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The Best Money-Saving Chili Recipe Using Your Slow Cooker

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Chili powder and Rotel tomatoes add most of the flavor here, doing what decades of chili recipes get right: building comfort with heat and tang. Slow-cooked dry beans pick up beefy richness and, when you toss in a few fresh tomatoes at the end, you get a bright lift that keeps things fresh and balanced. Ready to try this money-saving chili recipe with dried beans?

Ingredients

Scale

1 pound dry pinto or kidney beans

1 tablespoon vegetable oil

1 cup chopped onion

1 large green bell pepper, chopped

2 pounds ground beef (at least 80 percent lean

2 cans Rotel diced tomatoes

3 tablespoons chili powder

salt, to taste 

Freshly ground black pepper, to taste

Choose your favorite toppings: Sour cream, guacamole, chopped fresh cilantro, shredded cheddar, pepper jack cheese, corn chips, sliced green onions, shredded lettuce, sliced ripe olives, or diced fresh tomatoes, optional, for garnish.

Optional:  1 small hot pepper, such as jalapeño or serrano, chopped

Instructions

  • Rinse and sort the beans, picking out any malformed beans or small stones.
  • Add the beans, cover with water in the crock pot.  Cover and cook on high for 3 hours or until beans are tender.
  • Heat the vegetable oil in a large skillet over medium heat. Add the onion and bell pepper and cook until wilted.  Transfer to the slow cooker.
  • Add the ground beef to the skillet and cook until no longer pink, turning and stirring frequently.
  • Add the canned Rotel tomatoes and chili powder to the beef and beans; stir to blend. Taste and add salt and freshly ground black pepper, as needed.
  • Reduce the slow cooker heat setting to low; cover and cook for 3 to 4 hours longer.
  • Top chili servings with your favorite optional garnishes.

Notes

  • Refrigerate or freeze leftovers for a future meal. Or double the batch and freeze half.
  • Use leftover chili in burritos, tacos, or omelets, or use it as a pasta topper. It makes a tasty topping for baked potatoes, or hot dogs too!
  • For fast microwave lunches, freeze leftovers in single-serve portions.

Find it online: https://thefrugalones.com/the-best-money-saving-chili-recipe-using-your-slow-cooker/