Chili really is one of the great comfort foods. I’ve tried a number of chili recipes over the years, but often I just throw it together fairly haphazardly. This recipe has most of the ingredients I regularly add and a few inspired by the baked beans my Mom used to make and a recipe I came across in a newsletter connected with the Ask Dr. Sears website I've checked out since having my baby daughter. Sometimes I add the carrot because a friend once recommended it for adding a nice sweet touch. Plus, I’m always looking for opportunities to add more vegetables to my recipes. Another idea is to add 2 tablespoons of unsweetened cocoa powder - bringing to mind a Mexican mole sauce. I often do a vegetarian version of this chili or sometimes use ground beef instead of ground turkey. Compared to the chili my Mom used to make - which was delicious and had a simple list of ingredients - this is definitely more complex in flavour - which I enjoy and hopefully you will too. Feel free to add or take away any of the spices you like and make it your own.
Ingredients:
3 chopped onions (cooking onions are fine, or try one cooking onion and one other kind, perhaps a sweet onion or a red onion)
2 chopped green or red bell peppers (any colour will do, mix and match if you like)
2 chopped yams or sweet potatoes
1 or 2 chopped carrots
3-4 garlic cloves, minced
2 1/2 lbs. (1135 grams) lean ground turkey
4 tablespoons (60 ml) chili powder (or less than this and add a finely chopped red chili)
2 tablespoons (30 ml) ground cumin
1 tablespoon (15 ml) paprika
1 teaspoon (5 ml) cayenne pepper
1/2 teaspoon (2 ml) turmeric
1 teaspoon (5 ml) ground coriander
2 x 8-ounce cans tomato sauce or one 14 oz (398 ml) can
1 x 28 oz (784 ml) can of diced tomatoes
1 x 28 oz (784 ml) can kidney beans
1 x 28 oz (784 ml) can pinto beans or bean medley
1 tablespoon dark molasses
2 cans broth or half a carton (approximately 2 cups or 1/2 litre) vegetable, beef or chicken (water will do if you are out of broth)
2 tablespoons (30 ml) balsamic vinegar
Chopped fresh cilantro (coriander leaves) (optional)
Salt and pepper to taste
Instructions:
Sauté the ground turkey until no longer pink. Remove from pan into the pot you will simmer the chili in. Sauté the onions and garlic. Add the bell peppers and cook until the onions are soft and clear looking and the peppers are just a little soft. Add to pot with turkey. Add remaining ingredients except the yams and bring to a boil. Simmer for two hours. Add the yams for the second hour. You can add the yams from the start but they will be firmer if you cook them for less time than the other ingredients. If you are doing your chilli in a slow cooker go ahead and add the yams – they are a nice thickener if they do get soft and break up a bit. If you have less time and are only going to simmer the chili for an hour before serving, go ahead and add the yams. Serve with corn bread, garlic bread, a bowl of brown rice or one its own.
