Freaking Good Chili

I've been a chili MACHINE lately. I think I've made at least 3 or 4 (huge) pots of chili in the past month, all of which are under close scrutiny of Curtis Ryan (who makes abundantly sure that I know he only likes MEATY chili recipes). 

I've made this White Bean Chicken Chili, and he basically described it as "woman chili," as it has "green stuff" (Swiss chard), floating around in it. I still think that chili is a home run, so try it out if it's your style! You won't be disappointed; however, since Curtis makes his "pfff" face every time I make chili that isn't manly enough, I've set out on a mission to come up with the perfect chili recipe as a compromise to satisfy both of our taste buds.

See? Look how meaty and chunky. ha I found the base of this recipe on Allrecipes.com, and then modified it a bit. It has beer in it, and you can taste it in every bite, and it's delicious. I also think this recipe has the perfect mixture of HOT and SWEET. It's chunky, full of extra-lean ground turkey (which I substitute for ground beef) and a few different kinds of beans. I love it. And what's great is that it's super easy to make. You basically just dump it all into one pot (mostly), which is especially great after work when your mind is just on auto-pilot. 

WARNING: This recipe makes A LOT of chili, so make sure that you have a very large pot to use. And freeze the leftovers! They are even better than fresh, in my opinion.

Freaking Good Chili (this is now it's technical name)

Ingredients:

• 2 lbs. extra-lean ground turkey
• 2 (15 oz.) cans chili beans in spicy sauce, UNdrained
• 1 (15 oz.) can kidney beans, drained
• 1 (15 oz.) can cannellini beans, drained
• 1 (15 oz.) can black beans, drained
• 2 (28 oz.) cans diced tomatoes, with juice
• 1 (6 oz.) can tomato paste
• 1 large yellow onion, chopped
• 1 green pepper, seeded and chopped
• 1 red pepper, seeded and chopped
• 2 jalapenos, seeded and chopped
• 4 cubes beef bullion
• 12 oz. beer (*Note: I used Riverwest Stein - a lager, so any comparable beer will do.)
• 1/4 c. chili powder
• 1 tbsp. Worcestershire sauce
• 1 tbsp. minced garlic
• 1 tbsp. dried oregano
• 2 tsp. ground cumin
• 2 tsp. hot pepper sauce (*Note: I used Louisiana Hot Sauce)
• 1 tsp. dried basil
• 1 tsp. salt
• 1 tsp. ground black pepper
• 1 tsp. cayenne pepper
• 1 tsp. paprika
• 1 tsp. white sugar

Directions:

1. In a large pot, brown ground turkey until mostly cooked through. Drain any excess grease.
2. Add chili beans, beans, diced tomatoes, and tomato paste. Add onion, green pepper, red pepper, and jalapeno peppers. Then add bullion and beer. And then chili powder, Worcestershire sauce, garlic,  oregano, cumin, hot sauce, basil, salt, pepper, and sugar. 
3. Stir well to blend. Then cover and simmer over low heat for at least 2 hours, stirring occasionally. 
4. After 2 hours, season with salt, pepper, and chili powder appropriately. Then enjoy!