Football is Back and I’m making my Game Day Chili

Football is back. And I’m here for the snacks! Chili is one of my favorite meals to make during football season. It’s an easy one pot meal and I usually make a batch for the guys that attend our yearly Fantasy Football draft or for any football game day, really. It’s always a hit.

My Chili recipe, is actually something I get asked for often but I can never share it because truthfully, I have no exact recipe. I change something in it almost every time I make it. So, after years of telling myself (and promising friends) I would get to it, here’s my best shot at getting it down on paper.

I also put together this little chili bar with some black cardstock papers I had leftover. I just taped them together and used a chalk marker to write on it. You can find the football serving board here. In case you want an easy way to dress up your chili setup.

Check out the recipe below and let me know if you make it!

Game Day Chili Recipe:

1 lb Ground Beef
1/2 lb Ground Pork
1lb Ground Veal
1 Yellow Onion Diced
1 Small Green Pepper Diced
1 can Pinto Chili Beans Mild
1 can Kidney Chili Beans Mild
1 can Light Red Kidney Beans
1 can Pinto Beans
1 can Diced Tomatoes
1 can Tomato Sauce
1 Pack of Mild Chili Seasoning
1 Packet of Goya Natural and Complete Seasoning (comes in an orange box)
2 TBSP Cooking Wine
2 Bay Leaves
2 TBSP Minced Garlic
3 TBSP Canola oil
1 cap full of White Vinegar (from the bottle it comes in)
2 squares from a Ghirardelli Baking Chocolate Bar (Unsweetened)
1 TBSP Sea Salt (you can add more at the end to taste)
1 TSP Black Pepper
1 TSP Complete Seasoning

Set the stovetop to Medium High Heat and in a large pot, add oil, garlic, onions, peppers, bay leaves and complete seasoning. Saute until onions look like they’ve softened and add in all the meats. Stirring and mixing with the onion, garlic and pepper mix. If the pot looks very dry, you can add in another tbsp of canola oil to keep the meat from sticking.

Add in Chili Mix Seasoning, Salt, Pepper, Goya Packet, Vinegar, and 1 can of tomato sauce. Stir until meat looks like it is browning.

Add in all of the beans, and take one of the empty chili bean cans and refill with it water and pour in 3 cans worth of water. Stir and lower the heat to medium low. Cook uncovered, stirring occasionally for about an hour.

Add in Chocolate bar squares and continue cooking for about another 45 minutes or until the chili has thickened to your liking.

*This last part really is a matter of personal taste. I like my chili thick and not watery. I have found the timing varies depending on the stove and/or altitude. You can continue to thicken the chili the longer you cook it. Slow and steady really does win the race here and as long as you continue to stir and not allow the meat to stick to the bottom you should be okay.