Winter Cravings

Summer has come and gone and I've neglected my food musings. Summer and fall usually mean I'm outside whenever possible and the idea of spending time over the stove usually gives way to the call of camping, whitewater kayaking, parkour, biking, hiking, be what it may. But the weather is cold, and I love curling up in my cozy apartment with a good movie and a hot plate of food with my monkey boy wonder. The last cold snap had me wasting time on my lunch break at work reviewing chili recipes. Washabinaros Chili caught my eye because of the strange ingredient combination and it looked like it would pack a punch.

In two TBSP of vegetable oil, I sauteed together two onions roughly chopped, 4 cloves of minced garlic (okay, I cheated and used the pre-minced stuff that comes in jars), 1 pound of lean ground turkey (the recipe called for ground beef, but I like to try to make healthy substitutions that won't compromise flavor), and 3/4 pounds of spicy italian sausauge with the casing removed, in a big ass stock pot until the meat was cooked. To this, I added:

1 (14.5 ounce) can peeled and diced tomatoes with juice
3/4 bottle of Delerium Nocturnum... the big bottle (or other dark beer, Guinness or any other stout would work well, but this Belgian beer packs a punch... plus you get to drink the rest while you cook!)
2 (6 ounce) cans tomato paste
2 cups organic beef broth (I like Pacific brand)
1/4 cup chili powder
1 TBSP ground cumin
1/8 cup sugar in the raw
1 tsp dried oregano
1 TBSP cayenne pepper
1 tsp ground coriander
1 tsp sea salt
1 TBSP wasabi powder

Bring all this to a boil and then cover and let simmer while you prepare the peppers. Chop 2 Anaheim chile peppers, 2 serrano peppers, and 2 habanero peppers... okay, so the recipe only called for 1 serrano and 1 habanero, but we like it spicy... I could have easily added another habanero and it would have been perfect. In order to take advantage of the full spiciness of the peppers and draw the flavors out, heat 2 TBSP vegetable oil in a skillet and cook the peppers until they wilt a bit. Then add them to the pot with 3 cans of dark red kidney beans. I let this simmer for about 45 minutes before I got too hungry and wanted to eat.

The chili had a wonderfully rich and complex flavor and the kick from the habaneros and wasabi were perfect. This is one of those cold winter night meaty conconctions that would have been perfect served with slices of toasted crusty french bread. Alas, we had no french bread. But garnished with jalapeno jack cheese and sliced scallions, it was satisfying. This recipe makes enough for 8 overly generous servings and saves really well. It also tastes better reheated the next day.