Obama's Chili

I saw this recipe over at A Year of CrockPotting and just HAD to give it a try. According to her, this is the Obama family chili recipe...wherever it came from, it is DELICIOUS. I have wimpy tastebuds, and my toddler and I were both able to enjoy this chili without any mouth emergencies :) It's well-seasoned without being spicy, but for those who enjoy a little heat it would be very easy to add either diced jalapenos or hot sauce to jack it up a couple of notches.

When I made this I only had black beans and balsamic vinegar on hand, but the substitutions worked wonderfully - another benchmark of a great recipe, it's yummy AND flexible! I also took the Crockpot Lady's advice and increased all of the spices - the recipe below reflects the amounts I used but check out the link for the original amounts.

According to the original post the Obamas serve this over rice - other options would be to serve it over Fritos or crumbled up cornbread!

Barack Obama's Chili Recipe

Ingredients:
--1 can kidney beans - and the goop! (I used black beans)
--1 lb lean ground meat (I used ground turkey)
--1 green bell pepper, chopped
--1 large onion, chopped
--5-6 medium tomatoes, chopped (include seeds and all)
--4 chopped cloves of garlic
--2 tsp cumin
--2 tsp oregano
--2 tsp basil
--2 tsp turmeric
--3 tsp chili powder
--2 tsp salt
--5 T red wine vinegar (I used balsamic vinegar)

Directions:
(Ms Crockpot noted that she did not brown her ground meat ahead of time - I also didn't bother browning the meat. Unless you are using a fatty ground meat and want to drain the fat off a bit, just toss in the ground meat raw!)

Chop up the tomatoes, garlic, onion, and bell pepper. Add to the crockpot. Open the can of beans, and pour in the whole thing (do not drain or rinse!). Add the ground meat. Stir in all of the spices and the red wine vinegar.Cover and cook on low for 7-9 hours, or on high for 4-5.

Total Cost:
Beans - $0.65
Ground Turkey - $1.50
Pepper - $0.85
Onion - $0.30
Tomatos - $3.20
Garlic - $0.20
Seasonings - $0.75

Grand Total: $7.45 for 8-10 servings, or $0.75 per serving!


**an update - this chili does WONDERFULLY in leftovers. I made burritos by mixing the chili with rice, rolling it in a 12" tortilla and frying both sides in the pan. Then we used some in omelettes for breakfast! YUMMY!