Recipe: Two Bean Chipotle Chili

This recipe originated from Rachel Ray’s 30 Minute Get Real cookbook.  Her recipe uses bacon and I don’t think it’s necessary.  I usually do this with black beans and ground chicken.  This time I decided to use black beans and kidney beans.  If you’ve never used chipotle chili powder, it’s made from smoked jalapenos and it’s spicy.  You may choose to omit the chopped jalapenos in the recipe if you don’t like it too spicy.

Ingredients:

• 1 – 2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
• 1 onion chopped
• 2 – 3 cloves garlic chopped
• 1 green or red bell pepper (or both) chopped
• 1 – 2 jalapenos seeded and chopped (keep the seeds in for extra heat)
• handful of chopped carrots (great way to use up baby carrots) or frozen corn
• 1 can of black beans drained and rinsed
• 1 can of kidney beans drained and rinsed
• 1/2 cup vegetable or chicken broth, or beer
• 1 (14.5 oz) can Muir Glen organic fire roasted chopped tomatoes (Muir Glen is the only company that makes them.)
• 1 tablespoon chipotle chili powder
• 1 teaspoon cumin
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• shredded cheddar, smoked cheddar, or mexican blend cheese

Start by adding olive oil to a dutch oven.  Add onion, garlic, bell pepper, jalapeno, carrot and/or corn and saute for about 5 minutes.  Add in chipotle powder, cumin, and salt and stir for a few minutes.  Add broth or beer to deglaze the pot.  Let it simmer a few minutes.  Add in the beans and fire roasted tomatoes and bring to a boil.  Turn it to low for about 20 minutes.  Sometimes I’ll let it simmer for an hour or more on a cold day.  I like to serve 1 cup of chili over 1/4 – 1/2 cup of brown rice or quinoa and top with shredded cheese.  To cut back on carbs, you could just serve it with shredded cheese and sour cream.

Here’s a photo of a pot of chili I recently made:

 

I hope you’ll give this recipe a try!