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The Perfect Chili Recipe

June 24, 2013

I think chili is one of those recipes that everyone makes the best. My husband and I constantly fight over whose chili is better though he maintains his mother’s and his Grandmother’s still reign supreme.  We were going to have a Chili Throw Down but I think that might be bad for our marriage…

I, of course, am SURE- beyond a shadow of a doubt- that my chili recipe is the bomb.

Best Chili Ever004

There are a few key players in this epic bowl of chili:

First, the beer.

Best Chili Ever003

Very instrumental to the rich flavors.  I used a Troegs IPA.  But I also like a dark lager in chili- whatever floats your boat- just make sure it’s a beer you’d love to drink.

Best Chili Ever002

If you’ve never used chili peppers in adobo, you might want to make them a new shelf staple. These are awesome in my chili recipe, of course, but they are also great in homemade BBQ sauce, pulled pork, and taco meat.

Best Chili Ever001

And last but not least, this unassuming little can of tomatoes and green chilies. They add a little extra sweet heat that isn’t too overpowering.

So here it is. My own chili recipe concoction. It’s a mix of ingredients and inspiration from many different chili recipes I’ve tried, including my MIL’s, FIL’s, husbands Grandmother, and even a bit of influence from Katie Lee Joel whose cookbook I adore.

The Only Chili Recipe You’ll Ever Need:

Ingredients:

1/4 cup olive oil

1 large yellow onion, diced

1 medium shallot, diced

7 cloves of garlic, minced

2 green bell peppers, diced

1 seranno chile pepper, diced with seeds

1 lb. ground sirloin

1 lb. chorizo sausage (if you can’t find this mexican ground meat, you can substitute hot italian sausage)

1 packet of low sodium taco seasoning (or 2 tablespoons of homemade)

1 Tablespoon chili powder

1 Tablespoon of cumin

a dash of cinnamon

1 teaspoon cayenne pepper

2 teaspoons salt

1 teaspoon freshly cracked black pepper

1 can of black beans, rinsed and drained

1 can of kidney beans, rinsed and drained

2 chili peppers in adobo

1 can/bottle of beer

2 28 oz. cans of crushed tomatoes in juice/puree

1 small can tomatoes and green chilies

1 small can tomato paste

10 oz. frozen corn

Garnishes:

Sour Cream

Chives

Cilantro

Shredded Cheese

Cojita Cheese

Tortilla Chips

Directions:

In a large pot, heat olive oil over medium high heat. Add oinions, shallot and garlic and saute until fragrant. Add green peppers and serrano chile pepper.  Meanwhile, brown ground meats in a large skillet and drain. Add drained, browned meat to onion mixture and cook for 5 minutes more. Add all spices and stir to combine.  Chop the chile peppers in adobo and add (with seeds and the extra sauce on your cutting board) to the meet mixture. Add everything else except the tomato paste and corn. Bring to a boil and cook for 30 minutes. Turn down the heat and simmer for an hour or until you are ready to eat.

When ready to serve, turn the heat back up to medium high and add the tomato paste and corn. Cook just until corn is tender- about 5 minutes.

Serve in large bowls with lots of garnishes!

This chili freezes in gallon bags really well. When you are ready to eat it, just thaw it out on the counter or in the fridge for a day or so and pop a bowl in the microwave. My husband will take chili for lunch all the time- so good.

Enjoy!

-J

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Comments

  1. Kerith Stull says

    June 24, 2013 at 9:29 AM

    Who says chili is for winter?!!? That’s pretty close to the recipe I do! But I think the key is to slow simmer it all afternoon in a cast iron pot. Even better to cool it down, refrigerate overnight, and slow simmer again the next day! And my hubby has this weird thing he likes with chili — saltine crackers with plain old celophane cheese, and a slice of sweet butter chip pickle. Weird, huh?

    Reply
    • sweeter-side-of-mommyhood says

      June 24, 2013 at 9:43 AM

      Ah Kerith- yes! I have been coveting a worn-in cast iron pot for quite some time! And I actually think pickles would be awesome- though maybe some of my husbands homemade spicy ones would do the trick!

      Reply
  2. Meredith says

    June 24, 2013 at 10:28 AM

    I am such a picky eater (as you know) and I love eating good chili. I NEED to make this! If I use a crock pot how would I do it? (text me this answer lol)

    Reply
  3. Laurie says

    June 25, 2013 at 1:29 PM

    Can’t wait to try this recipe! I’m heading to wegmans right now to get the supplies!!!

    Reply
    • sweeter-side-of-mommyhood says

      June 25, 2013 at 6:00 PM

      Awesome! I hope you like it 🙂 And for what it’s worth, Gracie LOVES chili so Aubrey might, though she does have a taste for unusually spicy food, haha.

      Reply
  4. Laurie says

    June 26, 2013 at 11:46 AM

    Definately one of the best chilis I have ever tasted! I used hot sausage instead of chorizo and 12 chipotle peppers instead of 2. Absolutely delicious!!! Thanks for the recipe.

    Reply
  5. Annmarie says

    October 12, 2013 at 8:32 PM

    I used your recipe to make my first EVER pot of chili to enter in a chili cookoff and I won 3rd place out of 14! Not bad considering I burned it a little and had to transfer pots and couldn’t find the adobo peppers!

    Reply
    • sweeter-side-of-mommyhood says

      October 15, 2013 at 7:38 AM

      That’s awesome! Congrats on 3rd place 🙂 The adobos are sometimes hard to find- I had to hunt them down and figured out only one grocery store around us carries them in the mexican/ethnic section. So glad you liked it!

      Reply
  6. Kelly Wallis says

    December 2, 2013 at 10:12 PM

    Looks great. About how many people will this serve?

    Reply
  7. Kathryn says

    January 10, 2014 at 11:49 AM

    You use the packet of taco seasoning AND the other spices?

    Reply
    • sweeter-side-of-mommyhood says

      January 10, 2014 at 1:18 PM

      Yes ma’am! We like lots of spice around here 😉

      Reply
  8. Kathy says

    January 13, 2015 at 10:08 PM

    Have you made this in the crock pot? This recipe looks amazing!!

    Reply
  9. Keith says

    January 26, 2015 at 10:58 AM

    I used your recipe (with a couple additions) in a local chili contest and took first place. My name is going up on the chili hall of fame. I just wanted to say thanks!

    Reply
    • sweeter-side-of-mommyhood says

      January 27, 2015 at 12:33 PM

      Awesome!! I’ll call that a win in my book too haha

      Reply
  10. Erin says

    January 27, 2015 at 2:11 AM

    how many servings does this make?

    Reply
    • sweeter-side-of-mommyhood says

      January 27, 2015 at 12:32 PM

      Probably 6 healthy servings. It’s always enough for my husband and I for dinner and two lunches.

      Reply
  11. dewayne says

    March 8, 2015 at 7:26 PM

    hey this is no joke,
    I stumbled on your recipe by accident and entered it into a chili cook-off against 20-30 others, I changed only 1 thing and that was no corn.
    no joke I took 3rd place and of course now im re-thinking the corn. Either way you won me money and most important prestige.
    THANK YOU !!

    Reply
  12. Leslie j says

    October 11, 2015 at 9:02 PM

    How much does this recipe make? I need a 4 gallon recipe.

    Reply
  13. Debbie says

    October 13, 2015 at 11:43 AM

    How much does this recipe make?

    Reply
  14. Jessica says

    November 12, 2015 at 7:50 PM

    How many servings is this recipe for? I need to at least double it for my needs but want to make sure. Sounds delicious and can’t wait to try it.

    Reply
    • sweeter-side-of-mommyhood says

      November 13, 2015 at 10:01 AM

      It makes a ton… maybe enough for 8-10 people?

      Reply
  15. Kyle Harvey says

    November 25, 2015 at 1:18 PM

    Hi,
    Just wondering…i bought the ground chorizo…do i just throw it in when “add everything else” or do I cook it first?

    Thanks,

    Reply
  16. Kyle Harvey says

    December 1, 2015 at 2:25 PM

    Nevermind on my last…i saw brown the “Meats” later on…BUT this chili is VERY VERY VERY spicy…i love spicy but this was too hot. Even my neighbors said they couldnt eat it…you should warn people. I”m making it again today but with half a serrano pepper and WITHOUT the seeds…other wise this is WONDERFUL!

    Reply
    • sweeter-side-of-mommyhood says

      December 2, 2015 at 8:27 AM

      It is certainly very spicy- but we love our chili hot! Taking out the ribs and seeds on any spicy peppers will reduce the heat significantly though so that’s a good option.

      Reply
  17. Jon says

    February 20, 2016 at 4:30 PM

    So I made this and thought it was perfect but maybe it was a little too spicy for others cause I’m entering it into a contest. I decided to add a 1/4 cup of brown sugar and it helped level it out a little. Tastes great! Thanks!

    Reply
  18. Darla Landers says

    April 25, 2016 at 10:40 PM

    I followed the directions exact for a chili cook off at work today and you won first place again!! Thank You, I would like to know how to cool it down about 2 notices if you have any ideas.

    Reply
  19. Ryan says

    September 13, 2016 at 9:13 PM

    Wanted to let you know this is by far the best chili recipe I’ve ever tasted 🙂 I entered this chili into a cook-off at work and won first place! Way to go on this recipe! I’m making it again tonight because it’s so so good.

    Reply
  20. Jens says

    September 18, 2016 at 10:59 PM

    Any recommendations for making this in a slow cooker?

    Reply
    • Jacquie says

      September 19, 2016 at 7:31 AM

      If you brown the meat before throwing it all in the pot, I think it would be awesome in the slow cooker! I’d just keep an eye on the liquid and make sure not too much evaporates. Add more tomatoes in juice if necessary!

      Reply
  21. Terry says

    October 16, 2016 at 3:50 PM

    Loved this chIli. Won 1st place in a chili contest this weekend. I changed only a couple things. Used home sauce with peppers and onions added. Parley, Oregano, crushed red peppers and garlic powder when browning meat

    Reply

Trackbacks

  1. Crockpot chili recipes - New Leaf Wellness says:
    January 22, 2014 at 6:31 AM

    […] of my favorite blogs to follow is The Sweeter Side of Mommyhood, so when Jacquie shared her “perfect chili recipe” I couldn’t wait to give it a test-run in my Crockpot.  Jacquie warned me ahead of […]

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  2. Ten chili recipes that you can freeze without any cooking ahead of time - New Leaf Wellness says:
    October 15, 2014 at 6:32 AM

    […] The Sweeter Side of Mommyhood’s “Perfect Chili Recipe“ […]

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  3. 17 Crockpot Chili Recipes That You Can Freeze without Any Cooking Ahead of Time | New Leaf Wellness says:
    September 29, 2015 at 2:45 PM

    […] Perfect Chili Recipe from The Sweeter Side of Mommyhood (Jacquie is my cousin and an awesome […]

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Hey there! I’m Jacquie. Wife to my hockey loving sweetheart, Mama of four humans, seven chickens, and one labradoodle. I am a quilter, artist, photographer and Mom figuring out how to inspire other families to live their most creative life. Come say hi!
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