Food Storage Friday: Three Bean Chili

Somebody asked for our favorite chili recipe. This isn't it. My favorite chili recipe is awesome. And is in a cookbook that was dropped in water and now all the pages are stuck together. My sister-in-law has the same cookbook and this week it was flooded in her basement. And now all the pages are stuck together. My mom has the same cookbook. But I forgot to call her. So you get my EASY crockpot chili recipe. Hang onto your hats, it's a breeze. Based on the recipe from here.



Tortilla crisps would be delicious with this recipe. Of course, any thing fried in fat is generally delicious, all the time.



Ingredients: black beans, red beans, pinto beans, diced tomatoes (I know it says crushed, but you really ought to use diced), tomato sauce, chili seasoning




Doesn't this picture look like the beans are about to roll you over. Ahh! Avalanche of beans!



Night before: rinse your beans and cover them with water in a large pot.



All the way to the top, the beans will absorb a lot of water during the night.



See how they've swelled?


Drain the water and fill your pot with fresh water, just covering the beans. I had to let out some water, this was too much.



Empty your cans of tomatoes and tomato sauce into the crock pot. I only had crushed tomatoes, but diced would have been much better for the texture of the soup.



Now, you can use a seasoning packet, or just throw in some chili powder, onion powder, and some red pepper flakes.



Also, toss in about 1 tsp of salt to start with, you may want to add more salt later on.



Turn the crock pot on low and walk away for the rest of the day. Okay, not the rest of the day. Make sure you check on it every once in a while to see if it needs more water (mine didn't) and be sure to check the beans about an hour before you're ready to eat.



Test each type of bean to see if they are soft. If any of them are still a little hard, crank up the heat to high for the next 30-45 minutes to cook them all the way through.



When you are rotating through this meal, go ahead and add any of the usual chili toppings: sour cream, shredded cheese, chopped onions, whatever your heart desires.



Crockpot Three Bean Chili
adapted, or rather copied, from about.com

1 cup dried black beans
1 cup dried red beans
1 cup dried pinto beans
2 cans (14oz ea) diced tomatoes
2 cans (8oz ea) tomato sauce
1 pkt of chili seasoning
1 tsp salt (or more to taste)

The night before, rinse and soak the beans all together overnight. The next morning, drain the water from the beans and cover with fresh water. Add cans of tomatoes and sauce and the seasonings. Turn crockpot on low and cook for 6-8 hours. Check for doneness near the end of the cooking period and adjust heat to high for 30 minutes or so if need be. Keep your eye on the crockpot when it's on high.