Homemade Chili – Is There Anything Better on a Cold Winter’s Night???

Tags

chili, Cooking, Food, kitchen aid grinder, recipe, slow cooked, tomatillos

  
Is there anything better on a cold winter’s night than a bowl of hot chili with a slab of warm, fresh baked cornbread??? Maybe, but chili is up there! On this particular occasion, I was cooking on the weekend and decided to get creative and invest a little more time into my concoction, but chili can be as easy as throwing some ingredients into the crock pot too, so don’t let it intimidate you! I just find chili in any shape or form to be a very satisfying one pot meal! And not to brag,but I did win 2nd place in my church’s chili cook off a few years ago! LOL!

I’ve been trying to make better use of the few overpriced attachments I have for my Kitchen Aid mixer. One my husband bought me is the food grinder, so for this batch of chili, I decided to grind my own meat. I had some nice top sirloin steaks on hand that looked so nice and lean, I figured I would give that a whirl. You could also use ground beef or ground turkey, if you’re trying to keep the fat level down. I use the turkey quite frequently.

I also decided to jazz this version up by adding some roasted tomatillos and fresh peppers. This also isn’t necessary, if you’re trying to keep it quick and simple, but it sure adds a wonderful layer of flavor! 

Now for the big debate! Chili purists will tell you if there are beans in it, it’s not chili! OK, good for you! Personally, I like beans in mine. I’m usually making chili hoping for a hearty dinner and the beans add to that. Plus, beans are really good for you!

Without further ado…

Kel’s Homemade Chili

1.5 pounds ground meat (As mentioned above, I chose to grind top sirloin steak. I ran it through my Kitchen Aid grinder attachment twice)

6-8 tomatillos

4 Serrano chilies

1/2 red onion, chopped

1 red pepper, chopped

2 garlic cloves, diced or pressed

1 – 14.5 oz can kidney beans, drained and rinsed

1 – 14.5 oz can black beans, drained and rinsed

1 – 28 oz can crushed tomatoes in puree

1-4 oz can tomato paste

2-3 tbsp chili powder

1 tbsp cumin

Salt and pepper to taste

If you’re going to grind your own meat, cut your meat into chunks small enough to feed into your grinder. Feed a few pieces in at a time pushing them through the grinder. I ground all my meat once and then ran it all through a second time. 

  

Spray a skillet or frying pan with olive oil and brown your tomatillos turning frequently. Your tomatillo’s skin will brown in spots and they should start to soften. When tomatillos are almost done, add your fresh chilies. I used serranos, but you could use any type. Just keep in mind the amount of spice you want in your chili. When tomatillos and chilies have softened, remove from heat and allow to cool. While these are cooling you can begin to brown your meat. I used my Dutch oven. You can also use a big pot. You want something that you can simmer your chili in without scorching and that has a cover. When meat is almost browned, drain off any fat. This sirloin steak was so lean, I did not have any fat to drain off. When meat is almost cooked, add your onions, garlic and red pepper. Cook until vegetables are softened and reduce heat to simmer.
   
 

Once cooled a bit, cut the stems off your chilies and put in a food processor or blender and add whole tomatillos. Pulse/blend tomatillos and chiles until well blended and fairly smooth. You don’t want to get a huge church of chili in on bite! Add blended mixture to meat mixture.

Add remaining ingredients to your mixture and stir well. Bring to a simmer over low heat. Cover and cook for at least an hour. I like to let my chili simmer for a while, kind of like my marinara sauce. You can even use your slow cooker. I think cooking it on low for a longer period really allows the flavors to mingle and develop.

I like to serve my chili with a side of cornbread. On this occasion, I used a Marie Callendar cornbread mix and added jalapenos and fat free cheddar cheese to it. 

I offered fat free sour cream, fat free shredded cheddar, pickled jalapenos and cilantro as garnishes for the chili. Delicious!!!

Enjoy!

Slow Cooked Citrus Garlic Chicken – Let the Slow Cooker Work It’s Magic!

Tags

Chicken, citrus, Cooking, Food, garlic, healthy, lemon, low-fat, recipe, slow cooked, slow cooker

  
I had purchased a really large whole chicken on sale. I knew this monster was going to take a while to cook, so I decided to throw it in the slow cooker and let that wonderful appliance work its magic! I adore lemon with chicken and we usually stuff our barbecue chicken and turkeys with fruit, so I did sort of a hybrid thing. The chicken was stuffed with lemons, oranges and garlic, but I went crazy with the lemon! It was a great choice! The chicken was so moist and tangy and the garlic and shallots added that nice rustic, savory flavor to the dish.

This was really easy to make and took maybe 10 minutes to put together. You just let it cook all day and then when you’re ready to eat, pull that chicken out and carve off the meat. It practically falls apart! You do want to watch carefully for the bones and pull those out, but this step wasn’t difficult.

In the recipe, you’ll notice that I did not add any additional fat; no oil, no butter, no chicken broth. So the only fat you’re getting is from the chicken itself. I did try to discard the skin after cooking to cut back on the fat.

I served my chicken with a mix of roasted potatoes, sweet potatoes and carrots along with some sautéed greens. Look for a future blog post on the potatoes! I’ve done something similar before, but this version was even better! Let’s just say there was gourmet garlic olive oil and balsamic vinegar involved!

Slow Cooked Citrus Garlic Chicken

1 whole chicken, clean out the cavity and rinse

2 lemons

1 orange

1 shallot

6 garlic cloves, peeled and cut in half or thirds

Salt and pepper

Season the outside and inside of the chicken with salt and pepper. Place your chicken in your slow cooker pot. Cut your orange into 4-6 pieces, small enough so they can fit in the cavity of the chicken, and stuff into chicken. You can also squeeze out some of the juice into the cavity. Zest both of your lemons onto a separate plate and set aside. Cut your lemons in half and squeeze the juice over your chicken, then cut the halves in half and place in and around your chicken. Sprinkle your garlic chunks in and around your chicken. Peel and rough cut your shallot and sprinkle this around your chicken. Sprinkle your lemon zest over the chicken. Cover and cook on low for about 8 hours.

Enjoy!