Healthy winter chili recipes ideas?

[laf982]

Does anyone have a quick, healthy and spicy chili recipe?

[pancrat]

I just made a turkey chili last night, not too tough, and the family all ate it (with 2 picky eaters who even said, "this isn't bad".  High praise, considering!  I thought it was delish.  Don't add salt until the end, or you risk it getting too salty once it cooks down.  I hate bland food, so I used alot of spices & seasonings to make a rich broth.  Simplify to your preference.

Saute 1 large diced onion, 6 cloves minced garlic, 1 diced green pepper until softened. Add 1 lb ground turkey & stir until browned.  Add 28-ounce can crushed tomatoes, 16 oz can beans (pinto/kidney), and spices adjusted to your favorite mix: 1 tsp chili powder, 1 T paprika, 1 tbs garlic powder, 1.5 tsp cumin, 1 tbs cocoa powder, 1 tbs instant espresso powder, 1 tbs dried basil, 1 tbs dried oregano.   Mix in 2 c chicken stock.  Bring to a boil while stirring, simmer covered for as long as you need to (30 min to 1 hr is good).  Add additional seasonings to taste, up to: 1 tbs sugar, 1.5 tsp salt, 1 tbs tabasco sauce.

[laf982]

The recipe does sound easy and if you were able to get kids to eat, I will definitely give it a try....lol. I like to make it spicy even maybe add a few small jalapeño peppers on top. Thanks so much for the response.

[pancrat]

Hope you enjoy.  Don't forget the fixings to make it look pretty - cilantro, chopped green or red onion, a bit of cheddar, avocado....yum!

[laf982]

Sounds awesome, with the new falling snow we just had; I think I will give it a try this weekend. I will let you know how it turns out. 🙂

[cdkmom]

I made a quinoa chili the other day that is delicious.  It is a vegan recipe that is so good you don't miss the meat in it.

You will need:

2 carrots, diced

4 celery stalks, diced

1 large onion, diced

8 cloves garlic, minced

1 15 oz. can roasted diced tomatoes

2 6 oz. tomato paste

2 cans black beans, drained

2 cans red kidney beans, drained

1 cup quinoa

4 cups veggie broth

1 can corn

2 T chili powder

1 T cumin powder

1 t cayenne pepper

3 T maple syrup

2 T soy sauce

You can put all of the ingredients in slow cooker with exception of maple syrup and soy sauce and cook on low for 8 hours or on high for 5 hours.  Add maple syrup and soy sauce when it's done and adjust spices to your taste.  

[Sue57]

Thanks for sharing - my daughter in law is Vegetarian so she will enjoy this. I am always looking for new recipes for when they come to dinner. 

[laf982]

Thanks so much for the great recipes. Can't wait to try this one, its nice to have the option in case you want to eliminate the meat. Just came in from work through an ice storm this morning so they all sound so good about now. Looks like a a cold one so nothing like chili to warm you up.

[RedSoxgirl]

I make a homemade vegetarian chili and freeze it.  It's healthy and spicy.  Let me know if anyone is interested in the recipe.  The chili is made with vegetable stock, tomatoes, celery, carrots, red/green/yellow/orange peppers, hot peppers, bulgur, kidney beans and tons of great spices.

[annie53]

I make a ground turkey chili, but I add 1 grated zucchini and sometimes some finely chopped mushrooms.  My goal with this is to reduce the calories per portion and get some picky eaters a few extra veggies.  The cool thing is that by the time the chili is cooked you cannont tell that there are any veggies in it the zucchini disappears and the mushrooms add texture of beef so that is seems meatier. The mushroom trick would be awesome for a straight veggie chili too.

[Vicki-Z]

I make turkey chili all the time and my whole family likes it better than with ground beef.

saute an onion

add 1 lb ground turkey

dump in:

1 can kidney beans

1 can pinto beans

1 can chili beans (I like the hot ones)

1 can tomato sauce

2 good boullion cubes

1 pkg McCormick's chili seasoning

2 T. chili powder.

I get the low salt versions of any of these ingredients that I can find and then salt and pepper to taste. I calculate this at 225 calories per one cup serving. Doesn't sound like much but it's plenty for me and pretty filling. I've also added carrots diced reallly small which makes it quite a bit sweeter, celery which is good but takes longer to cook so put it in with your onions. I've used black beans and instead of the seasoning packet I've used a jar of salsa which was good. Lots of options for making it your own.

If you like Chili I think you'd like this super easy black bean soup.

2 cans black beans

1 jar of salsa

brown rice

puree one can of beans and the salsa then put in a pan with the other can of beans and the rice to heat. Depending on what type of rice you use, you'll need to cook it longer and add water. I use Uncle Bens precooked brown rice and the whole thing is ready to eat as soon as it's hot. I haven't figured the calories but it's gotta be low and no fat at all.

[JoanneinCA]

I make a vegan chili that we all like here. It's an eggplant chili. I never measure things, just kind of do it to taste, but here are the ingredients: Big can of tomato sauce, a can (or two) of diced tomatoes, 2 cans kidney beans, 2 cans black beans, 1 can of pinto beans, 1 can garbanzo beans, a cup or two of frozen sweet corn, 1 large or 2 small eggplants diced, a big onion diced, garlic to taste, chili powder to taste, cumin, salt, pepper, and cayenne pepper to taste. 

You don't have to be real exact with the ingredients. You could add more or less beans depending on how much you're making.  There's no extra fat added. I just throw it all in a big pot and cook until the eggplant is soft. It's even better the next day. 

[CrystalG]

My thought was turkey chili too ! Just no beans because of the carb content. Just use cumin to spice it up.

[darladog]

Midwest Living magazine  ( current ussue) has a HEALTHY Quinoa Chili recipe that looks good. I just made  the chili but am not adding the Quinoa until tomorrow when we will eat it.  Can't tell you how it tastes yet  but it smells good.