Jim’s Big Batch Slow Cooker Chili

Total Time: 8 hrs 40 mins Preparation Time: 40 mins Cook Time: 8 hrs

Ingredients

• 3 lbs 80% lean ground beef (or three pounds ground chuck same %)
• 1 lb ground sausage (jimmy dean or other brand hot)
• 1 medium onion, finely chopped (i normally use an 8 oz onion)
• 1 (1 1/2 ounce) packet chili seasoning mix (mccormick chili seasoning mix for slow cookers)
• 4 garlic cloves, pressed
• 1 (29 ounce) can tomato sauce (hunt's, or you may use 2 15 oz. cans as the extra ounce shouldn't make much of a difference)
• 2 (6 ounce) cans tomato paste (hunt's, trick open both ends of can and shake out)
• 2 (16 ounce) cans light red kidney beans (bush's best light red, rinse and drain in cold water before using)
• 2 (14 1/2 ounce) cans chicken broth (or measure 28 oz. from a box)
• 1 tablespoon ground oregano
• 1/2 teaspoon paprika (or use mccormick ground ancho chili powder instead to add some heat)
• 1 teaspoon kosher salt (or substitute same amount of common iodized table salt)
• 3/4 teaspoon fresh ground black pepper
• 1/4 teaspoon allspice
• 2 bay leaves

Recipe

• 1 optional adds: 1 green bell pepper chopped or 2 jalapeno peppers seeded and chopped for extra added heat. personally, i do not use either of these, but you may. you may also use 2 (14.5 oz. cans) of hunt's diced tomatoes, undrained, if you like a chunkier chili. personally, i do not use these either.
• 2 cook the meats in at least 2 separate batches in a large skillet over med-high heat right before it crumbles. add and mix in the finely chopped onions. when the meat crumbles and no longer is pink; drain.
• 3 place the meat and onion mixture in the large crock pot (slow cooker). add the rinsed/drained light red kidney beans and the remaining ingredients.
• 4 cover and cook on low for 8 hours, may stir a couple times. since this is a slow cooker, it is always discouraged to use the high setting… but if you must and running short on time, can be done roughly around 5 hours on high.
• 5 remove and discard the bay leaves before serving.
• 6 condiments and/or sides to consider having on hand when serving: sour cream, sharp shredded cheddar cheese, rice, chopped green onions, black sliced olives, crackers, limes (cut in quarters), jalapeno slices, baguette bread sliced, cornbread (or jalapeno cornbread), salad.
• 7 beverage pairing: milk, ripe zinfandel, or syrah.
• 8 enjoy! for whatever reason, a well-made chili is much like jambalaya. the leftovers, the day after, is generally better. . maybe it takes a day for the flavors to truly fuse together.
• 9 directions for freezing and/or reheating portions:.
• 10 let chili cool before freezing.
• 11 evenly divide chili into 2 (1-gallon) zip-top freezer bags (only 1 1-gallon bag needed if you are looking to freeze only half).
• 12 seal and lay each bag flat.
• 13 stack bags of chili in freezer.
• 14 freeze up to 1 month.
• 15 thaw 1 bag of frozen chili overnight in refrigerator (or defrost in microwave).
• 16 pour thawed chili into a 9-inch square baking dish.
• 17 cover tightly with heavy-duty plastic wrap, and fold back a corner to allow steam to escape.
• 18 microwave at high 6-7 minutes or until bubbly (stirring once after 3 1/2 min mark).