For those of you who don’t know I am a HUGE football fan, specifically the Miami Dolphins (*sigh*). Since it doesn’t really get cold down here, I have deemed chili my football Sunday food. If I lived up north, this would be even better on a cold day and probably would be made even more. The best part is not only the amount of flavor in this chili, but also that the slow cooker is used.
I do cook a few things before putting it in the slow cooker to add more flavor. The onion, hatch chilis, and garlic gets sautéd together so you don’t have that raw onion taste. I love using fresh hatch chilis, but they are seasonal usually starting in late August (perfect timing for football!). I love spicy food, so one time I figured I would buy the “hot” hatch chilis since I usually get the canned hot ones. Well….the heat was way too intense lol like I was drinking milk hot. So just be careful when using the fresh ones, maybe get a mixture of mild and hot.
I remove the onion mixture and add it to the slow cooker, then I brown the meat in the pan, and add it to the slow cooker.
Next the most important part, the spices! This is where all your flavor is going to come from. I use dark chili powder, ground cumin, ground coriander, and smoked paprika. I love chili with a smokey flavor so that’s why I prefer to use smoked paprika instead of regular paprika. I also like adding these smoked, dried, chipotle peppers for more smokey flavor.
Then comes the tomato base. Another trick I use for extra flavor is getting fire roasted tomatoes. The roasted tomatoes give this chili more flavor on top of all the spices we added. I use a combination of crushed and diced fire roasted tomatoes for texture purposes.
Mix it all up, then set it and forget it! The smells that are going to fill your house will make it hard to wait, but letting the flavors meld and develop over a few hours will make it totally worth it! Once it’s done you can garnish it how ever you’d like. I’m a huge cheese girl so I spoon a little chili into a bowl, add cheese, add more chili, then add more cheese on top. Then I top with fresh sliced jalapeños, fresh cilantro, and even some diced avocados. Crackers, toasted bread, and tortilla chips are great vessels to eat the chili with.
Things you’ll need: Sauté pan and slow cooker/crockpot
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Slow cooker chili packed full of flavor
Ingredients
- 2 lbs ground sirloin (lean beef)
- 1 small yellow onion, chopped (1 cup)
- 2 cans (8oz) of the hot hatch chilis, or fresh hatch chiles if in season
- [Optional: 1 habanero or jalapeño pepper minced if you like your chili extra spicy]
- 4 cloves of garlic, minced
- 1-28oz can of fire roasted crushed tomatoes
- 1-28ox can of fire roasted diced tomatoes
- 3 dried chipotle peppers, minced
- 3 tbsp water or beef broth
- 3 1/2 Tbsp dark chili powder
- 2 1/2 tsp ground cumin
- 2 tsp smoked paprika
- 2 tsp ground coriander
- Freshly ground black pepper & salt, to taste
- 1 (15 oz) can red kidney beans, drained and rinsed
- Garnish: Mexican shredded cheese, cilantro, fresh jalapeños
- Serve with bread, tortilla chips, crackers, your choice!
Instructions
- -Heat olive oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat. Once oil is hot, add onion, hatch chilis, and optional jalapeño and sauté 5 minutes, add garlic sauté 1 minute longer. Add to slow cooker.
- -Still over medium-high heat, add beef to skillet and cook until beef is browned. Drain most of fat from beef, leaving some liquid for flavor (about 1 tbsp). Add beef into crockpot
- -Add fire roasted tomatoes, beef broth, chili powder, cumin, coriander, smoked paprika, dried chipotles, and salt/pepper to taste. Stir mixture, cover with lid and cook on low heat for 5 – 6 hours. You can taste and add more spices if desired (I usually add more dark chili powder).
- –When theres 10 min left stir in beans to heat through. Garnish with cheese, cilantro and fresh jalapeño slices.
Keywords: chili, slow cooker chili, crockpot chili, crock pot, slow cooker
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