Soup's On, Part II: Chili

Chili is always so good in the fall.  I like mine piled high with shredded chedar cheese and saltine or oyster crackers.  As a vegetarian, I make a meatless chili, but Morningstar Farms' Burger Crumbles are such a good substitution that my chili is a very similar product to the original, although obviously healthier and less greasy, which I think is a good thing.

Some people will say that traditional chili doesn't include all the modern add-ins, like beans, and shouldn't be made with chili powder, but I don't mind the additions.  I think chili is great with lots of beans and veggies, and if you don't have fresh chile peppers around, a good chili powder is just fine.

I often use canned beans, but if I am using dried beans the first step is to soak them for several hours and then cook them with aromatics in lots of water.  Recently I made a chili with Vaquero and Ojo de Cabra (Goat's Eye) beans from Rancho Gordo.  That was a fun change, and the patterns on the beans made for a colorful pot of chili.  When cooking dried beans for chili I like to throw in chile peppers with the other aromatics.  I start the pot of chili by sauteeing diced onions until translucent.  If using fresh chiles, they go in for a few minutes to flavor the oil.  Occassionally I'll use other veggies as well, such as bell peppers, and I sautee those for a few minutes also.  Then I add in the rest of the ingredients: diced tomatoes (fresh or canned), burger crumbles, tomato paste, beans, and seasonings.  If using canned beans, I add in most of the juice they are canned in.  If using dried beans, I add in some of the reserved (strained) pot liquor. 

For seasonings, I like to use ground garlic, a little smoked paprika, and a mixture of dried ground chiles, even if I also use fresh.  Ancho chiles are a classic in chili, and I use a lot of that.  I supplement the ancho with whatever I'm feeling that day; urfa, aji amarillo, cayenne, or mild green chilis.  Salt and pepper to taste as always.

I like a very thick chili, so I use tomato paste with the bean pot liquor to make a very thick, tomatoey broth.  Once I have the consistency where I like it, I let the pot simmer for at least a few minutes, up to an hour or so.  There's obviously no meat that needs to tenderize, and the beans should be cooked through, so there's no need to boil the pot away all day, but a little time simmering can help meld and develop the flavors. 

Like I said, I eat my chili with a whole lot of shredded sharp cheddar and crackers.  Even vegetarian, chili is a hearty, warming (and cheap) meal.  Happy eating!