Well I suppose it’s time to actually start posting recipes here. I’ll begin with one of my specialties, which also happens to be the best chili ever. What makes it the best? Two things: BEER and CHOCOLATE! This is cooked entirely on the stovetop, and will need to simmer for at least 30 minutes (the longer, the tastier). Behold, the epic recipe.
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Makes a buttload of servings.
(Want two buttloads? Double everything! My wok can only fit one buttload.)
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Ingredients
1 onion
1 green pepper
2 cloves of garlic
1 lb ground bison (leaner than beef, tastes better too!)
2 standard (14.5 oz) cans of pinto, kidney, and/or black beans
1 standard can diced tomatoes
some veggie or beef broth (1/2 c – 1 c)
half a can or bottle of beer (your choice…pilseners and lagers work really well)
1 big pinch of cocoa powder (see notes)
1 big pinch cayenne (adjust to your liking)
1 bay leaf
salt and pepper
a bit of cooking oil
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Instructions
There are two ways to make this: the awesome way and the lazy way. I’ll start with the lazy way, for all you lazies out there who just want to get it over with.
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The lazy way:
1. Chop up your veggies, and make sure the meat is thawed.
2. Add a bit of water to a large saucepan, wok, or whatever you’re using. This will help brown the meat without it sticking to the pan like crazy. Heat up the pan (stove set to high), and dump in the meat. Start breaking it into little chunks. Add a pinch of salt and pepper.
3. When meat looks sufficiently browned, throw in the onion, green pepper, and garlic, and bay leaf. Reduce heat to med/med-high, and stir your ingredients around for a few minutes. Let them sweat.
4. When onions the onions are translucent, dump in your can of tomatoes, beans, and broth. Now is also a good time to add the beer, chocolate, cayenne, and any other spices you want to throw in there. Increase heat and bring to a boil.
5. Reduce heat to simmer, put a lid on the pot, and walk away (but come back every few minutes to stir).
6. After about half an hour, add salt to taste. Tada! You’re done.
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The awesome way:
1. Chop up your veggies, and make sure the meat is thawed.
2. Add a bit of water to a large saucepan, wok, or whatever you’re using. This will help brown the meat without it sticking to the pan like crazy. Heat up the pan (stove set to high), and dump in the meat. Start breaking it into little chunks. Add a pinch of salt and pepper.
3. *THIS IS THE DIFFERENT PART!* Remove the meat from the pan, and set aside. Put a little oil in the pan, make sure it’s hot, and toss in your onion, green pepper, garlic, and bay leaf. Reduce heat to med-high and stir them around for a few minutes. Let them sweat.
4. When the onions are translucent, add the meat back in. The rest of the steps are exactly the same, so I won’t repost them. Just start at Step 4 of The Lazy Way and you’re good to go.
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Notes
– First I’d like to mention the cocoa powder. I’ve tried this recipe with unsweetened 100% cocoa powder, Swiss Miss, and drinking chocolate. The verdict is….they all work! Use whatever you have. Go nuts.
– You may notice that there is no chili powder in this recipe. That’s because I HATE chili powder! But if you like it, you can omit the cayenne powder and add it in at your discretion. Want to know what it tastes like with no chili powder? A delicious Italian spicy bean stew. Mmmmm.
– What’s the real difference between the Lazy Way and the Awesome Way? The awesome one tastes better. But the lazy one still tastes awesome, so the name is a little misleading.
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The end. Get to work!
– Euph
Nerd Kitchen 