SOUPS, CHOWDERS, & CHILIS

Easy Bacon Sausage Chili

TESTER’S COMMENTS

This is a great recipe and couldn’t be simpler. Chocolate? Coffee? What surprises! I give it a 10!

–L.R.

 

3	tablespoons olive oil
2	cloves garlic, minced
1	onion, diced
1	carrot, shredded
1	bell pepper, diced
1	pound ground beef
1	pound bacon sausage
1	jalapeño, stem removed, seeded, and finely diced
3 to 4	tablespoons masa (corn flour)
2 to 3	tablespoons chili powder
1 to 2	tablespoons paprika
1 to 2	teaspoons ground cumin
1	teaspoon dried oregano
½	teaspoon cayenne pepper
	sriracha sauce, to taste
½	cup strong coffee
1	pip chocolate (from a Hershey bar)
1	can (15 ounces) diced tomatoes, with juice
1	can (15 ounces) tomato sauce
1	can (15 ounces) dark red kidney beans, drained and rinsed
1	can (15 ounces) light red kidney beans, drained and rinsed
1	can (15 ounces) cannellini (white) kidney beans, drained and rinsed
1	can (15 ounces) corn, drained
1 to 2	cups beef broth or water
	salt and freshly ground black pepper, to taste

 

Heat olive oil in a soup pot over medium heat. Add garlic, onions, carrots, and bell peppers and cook until fragrant, or just translucent. Add beef and sausage and cook until browned. Add jalapeño, masa, chili powder, paprika, cumin, oregano, cayenne, and sriracha sauce and cook for 1 to 2 minutes. Add remaining ingredients and simmer for 20 to 30 minutes. Season with salt and pepper.

 

Makes 10 to 12 servings.

 

Warning!! This is a chili that many people can’t stop eating. It has a perfectly sweet, spicy goodness. The shredded carrot adds flavor, sweetness, and texture.

James Magueflor, Palmer, Alaska

 

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The heat of hot peppers is measured in what are called Scoville heat units (named for Wilbur Scoville, who developed the test). For example, a bell pepper measures in at zero Scoville heat units, but a habanero pepper has 100,000–350,000 Scoville heat units. Sriracha sauce comes in at 1,000–2,500 Scoville heat units.

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