Winter’s day chili

It is a snow day for us today, which means the kids haven’t changed out of pajamas for two days and we are all stuck around the house because the roads are slushy and icy.

Ground-chicken chili topped with
greek yogurt and cheddar cheese

When this kind of weather rolls around, it is chili, soup and stew time. Today, I’m making chili and I am sharing one rendition of our chili recipe here. One great thing about this dish is that the only actual requirement of chili is that it contain chili powder. Anything else is optional. It can be made with chicken, beef, vegetables, beans, pork—although there are always purists who will argue that their concoction is the only thing that really deserves to be called chili. For me, it’s all about not having to go to the grocery store on an ugly day, so I like to make do with whatever I have on hand.

In general, we serve this chili with cornbread. I like mine with a bit of shredded sharp cheddar cheese and perhaps a few dices of raw onion on top. Some folks enjoy their chili over rice and others, who I will never understand, put it on top of spaghetti noodles. It’s also very nice atop white or (especially) sweet potatoes. Unconventional, yes, but the combination of sweet and spicy is delicious.

Recipe

1 lb ground chicken (or leftover cut-up chicken, or ground beef)

1 onion, diced

1 red pepper (or green or yellow)

Brown the meat, onion and pepper in a large soup pot over medium-high heat until the meat is cooked though and the onions begin to soften. If you are using ground meat, break up the meat chunks as you stir.

Add to the meat/onion/pepper mixture in the soup pot:

1 clove fresh garlic, minced, or ¼ tsp garlic powder

1 tsp oregano

1 tsp ground cumin

1 tbsp Chili powder

¼ tsp dried ground Chipotle Chili Pepper

¼ tsp black pepper
28 oz can crushed tomatoes

Stir until combined. Add one 28-oz can crushed tomatoes and one 28-oz can full of water to the pot. Bring to a boil and reduce heat to low, or pour the chili into a slow cooker on low.

If you are cooking on the stovetop, allow the chili to simmer for about 30 minutes. If in the slow cooker, you can let it simmer on low for 4-5 hours (or longer).