Ground Turkey Chili
Ingredients:
2 lb ground turkey
2 28-oz cans crushed tomatoes
2 - 3 Dried chile peppers , soaked in boiling water for 30 minutes (optional)
1 can red kidney beans, drained and rinsed
1 green pepper, chopped
1 red pepper, chopped
4 garlic cloves, minced
1 large onion, diced
oregano
cumin
chili powder
red pepper flakes
ground cayenne pepper
salt
ground black pepper
sriracha or other hot sauce (optional)
1 - 2 Tbsp chipotle peppers in adobo sauce (optional) (or frozen cube)
For garnish, some ideas: Shredded Monterey Jack or cheddar cheese Green onions Fresh cilantro Sour cream Tortilla Chips Hot sauce
Steps:
1. If I have dried chile peppers like guajillo or ancho on hand, sometimes I add them to the chili. Other times I just use 1-2 Tbsp of chili powder. It’s up to you as to how spicy you like your chili.
2. If you are using the dried chile peppers:
Soak chile peppers in hot water for 30 minutes. Then stem and de-seed the peppers. Add the peppers to a food processor or blender along with a little fresh water or chicken stock. Process until peppers are chopped into as fine a paste as you can get.
3. Brown the ground turkey in a large stock pot or dutch oven. Drain if desired, or let it cook until the liquid evaporates.
Add onion and peppers to meat and cook for 5 minutes or until onions are translucent and peppers are softened
Add the garlic and cook for another minute.
4. Add 2 cans of crushed tomatoes to pot.
5. Add chili pepper paste if using
6. Add spices: 1-2 Tsp cumin, 1-2 tbsp chili powder, 1/2 Tsp cayenne pepper (or to taste), 1 Tsp dried oregano, red pepper flakes to taste
add a squirt of sriracha or other hot sauce if you like. It won’t add much heat but it will add flavor
7. Add one frozen cube of chipotle peppers in adobo sauce or 1-2 tbsp of canned chipotles if you like. I buy a can of chipotles and only use a little bit of the can so I dice the rest of the can and freeze it in a ice cube tray.
8. stir, bring to boil. Lower heat and simmer for 1 hour, stirring every 15 minutes. Scrape the bottom of the pot to make sure the chili doesn’t stick.
9. After an hour, add 1 can kidney beans.
Simmer for 1 hour or longer. The longer it cooks the darker it will get and the more flavor will develop.
Notes:
You can make this in a slow cooker too. Cook it on low for 8-10 hours. I don’t recommend trying to use the pressure cook mode on an Instant Pot because I got a burn notice when I tried it and ended up making it on the stove.
