Last Saturday night, there was a bad storm in our area. The winds had died down but it was still raining. My husband has this saying that came from his brother, “I got to go check my traps. With all of this rain, I don’t want whatever’s in there to drown.” Well, I needed to cook but did not go to the store because of the storm. So I asked him to go to the store for me. I gave him the list for the items I needed. I told him that I was going to make chili. So off in the rain he went. While he was gone, I started chopping up the veggies for the base. I used bell peppers- orange, red, and yellow- onions, and garlic. They call this the holy trinity in Louisiana. It is the base for any good dish. Oh, by the way, did I tell you that we live in the country? Yep, population is less than 7,000. So by the time I started sauteeing the mixture, he had returned with the other items.
The recipe is:
Bell peppers, chopped – I had the baby ones that were on sale. Use the different colors
½ medium, chopped Onions
2-3 cloves chopped Garlic (or use garlic powder instead)
1 tablespoon Olive oil or avocado oil
1 -2 teaspoons Chili powder
1-2 teaspoons Cumin
1-2 teaspoons Crushed red pepper flakes (optional for heat)
To taste Salt and pepper
1 ½ pounds Ground chuck
2 cans beans (black, pinto, red)whatever your preference, drained and rinsed
2 – 16 oz cans chopped tomatoes with liquid
½ -1 cup chicken stock (if more liquid is needed)
Heat the pan and add oil. Saute bell peppers, onions and garlic in oil over medium heat until onions are translucent. Be careful not to burn the garlic. It turns bitter when burned.
Then add ground beef. Brown it and break up into pieces.
Add chili powder, cumin, salt and pepper. Work that in. Spices taste is enhanced when heated.
Then add rinsed and drained beans and tomatoes with liquid.
Bring to simmer and cover. Add chicken stock if more liquid is needed.
Cook for 30 -40 minutes. This will allow the flavors to meld together and remove the canned flavor.
Taste to adjust seasonings.
Now back to my story. You see, my husband is tall and thin and can eat whatever and whenever he wants. Me, on the other hand, I am curvy and thick. I have to watch everything I put in my mouth. So in order to add more health to the dish, I placed 2 handfuls of baby spinach in the bottom of my bowl and put the chili on top. Then I topped it with chopped avocado (healthy fat).
So my portion had protein – ground beef and beans
Fiber- filled carbohydrates – beans
Veggies – tomatoes, bell peppers, onions, spinach
Healthy fat – avocado and olive oil
So this was out Saturday meal to eat while watching the football game. The bonus is there are leftovers. Everybody knows chili taste better the second day. So I hope you will try this recipe for your family.
Until next time. Enjoy!
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