Sunday, February 13, 2011

Best. Chili. Ever.

Just sayin'.  :)  We made chili last night, put it in a Pampered Chef deep covered baker in the oven at 200*F to have it perfectly warm when we got home from church.  Paired with a green salad and thickly-sliced homemade (breadmaker) bread, and it was HEAVEN.  :)  The perfect comfort food after the comfort of church.




Preheat: --
Categories: chili, comfort food, seasoning mixes
3 - 4 cups Assorted Beans   (I made my own beans using white, pinto and red kidney, and my yummy crockpot beans recipe!  Less sodium and oh-so delicious!)
3 cans Diced tomatoes (OR 2 cans whole tomatoes, all cut up, OR 3 cans stewed Mexican tomatoes, etc.)
1 Packet of regular chili seasoning (I bought mine at Kroger, and YUM)
1 pound ground beef or ground turkey
1 Packet of taco seasoning
(opt) Grated cheese
(opt) Sour cream

Directions.
1.  Cook ground beef or ground turkey thoroughly.  Drain.  Follow directions on seasoning packet.  Set aside.  This step can be done ahead of time.  We made tacos Wednesday and made 2 lbs of meat... and just saved the extras for the chili on Sunday.  I made the (8-hr. crockpot time) beans the day before, but they could have been made even earlier, too.

2.  Choose your cookware: For stovetop, use a large pot.  For oven, use a covered baker or a foil-covered casserole.  For a crockpot, set on low for 3 hours.  I used my new Pampered Chef covered baker for the first time and LOVE IT!!!  I put it in the oven at 200* before church and it was ready when we got home!

3.  In your cookware, add the beans, diced tomatoes, chili seasoning and ground beef.  Stir well.  I used a combination of tomatos... I cut up a large can of whole tomatoes and threw in a medium can of diced tomatoes.

4. 
Stovetop: Cook on medium-high heat until the chili is bubbly.  Cook for another five minutes and serve.

Covered baker or foil-covered casserole: For three hours (church), set at 200*F and leave the dish in the oven.

Crockpot: Set for three hours on low.

5.  Serve hot, with the optional grated cheese and sour cream as toppings.  Enjoy compliments for the best chili ever!