Are you looking for that award-winning dutch oven chili that can win you all the praises at your next Chili Cook-off? Well then, you’ve come to the right place!
This pot of chili is bursting with delicious flavor and so many sources of protein! The way the recipe is written, it should be very kid-friendly but I can also give you some tips to kick it up a notch with spices and other ingredients to satisfy a spicier loving palate.
How to take this Award-Winning Dutch Oven Chili & kick it up a notch!
The beauty of this recipe is how versatile it is! You can really adjust it to what you have in the kitchen and make something super tasty!
Add different proteins!
- I like to swap part or all of my ground beef with leftovers of my Prime Rib chopped up
- Do you have leftover Brisket? Chop that up and throw it in
- Extra bacon? Go ahead, throw that in too!
- Sometimes I swap the ground beef for ground turkey to lighten it up a little
For spicier chili:
- Swap the Sweet Italian Sausage for a Hot Italian Sausage
- Add some diced jalapeños
- Add 1/2 tsp of Cheyanne Pepper to the Chili Seasoning
Extra pantry & veggie add-ins
- Fire Roasted diced tomatoes are a tasty addition and one I do often.
- Corn (fresh, canned or frozen)
- Any type of canned bean is great
- Peppers: I love a good roasted Hatch chili added into my chili
- Diced Sweet Potatoes – they add a delicious sweetness and texture to the chili
- Beef Broth/ tomato sauce – this chili is pretty thick if you want to thin it out, add some to your liking
How to adjust seasonings “to taste”
Here are some tips on how to adjust flavors to your preference. Cooking is never a perfect science, so learning how to adjust seasonings to get the flavors you want is a very important step to mastering cooking skills
- Salt – typically when tasting to see if the flavor is right, I always start with salt. Especially when I am not sure what it needs, besides the feeling “it just needs something”. Always use good salt, like Redmond Real Salt
- Chili powder/ cumin – this is my next go to if, it feels slightly bland – like it needs to taste chili more
- Brown Sugar – if it is tasting too spicy or too acidic, try adding brown sugar, this helps counteract the acidic or spiciness you are tasting
- Worchestershire Sauce – if it is lacking Umami flavor (its a savory type of taste) add some more Worcestershire sauce
Ingredients
- 2 T Bacon Fat or fat of your choice
- 1 Medium Onion chopped
- 2 lbs Ground Beef
- 5 Sweet Italian Sausage Links removed from casing
- 2 T Worcestershire Sauce
- ¼ cup Brown Sugar
- 1 8 oz Tomato Sauce
- 2 Green Bell Peppers chopped
- 1 can Black Beans drained & rinsed
- 1 can Dark Red Kidney Beans drained & rinsed
Chili Seasoning
- 1 T Ancho Chili Powder
- 2 tsp Chili Powder
- 1 T Onion Powder
- 1 T Garlic Powder
- 4 tsp Cumin
- 1 T Smoked Paprika
- 1 T Dried Oregano
- 2 tsp Cocoa Powder
- 2 tsp Redmond Real Sea Salt
- 1 T Coriander
Instructions
- Heat cast iron dutch oven over medium/low heat 5-10 min.
- Once heated add Bacon Fat and onions. Cook until tender
- Add ground beef and sausage. Break up in pot & cook until almost fully cooked through
- Add Chili Seasoning, Worcestershire Sauce, Brown Sugar & Tomato Sauce
- Simmer 5 min
- Add Green Bell Peppers and beans.
- Stir and simmer on low for 15 min, stirring occasionally (I sometimes do this step on my smoker uncovered, stirring occasionally and simmer for 30+ minutes)
- Spoon into bowls and top with your favorite chili toppings like cheese, green onions & sour cream. I love to serve it with a side of my Sweet Skillet Corn Bread
Nutrition
My favorite tools & ingredients for Chili
- Cast Iron Dutch Oven
- Redmond Real Salt {use code SWEETNSASSYEATS to save 15%}
Other Soup recipes you might like:
Great recipe! What is the measurement for the brown sugar?
Thank you for catching my mistake! I use 1/4 cup of brown sugar, I will fix that now! Thank you