Spicy Homestyle Chili

This evening I decided to make dinner instead of unpack boxes...and it felt SO good to be back in the kitchen again believe it or not! Since it was a little cooler today (as in upper 80s/90 degrees...LOL) I was in the mood to make a big ole pot of chili. I usually like to make chili and cook it all day long on low in the crock pot, but I settled for simmering it on the stove this evening instead. I made a modified version of my "Sweet & Spicy Chili" recipe but used all ground beef instead of a mixture of beef chunks and ground beef and made a few other tweaks as well. It turned out great! I snapped a quick photo below and included my modified recipe as well. You can make this chili as spicy or as mild as you like by adjusting the chipotle pepper, hot paprika and cayenne pepper. Enjoy!

Spicy Homestyle Chili

Ingredients:

2 1/2 pounds ground beef
2 tablespoons oil, to saute vegetables
1 cup onion, diced
2 sweet bell peppers (red, yellow or orange), diced
1 Poblano pepper, diced
1 jalapeno pepper, diced (optional)
5 cloves garlic, minced
Spices:
   1 tablespoon chili powder
   1 teaspoon "chipotle chili powder" (or regular chili powder to reduce heat)
   1 teaspoon hot Hungarian paprika (or substitute sweet paprika to reduce heat)
   1 teaspoon ground coriander
   1 teaspoon cumin (I used roasted cumin)
   1/4 teaspoon cayenne pepper, or to taste
   1 teaspoon oregano
   1 teaspoon salt, or to taste
   1 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper, or to taste
1 28-oz can diced fire roasted tomatoes (including juice)
1 6-oz. can tomato paste
1 cup chicken stock
1 cup water (more or less, depending on preferred thickness)
1 16-oz can kidney beans, drained (optional)

Directions:

In a large stockpot over medium heat, add oil and saute onion, sweet bell peppers, Poblano pepper, and jalapeno peppers until almost tender; add minced garlic and cook a couple more minutes, stirring frequently (covering the pan helps speed up cooking the veggies). Remove the veggies with a slotted spoon and set aside on a platter.  

In the same pan, brown ground beef until cooked and no longer pink. Return pepper and onion mixture back to the pot. Stir in all of the spices, diced tomatoes, tomato paste, chicken stock and water. Bring to a medium boil; taste to adjust seasoning, if necessary.  Cover pot and reduce heat to low, Simmer on low for approximately 1 hour (if desired, chili can be placed in a crock-pot and cooked on low for 8 - 10 hours instead of simmering on top of the stove).  

Ladle chili into bowls and top with shredded sharp cheddar cheese and dollop of sour cream, if desired.