If you are looking for something to cook for cold weather, you can try this chili in a crockpot recipe. It is a chili stew mixed with vegetables and spices simmered under low heat using a crockpot. It is usually served during dinner. It can be eaten with bread, tacos, or nacho chips. You can also put toppings of your choice to make it tastier, like cilantro, cheese, onion, avocado, sour cream, jalapenos, Fritos, and hot pepper. If you are interested in trying this dish, here is how to make chili in a crock pot recipe.
What Is A Crock Pot, And How Does It Work?
A crockpot is an electric appliance commonly used for cooking food or dishes with moist and low heat over a long time. The crockpot is usually made of a ceramic pot or porcelain pot placed just above the heating unit. Some designs have heating units around the pot. Depending on the brand, some of the crockpot models have their own timer, so you can set your desired length of cooking time for a specific dish.
It works when plugged in and has two to three heat levels: low, medium, and high. The heat usually comes from the bottom and comes upward to heat and cook the food. Some of the models have warming options that you can use to keep the food warm for an extended time. Cooking in a low level of heat would require more time than cooking with a high heat level. Using a crockpot, you can do unattended cooking while you are doing other house chores.
What Is It Used For?
A crockpot is used for slow cooking. Some people use it for baking goodies, roast a chicken, tenderize meat, and keep the food warm, especially during winter. It helps save time and money and requires less cooking time and less time in the kitchen because you can leave it over long hours unattended. Because of the long cooking process, it makes the food tastier and flavorful.
Making Chili And Chili In A Crock Pot
Chili Stew is usually cooked and sauteed in a frying pan with ground pork or ground beef, tomato, beans, peppers mixed with vegetables, and different spices and tomato sauce. It can be done over a couple of minutes when cooked over a stove.
Making chili in a crockpot would be different from the chili made with regular fire over a stove for a shorter period. Slow cooking a chili would make it tastier. More prolonged exposure to heat would make all the ingredients taste flavorful.
Qualities Of A Good Chili Recipe
Before we answer how to make chili in a crock pot recipe, keep in mind that a good crock pot chili recipe must be rich in chili and meaty flavor. You must taste touches of freshness, sweetness, hot, and fruity balance. Beans must be well done and intact, with thick red sauce. It is best served when hot. It can be eaten with bread, nacho, taco, and Frito. Depending on your taste and preference, you can top it with sour cream, cheese, cilantro, onion, jalapenos, and hot pepper.
Ingredients
There are various chili recipes available online; if you want to follow good chili crock pot ingredients, here are the ingredients that you should prepare to guide you on how to make chili in a crock pot recipe:
Main Ingredients
- 5 slices thick-sliced, hardwood hickory-smoked bacon
- 1 red bell pepper, chopped
- 1 green bell pepper, chopped
- 3 stalks celery, chopped
- 1 small yellow onion, diced
- ½ – 1 jalapeno pepper, seeded and diced
- 1 10.5 oz can beef consommé (you can also use beef stock)
- 1 6 oz can tomato paste
- 1 tablespoon Worcestershire sauce
- 2 cans diced tomatoes, undrained
- 1 can of pinto beans in mild or medium sauce (also called Chili Beans)
- 1 can kidney beans in mild chili sauce
- 2 pounds ground beef
Spices
- 4 tablespoons chili powder
- 1 tablespoon dried oregano
- 1 tablespoon white sugar
- 2 teaspoons cumin
- 1 teaspoon smoked paprika
- 3 teaspoons garlic powder
- 1 teaspoon basil
- 1 teaspoon Lawry’s seasoned salt
- ½ teaspoon ground pepper
- ½ teaspoon cayenne pepper
Procedures
Here are the basic procedures on how to make chili in a crock pot recipe:
- Prepare all the ingredients needed for the chili crockpot recipe.
- Chop the celery, green, red, and jalapeno peppers into small cubes. Make sure to remove the seeds and membranes. If you want to make it spicier, you can add more jalapeno.
- Diced one yellow onion and set it aside.
- In a casket iron skillet, cook the bacon until crisp and make sure not to overdo it. Drain the bacon in a paper towel.
- In the bacon grease, sauté the vegetables for about five minutes. Take the vegetables from the iron skillet and drain the bacon grease as much as you can.
- In the bacon grease, cook the ground beef one pound at a time until brown. Divide the ground beef into pieces about one to two inches in size, repeat the same process with all the meat until done.
- Mix all the spices in a bowl and mix well.
- In the crockpot, mix the beef or beef stock with the tomato paste.
- Add and stir the spice mixtures and Worcestershire sauce in the crockpot. You can add or reduce the spices depending on your liking.
- Add the cans of undrained beans and tomatoes.
- Add the sauteed vegetables and beef.
- Chop the bacon into about ½ inch, then add to the mixture.
- Cover the crockpot and cook in low heat for about six hours.
- You can serve the chili with sour cream, cheese, cilantro, jalapenos, Fritos, and onions.
Conclusion
There are various chili recipes when you search for how to make chili in a crock pot recipe. These recipes vary from location to location. The origin of the said recipe is still subject to debate. Some claim that it originated from Mexico, Spain, while others said it was originally from the US. Regardless of its origin, many people like its taste. Some even came up with their version to adjust to their liking. You can cook chili over a short period through a regular stove, but it can also be cooked using crockpots which will take several hours before you finally achieve that tasty and flavorful chili stew. Discover more about food recipes here!