Awesomest Chili Ever!

Submitted by kitchengrrl

"I'm not sure if "awesomest" was a word before, but it is now! This was exactly what I wanted when I came home on a blustery night. The venison and wine give it a very strong, rich flavor, and the combination of spices gives it great depth. I'm sure you could substitute beef for the venison and it would be almost as good. I wasn't measuring as I added the seasonings, so all of that is approximate. Do what makes you happy."

 

• Ready In: 8hrs 40mins
• Ingredients: 19
• Yields: 5-6 quarts

ingredients

• 2 lbs ground or chopped venison
• 1 lb sweet Italian turkey sausage, casings removed
• 1 medium red onions or 1/2 large red onion, small dice
• 2 stalks celery, with leaves if possible, diced
• 2 large carrots or 4 small carrots, small dice
• 1 -3 large jalapeno, seeded and diced
• 1⁄2 head garlic, crushed (about 6 large cloves)
• 1 green bell pepper, chopped
• 3 lbs canned beans (I used 1 can each of black beans, kidney beans and cannellini)
• 2 (14 1/2 ounce) cans diced tomatoes
• 1 (6 ounce) can tomato paste
• 1 cup strong red wine, depending on how wet you like your chili (I suggest a cabernet, (or more)
• 1⁄4 cup Worcestershire sauce
• 2 tablespoons chili powder
• 2 teaspoons cumin
• 1 teaspoon coriander
• 1 tablespoon oregano
• 2 -4 bay leaves, depending on size
• 1 teaspoon allspice

directions

1. You're going to need a 5-6 qt crock pot or stock pot for this.
2. Brown the meats in an iron skillet in separate batches, drain and add to crock pot.
3. Add a little more oil to the skillet and saute all the veggies EXCEPT the green pepper.
4. When the onion is clear, add all veggies to crock pot along with all remaining ingredients.
5. Give it a stir and set the crock to high and cook 4 hours or low and cook 8 hours.
6. Or just simmer on the stove until you're happy with it.
7. Season to taste.
8. *Note:If you don't want the veggies to be as noticeable (or you just want to hide them from your kids!), you could throw them in a food processor and I think they'd blend right in with the ground meat.
9. I didn't serve this with any cheese, but I'm thinking a nice sharp white one, like white cheddar or fontina would be REALLY nice.

Reviews

[djdamonm]

I have made this about 7 times and I have to say it is a big hit every time. The red wine and extra spices really make a difference. I actually modified it slightly and use 1 Jalapeno and 1 Habanero. This gave it a nice slow burn. The first time I made it I used Venison, but haven't been able to get my hands on it since. Ground beef (80% lean works great) is a good substitute