Chili is my husband’s favorite soup/stew, but we get tired of the mainstream beef, tomatoes, corn and kidney beans. This is an excellent one to mix things up! It is very flexible, and my favorite way to make it now is to sauté the onions, garlic, spices, and green chilies, then throw everything in the crockpot to let the flavors really meld together.
Ingredients:
1 Tbsp. oil
1 onion, chopped
3 cloves garlic, crushed
2 4 ounce cans chopped green chile peppers
2 tsps. ground cumin
1 tsp. dried oregano
1 tsp. ground cayenne pepper
2 cups low-sodium chicken or vegetable broth (you can add more if you want it to go further)
3 cups chopped/shredded cooked chicken (I’ve used way less than this, or none at all)
3 15 ounce cans white cannellini beans (drain 1 can, use a whole can, and puree one whole can in a food processor to thicken the chili)
1 can pinto beans, drained
1-2 cans black beans
Optional cilantro, lime, Monterey jack cheese
Directions:
Heat the oil in a large saucepan over medium-low heat. Slowly cook and stir the onion until tender. Mix in the garlic, green chiles, cumin, oregano, and cayenne. Continue to cook and stir until the mixture is tender, about 3 minutes. Mix in the chicken and stir briefly. Add broth and beans. Simmer 15 minutes, stirring occasionally (or place in crockpot on low 4-6 hours or high 2-3 hours).
You can always add more beans or broth to adjust texture, as well as to make the chili go further. Dried beans would work as well, you would just have to add more cooking time and much more broth or water to desired preference.