Now that the colder months have now, more or less, officially arrived, it's time to reach into my arsenal of cold weather dishes. For me, the ultimate cold weather dish is chili. I mean, how can I say no to warming up with a big hearty bowl of chili? Everybody has their own basic chili recipe that they turn to, and this one is mine. I especially like it because it cooks up quickly and uses up a lot of my leftovers. It you cut out the broth, you can turn it into a Tex-Mex style stir-fry, which is a plenty tasty option in its own right.
This is a great go-to weeknight recipe because it is so damn convenient. It all cooks up in one big deep pan, which makes clean-up super easy. Compared to conventional chili recipes, this one comes together is around 15 to 20 minutes, which I especially like. Sure, I'm happy to cook for a long time on weekends, but weeknights are a whole other story.
In this recipe, I used frozen corn and green peppers. I happened to have this in my freezer, but other frozen veggies would have worked just fine. I more or less live in corn country, so I buy up lots of corn during the season, extract the kernels and freeze them in plastic bags. Ground beef or ground turkey would have been great additions to this dish, but I didn't have any around so instead it's a super tasty vegetarian chili recipe.
One-Pot Stove Top ChiliIngredients
- 1 to 2 green peppers, de-seeded and sliced into strips
- about 1 cup frozen corn
- about 2-3 cups cooked brown rice (I happened to have a lot of brown rice on hand that I needed to get rid of, but you can use as much or as little as you'd like)
- 1 can black beans, thoroughly rinsed and drained
- 2-3 tablespoons garlic, minced
- Low sodium broth (either chicken or vegetable broth will work just fine)
- Chili powder
- Cumin
- Paprika
- Dried cilantro
- Dried oregano
- Cayenne pepper (optional)
Instructions
Defrost your corn and slice your green peppers. Pre-heat a deep, wide pan over a medium-high heat. Once your pan is hot, add just enough broth to form a super thin layer at the bottom. Then, add your corn and green peppers and cook until the vegetables are soft on the inside and have taken on a nice outer crispness. Add the rice, beans and garlic, and pour in broth until everything is just covered. Let it come to a simmer, and them let it simmer for about 5 to 10 minutes. Add your spices according to taste and let it all simmer for another few minutes. Scoop it out into a bowl, top with cheese if desired and enjoy!OK, so this simple chili recipe is a bit carb-heavy, but this is a great way to clear out your pantry and freezer inventory. Of course, you can up the vegetable ante with some squash, carrots, mushrooms, you name it. For those who don't want a vegetarian chili recipe, simply brown some ground beef or ground turkey and add it to the mix. Think of this recipe as a poor man's fusion cuisine (this is basically fried rice meets chili) . It's simple to make and it was super tasty. Enjoy!
What's your favorite one-pot meal option?
About the Author:Matthew Kaplan is the Editor of FaveDiets.com
