Posts in onions
super bowl chili

there are many reasons i wanted to go into business for myself, but one of the biggest reasons was my schedule. i detest living on someone else's schedule. while i'm a hard worker and work most of my waking hours, i want to work on what i want to work on, when i want to work on it. if that happens to be at eleven at night on a tuesday, so be it. it's on me. 

of course there are downsides. there is never anyone to cover for me, there is no "vacation" time and i work most holidays. but i do have control over my days off. so this sunday i scheduled myself off so i could actually ATTEND a party. 

naturally, i'm bringing some food (it is my bestie's house, i can't not contribute). and when she suggested i make chili, i knew exactly where to go searching for the perfect recipe... 

last year when i stopped working and was finalizing all my wedding planning, i went DEEP into chili recipes. i tried at least a dozen recipes and used wes and my mother as test subjects to hone in on the BEST chili. i was looking for a classic, go to chili you count on for events just like the super bowl. 

after flipping through pages of scribble recipe notes covered in oil droplets and sauce stains, i found just what i was looking for. the page with a large note at the bottom. "WES REALLY LIKES THIS ONE." winner, winner. 

super bowl chili
serves: 5-6
prep time: 20 minutes
active time: 40 minutes
inactive time: 2 hours
total time: 3 hours
ingredients: 1 lb ground beef. 2 tbs olive oil. 1 brown onion, diced. 1 bell pepper (your choice of color), diced. 1 jalapeno pepper, all but about 10 seeds removed, and small diced. 5 garlic cloves, minced. 1 chipotle pepper, seeds removed and small chopped. 1 tbs fresh chopped oregano. 1 tbs cumin. 1 tbs brown sugar. 1 bottle of beer (i used new castle but use what you like to drink). 1 14oz can diced tomatoes. 1 14 oz can kidney beans, rinsed. 1 14 oz can pinto beans, rinsed. 4 cups chicken stock. 1 tbs salt. .25 tbs ground pepper. 1 cup mexican blend cheese. handful of cilantro for garnish. lime wedges for garnish. 

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in a large pot, heat the olive oil over medium heat until hot. add in the onion, jalapeno and bell pepper. 

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season with one fourth of the salt and pepper and cook until the onions are translucent. about 7-10 minutes. 

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press the veggie mixture to the sides of the pot. pat the ground beef dry and season the meat with half the remaining salt and pepper. turn up the heat to medium high. 

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add the beef to the center of the pot and allow the meat to sear on one side before flipping it. about 5 minutes. 

allow the other side of the meat to sear before breaking it up with a wooden spoon. 

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when you have broken up the meat, add in the garlic, oregano, brown sugar, cumin, chipotle and stir well tog combine. 

continue to cook the mixture, stirring every minute or so until the garlic is fragrant. about 2-3 minutes.

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pour in the tomatoes. 

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and the beer. 

bring the mixture to a simmer. allow it to cook down for about 5 minutes. 

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add in the last of the salt and pepper, chicken stock and beans. 

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stir well to combine and bring the chili to a boil. once boiling, reduce the heat till the liquid is gently simmering. simmer on low for 1-2 hours for the liquid to reduce a bit and the flavors to meld. 

serve hot, topped with cheese, lime and a couple of cilantro sprigs. 

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xo, a

super bowl chili
serves: 5-6
prep time: 20 minutes
active time: 40 minutes
inactive time: 2 hours
total time: 3 hours
ingredients: 1 lb ground beef. 2 tbs olive oil. 1 brown onion, diced. 1 bell pepper (your choice of color), diced. 1 jalapeno pepper, all but about 10 seeds removed, and small diced. 5 garlic cloves, minced. 1 chipotle pepper, seeds removed and small chopped. 1 tbs fresh chopped oregano. 1 tbs cumin. 1 tbs brown sugar. 1 bottle of beer (i used new castle but use what you like to drink). 1 14oz can diced tomatoes. 1 14 oz can kidney beans, rinsed. 1 14 oz can pinto beans, rinsed. 4 cups chicken stock. 1 tbs salt. .25 tbs ground pepper. 1 cup mexican blend cheese. handful of cilantro for garnish. lime wedges for garnish.
in a large pot, heat the olive oil over medium heat until hot. add in the onion, jalapeno and bell pepper. season with one fourth of the salt and pepper and cook until the onions are translucent. about 7-10 minutes.
press the veggie mixture to the sides of the pot. pat the ground beef dry and season the meat with half the remaining salt and pepper. turn up the heat to medium high.
add the beef to the center of the pot and allow the meat to sear on one side before flipping it. about 5 minutes. allow the other side of the meat to sear before breaking it up with a wooden spoon.
when you have broken up the meat, add in the garlic, oregano, brown sugar, cumin, chipotle and stir well tog combine.
continue to cook the mixture, stirring every minute or so until the garlic is fragrant. about 2-3 minutes.
pour in the tomatoes.
and the beer.
bring the mixture to a simmer. allow it to cook down for about 5 minutes.
add in the last of the salt and pepper, chicken stock and beans.
stir well to combine and bring the chili to a boil. once boiling, reduce the heat till the liquid is gently simmering. simmer on low for 1-2 hours for the liquid to reduce a bit and the flavors to meld.
serve hot, topped with cheese, lime and a couple of cilantro sprigs. 

tips & tricks: caramelized onions

when i tell people that i am a cook, they naturally assume that i'm eating like a king. and when people come over to our house for dinner and we make them a decadent meal, i often receive comments of disbelief that we eat that way every night. 

well guess what? i surely do not eat like a king every day and daily dinner's at my house look a lot more like a combo of left over food made for others and reheated trader joe's meals. 

even the cook has a busy life and has a hard time getting in tasty, satisfying meals. 

so i try to do the little extra things when i have some down time that will make my meal prepping easier when i'm really in a pinch. 

one of my go to items to have in the house is caramelized onions. they can be added to pasta, burgers, sandwiches, eggs and you get the point. caramelized onions are versatile. they are easy to make ahead and will keep through out the week in the fridge for quick and easy use. 

many people will give you different trips and tricks on how to best caramelize onions, but here is what i think is the easiest way to get the most flavor and bang for your buck. the major key in my mind is the type of onion you select. yellow or brown onions are often lower in price then their white or red friends and they have a higher sugar content so you don't need to add sugar to them to get them to caramelize. 

caramelized onion
serves: about .5 cup caramelized onion
prep time: 1 minute
cook time: 30 minutes
total time: 31 minutes
ingredients: 1 yellow (some stores will call them brown) or spanish onion. 2 tbs olive oil. .5 tsp salt. .25 tsp fresh pepper. 

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start by slicing your onion in half, and then cutting it into .25 inch strips. 

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add all your ingredients together in a large pan. toss well till the onions are lightly coated with olive oil, salt and pepper. 

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now here is the key... patience. 

cook your onions, stirring every few minutes till they are caramelized. this will take 20-30 minutes. 
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first they will become translucent. 

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then they will start to brown. 

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and before you know it, they will be nice and caramelized.

enjoy however you like, but i highly recommend this grilled cheese as a good place to start. 

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xo, a

caramelized onion
serves: about .5 cup caramelized onion
prep time: 1 minute
cook time: 30 minutes
total time: 31 minutes
ingredients: 1 yellow (some stores will call them brown) or spanish onion. 2 tbs olive oil. .5 tsp salt. .25 tsp fresh pepper.
start by slicing your onion in half, and then cutting it into .25 inch strips.
add all your ingredients together in a large pan. toss well till the onions are lightly coated with olive oil, salt and pepper.
now here is the key... patience.
cook your onions, stirring every few minutes till they are caramelized. this will take 20-30 minutes.
first they will become translucent.
then they will start to brown.
and before you know it, they will be nice and caramelized.
enjoy however you like, but i highly recommend this grilled cheese as a good place to start.