Amy E Wilson | Digital Marketing | Paid Media, CRO & Lifecycle

Chili is, in my opinion, the perfect cold weather food, and cornbread is its perfect compliment. So on our first truly cold day here in Boulder a couple of weeks ago, I made chili and cornbread for dinner. The friends I am staying with happen to have a cast iron skillet, so I got finally…

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My Mother’s Chili Recipe, Revamped

Chili is, in my opinion, the perfect cold weather food, and cornbread is its perfect compliment. So on our first truly cold day here in Boulder a couple of weeks ago, I made chili and cornbread for dinner. The friends I am staying with happen to have a cast iron skillet, so I got finally got to try out the Pioneer Woman’s cornbread recipe. Lemme just say that, after eating made-from-scratch cornbread, I am never going back to the Jiffy Mix version again.

Looks yummy, right? Now for the promised chili recipe. I have no idea where my mother got this from; this is just the way we always made chili growing up. This is not an “authentic” Texas chili recipe, because, although I grew up in Dallas, I love beans in my chili. They make it more filling. First, the list of ingredients:

  • 1 pound of ground beef
  • 1 packet of mild chili seasoning
  • 1 14-oz can of diced tomatoes
  • 1 6-oz can of tomato paste
  • 1 14-oz can of red kidney beans
  • 1 large onion, diced
  • 1 red bell pepper, diced
And now, for the super-long list of instructions:
  1. brown the beef in a skillet
  2. drain the fat and transfer the fully-cooked beef to a large pot
  3. add the rest of the ingredients, bring to a boil, then simmer for about half an hour, stirring occasionally
And there you have it. Easy, right? You can add other seasonings in there, if you like. I personally think a bit of freshly-minced garlic would make a tasty edition. The last time I made this, for some reason or another, the chili wasn’t as liquid as usual, so I added some worcestershire sauce and red cooking wine. Those were very tasty additions that I plan to replicate next time I make chili, although I’d probably use actual red wine instead of cooking wine. To quote my sister’s Italian cooking instructor, “If you wouldn’t drink it, don’t cook with it!”

 

4 responses to “My Mother’s Chili Recipe, Revamped”

  1. Avatar
    Anonymous

    From your mother…beer goes better in chili than red wine.

    Reply
    1. Amy Avatar
      Amy

      True, but we didn’t have any beer!

      Reply
  2. kitchenmudge Avatar
    kitchenmudge

    The picture seems to show some pasta in the chili. That’s a common variation, as is the use of different kinds of beans. Do you consider yourself as following a Texas tradition, or more the Cincinnati style?

    Reply
    1. Amy Avatar
      Amy

      I think what you’re seeing is the cheese I sprinkled on top of mine. There was no pasta. I’d say my chili is more Texas-style. I just added beans.

      Reply

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