This dish is great in the winter or on cool days. It goes great with beer. It is basically a one dish very tasty, filling and satisfying meal, served with crackers and butter or with whatever artisan bread you like.

If you have the very good fortune to have made the Food Nirvana recipe for Chili Powder then use 5 tbsp. of it in this recipe and skip using any other chili powder. Also skip the use of the Texas Pete's® Hot Sauce, the Habanero sauce and the red pepper flakes. You can always add hot sauce, like Sriracha, later if you want to amp up the heat. The idea is the Food Nirvana Chili Powder has a small kick to it, so it isn't totally mild, but it is perfect for people who don't want a highly seasoned (hot) chili.

Ingredients:

1, 28 oz. can of peeled whole plum tomatoes coarsely chopped

3 stalks of celery chopped medium

1 medium onion chopped medium

4 cloves of fresh garlic chopped fine

2 tbsp. of corn oil

1 lb. of Ground beef (additional 1/2 lb. or more, ground beef or pork, if you are a meat lover)

2 tsp. of sea salt

1 tsp. of black pepper

3 tbsp. of chili powder (or more according to your preference)

2 tsp. of ground cumin

¼ cup of Texas Pete’s® (or other) Hot Sauce (optional)

1, tsp. of Habanero sauce (optional)

1/2 tsp. of Red pepper flakes or one medium hot to hot chopped dried pepper

1, 12 oz. bottle of beer

½ cup of dry red wine

2, 19 oz. cans of Kidney beans

Various toppings (optional) like grated cheddar cheese or raw onion pieces

Saltine crackers and butter or any artisan bread

Directions:

Heat the corn oil in a large, deep skillet on medium high heat. Add the ground beef (and ground pork if you are using it) and brown it, breaking it up into small pieces.

Add the onion and celery to the beef and continue cooking until the onion is translucent.

Reduce the heat to medium. Add the garlic, chili powder, ground cumin, salt and pepper, mix well and continue cooking for three minutes with a lid on the skillet.

Add the can of tomatoes and break up the tomatoes with the front end of a spatula (or pre-chop the tomatoes before adding them to the skillet). Add the Texas Pete’s® Hot Sauce, the Habanero sauce (optional) and the red pepper flakes or chopped dried pepper (seeds included) and mix well. Increase the heat to high and add the beer and the wine. Mix again and cook covered until the mixture comes to a boil.

Reduce the heat to medium. Add the kidney beans and mix well. Taste the chili and add as much additional chili powder and/or other spices to suit yourself. Cook on medium heat and then later, as the mixture thickens, low heat at a slow boil, almost a simmer, stirring every two to three minutes.

When the volume of the liquid is reduced to create chili of the consistency you like the chili is done (the chili will tend to thicken later, so it is better to stop the cooking while the chili still has a fair amount of liquid showing). But you must stir it thoroughly every few minutes while it is simmering to make sure it is not sticking to the bottom of the skillet and overcooking. Remove it from the stove.

Serve the chili in warm bowls with saltine crackers and butter. Some folks like to cover the chili with grated cheddar cheese and/or small pieces of chopped raw onion.

I enjoy a very cold and harsh beer like Budweiser® in a frozen mug to accompany this highly seasoned dish.

Yes, you will really enjoy this chili con carne!