"This New England style chili recipe was given to me by my Godmother. I still have the original recipe in her handwritting to this day! Her recipe won a couple blue ribbon awards in multiple chili contests, was loved at every potluck and has become a favorite of my friends. I hope your family will enjoy it as well!"
Ok so you can now stop thinking about what the MF stands for... I know what you had in mind! 🫣🤭🤪 Keep reading to find out!
I’ve made this basic chili recipe for over 25 years. It was a family recipe that I was able to enjoy while visiting my Aunt in the fall and winter months. I would always help her make the sweet cornbread or Johnny cakes to serve with it. It’s one of those recipes I make – without a recipe. Always made with a pound or two of ground beef and beans, tomatoes, onion, garlic, cumin, and chili powder as a base. Over the years, I’ve added and tried a few other ingredients that add extra flavor and make it seem a bit more special such canned or frozen corn, Rotel, jalapenos, stewed tomatoes, bell peppers, tomato paste etc.
This recipe is also easily adaptable. If you don’t have 3 cans of red beans, use what you have! No garlic? Use garlic powder instead or leave it out altogether. If you only have chopped tomatoes but no tomato sauce or paste, no problem. Look through the fridge and see what you DO have, chop, and add to the chili.
MF's Chili
Servings – 8
Prep Time – 15 Minutes
Cook Time – 30 Minutes
Ingredients:
1lb ground beef or ground turkey, you can added an additional pound if you prefer a meatier chili - Yup that'd be me! 🙋🏻♀️
1 onion, chopped
1 (15 ounce) can tomato sauce
1 can condensed tomato soup, I use the low sodium
1 (15 ounce) can kidney beans, drained and rinsed
1 (15 ounce) can black beans, drained and rinsed - optional
1 (15 ounce) can chili beans with sauce
1 (14.5 ounce) can crushed tomatoes, drained and reserved
1 ½ cups water + reserved tomato juice, optional - add as needed to your consistency liking
1 can of sliced black olives or whole, and then you can slice them as thick as you like
1/8 cup pepronchini pepper slices, optional if you don't like a little heat... its mild heat
2 tablespoons chili powder, or more to taste
1 tablespoon garlic powder
1 tablespoon cumin
salt and pepper to taste
Directions:
Place ground beef and onion in a large saucepan over medium heat; cook and stir until meat is browned and onion is tender, about 5 to 7 minutes. If using ground beef drain any excess grease from the pan and discard.
Stir in tomato sauce, soup, beans, and crushed tomatoes. If you prefer a thinner consistency, you can add the reserved crushed tomato juice and water.
Season with chili powder, cumin, garlic powder, salt, and black pepper. Stir to combine.
Add in olives. Stir lightly to mix,
Bring to a boil, reduce heat to low, cover and let simmer for 20-30 minutes.
Notes:
If you have left over chili, you make my delicious chili mac for another great night meal.
Nutrition:
Calories 394 | Total Fat 9g | Saturated Fat 4g | Cholesterol 46mg | Sodium 526mg | Carbohydrate 49g | Dietary Fiber 18g | Total Sugars 4g | Protein 31g | Vitamin C 16mg | Calcium 151mg | Iron 8mg | Potassium 1061mg
This was a comment from a co-worker of mine. "This is the best chili recipe I tried and my family loved it! It’s not watery and easy to make. I even added a can of mushrooms I had on hand, delicious! Thank you for sharing your family recipe with us."
CWT is not a certified dietician or nutritionist. Any nutritional information shared on this site is an estimate counted through measurements and package nutritional information used in each recipe. If calorie, macro counting and other nutritional values are important to you, I recommend running the ingredients through your choice of nutritional calculator you prefer. Calories can vary depending on national brands used per recipe.