once you get to this point, you’ll want to dig in a start eating - DON’T!
Here’s the most important step, outside of the four steps listed above, in making this chili: Refrigerate until cold then reheat over a medium heat. I generally like to make it the night before, and let it sit in the fridge all night and reheat it for dinner the next day.
There you have it.
This can easily serve 4 people, and if you can refrain from buying name brand things (except the olive oil, there really is no such thing as cheap cold-pressed E.V.O.O.), you can easily make this for around $20 - and that’s only if you have absolutely nothing on the ingredient list, so, of course, slightly cheaper if you have certain things already in your cabinets.
