House Lemons Chili

Rainy days, game days, cold days. Chili is the perfect solution. This held true for House Lemons, especially. If the answer to "what's for dinner?" was "chili" I was a happy child. Chili is one of the first dishes I learned to make for myself in the kitchen. I got to practice knife skills dicing the onions, and play with the marriage of spicy, savory, and sweet flavors. We used ground beef originally, then transitioned to ground turkey. This recipe uses mushrooms and no meat at all.  I'm not vegan, but I like to introduce plant-based options that don't change the nature of the dish on occasion. Mushrooms were the perfect ingredient to go plant-based with my chili!

To master the dish I needed to learn to control how much liquid I added, making sure to drain the tomatoes and black beans properly. From repetition I came to know the dish will loosen up as it heats through. I also came to know one overzealous dash of cumin powder, or too much chili powder and the flavor profile is permanently out of balance. Luckily for you, these kinks have been worked out and there's still room for you to add your own touch. Maybe a few dashes of your favorite hot sauce for extra spice, or sharp cheddar for a cheesy finish. Make it your own, but follow the recipe guidelines first, and taste, to see what you're flavor profile is. 

This is a one pot dish ready for serving in 45 minutes, or you can allow the ingredients to simmer on low in your crockpot all day and have a great meal to look forward to after work! Like all chili, you can enjoy this recipe the next day, and the day after. Serves 4-5 easily.

Ingredients: 
2 8oz packages of baby bella mushrooms (diced small) or (1lb 93% lean, 7% fat ground turkey)
1 medium yellow onions (diced)
2 cloves garlic (minced)
1 16oz. can pinto chili beans
1 16 oz. can black beans
1 16 oz. can diced tomatoes
1tbsp kosher salt
1/2tsp black pepper
2tsp chili powder  
1/4tsp ground cayenne
1 tsp onion powder
1/2tsp ground cumin


Recipe:

1. Begin by heating enough oil to coat the bottom of a large pot over medium heat. Add the onions, gently sweating  until they have become translucent. Then add garlic.
2. As soon as the garlic becomes fragrant, add your mushrooms, and brown until the mushrooms soften and reduce in size by almost half. Then cut your heat. (If using ground turkey, brown the meat until it is free of any pink colored meat and drain off any extra fat)
3. Add the kosher salt, black pepper, chili powder, cayenne, onion powder, and cumin to the pot. Fold the seasonings in to coat the mushrooms and onion.
4. Next add the whole can of pinto chili beans with its sauce, the black beans (DRAINED), and your tomatoes (DRAINED). (NOTE: If you are using a crockpot, transfer the chili and cook on low for at least an hour and a half.) 
5. Return your heat to medium, bringing the chili to a boil. Then, Reduce your heat to low and simmer for 20-30 minutes. Stir occasionally so no bits begin to stick and burn on the bottom of the pot. Taste your chili periodically as well and adjust the seasonings to your taste.
6. Serve with green onion or oyster crackers. Enjoy!