Slow Cooker Chili with Beans

There’s nothing like a pot of chili to ward off Winter’s cold. It’s fairly inexpensive especially when you augment the more expensive ground chuck with beans and feeds a crowd. This is a dish that benefits from a longer cook time so if you can let this cook for8-10 hours on low, please do so.

Slow Cooker Chili with Beans

Ingredients:

1- 1 1/2 pounds ground chuck

2 cloves of garlic, minced

1 large onion, chopped

2 bell peppers, seeded and chopped

1 jalapeno, seeded and diced, optional

1 packet of chili seasoning

1 or 2 15 ounce cans of pinto beans, drained and rinsed. You can use dry beans you’ve cooked as well. It’ll be 2-4 cups of cooked beans.

8 cups of tomato juice

Salt, pepper, and extra chili powder to taste

Toppings such as cheese, sour cream, raw onion

Directions:

In a large skillet over medium heat, brown the ground chuck along with the onions, garlic, bell peppers and jalapeno if using, until the meat is no longer pink. Drain off fat and place into the bottom of a 6 quart slow cooker. Season lightly with salt and pepper and add chili seasoning, stir until spices are combined with the meat mixture. Add in the beans and tomato juice. Stir well, cover and cook on low for 8-10 hours or on high for 4-5 hours. Season to taste with salt, pepper, and extra chili powder.

Goes great with Mexican Cornbread, Southern-style cornbread or flour tortillas.