Turkey Chili

  Super Bowl Sunday makes me think of...Chili! Ok so I'm not really a football fan and the super bowl doesn't really make me think of anything. But I know many people get really into the super bowl moment and one of the foods that I think of when I think football or super bowl is chili. I recently came up with this chili recipe on my own about a month ago. It was my first attempt at chili and it was exceptional! So in the spirit of the super bowl this weekend we decided on chili last night for dinner. 
  The recipe can be changed or adapted based on your taste preferences or what you have in your pantry. For example omit the meat and add more veggies if you prefer vegetarian chili, substitute ground beef for the ground turkey (though remember the turkey is the healthier option!), add more chili powder or cayenne pepper if you like spicy, you get the idea. 







Turkey Chili

Serves about 6-8


1-2 tablespoons of olive oil
2-3 cloves garlic, minced
1 yellow onion, chopped
1 to 1 1/2 lbs of ground turkey
3 tablespoons of chili powder
2 tablespoons of cumin
1/2 teaspoon of cayenne pepper
1 tablespoon of sugar
2 green bell peppers, chopped
1-2 carrots, chopped
2 stalks of celery, chopped ( The chili in the pictures doesn't include the celery because I forgot to get some at the store so I just omitted it this time, showing how you can vary this recipe based on what you have)
1 1/2 tablespoons tomato paste
2 cans diced and fire roasted tomatoes with green chilies
1 can of black beans 
1 can of pinto beans
2-4 c. Low sodium chicken broth
Salt and pepper to taste
1 c. of cheddar cheese, shredded


*try and purchase the canned tomatoes and beans with no salt added to have more control over the sodium content of this dish


Directions:


  Heat the olive oil in a large dutch oven on the stove top over medium heat. Add the garlic and cook about 2 min, without browning. Add the onions and cook about 3 min. Add the ground turkey and cook just until browned, crumbling meat as it cooks. Add the chili powder, cumin, cayenne pepper, stirring to incorporate. Add bell peppers, carrots and celery, and cook until slightly soft, about 5-7 min.

  Stir in the tomato paste and sugar then add the canned tomatoes, black beans, and pinto beans. Add the chicken broth until the chili is the consistency that you want, so less broth for a thicker chili and more broth for a more soup-like chili. 

  I used about 2 1/2 c. of chicken broth. Season with salt and pepper after adding all your ingredients, especially the chicken broth because some ingredients might already have salt in them. Cook on low to medium heat, covered in the dutch oven for about 1 to 1 1/2 hours*.


  Spoon the chili into bowls and top with a sprinkle of the cheddar cheese and serve. We served the chili with a big salad on the side instead of something like bread because the chili itself is so filling!

*This recipe can also be made in a slow cooker by cooking everything in a pan through the tomato paste and sugar. Then add the meat and veggie mixture to a slow cooker, along with the canned tomatoes, beans, and broth and cook on low for 3-4 hours.


A Little Zest Original Recipe