Whole Tomato Chili with Beans
Homemade Chili With Whole Tomatoes
Chili can be made several ways. In the Midwest, we make it with beans. Down in Texas, they are no beans. And the variations are endless on what you put in it.
Because we can a lot of tomatoes, I grabbed a can of whole tomatoes and made this whole tomato chili. Love turkey, you could make a turkey chili with this instead.
What Is Michigan Style Chili?
Michigan chili is made with your choice of meat (beef, turkey, venison) along with onions, spices, chili peppers or green peppers. Don’t forget to add the kidney beans, chili peppers and tomato juice and stewed or whole tomatoes.
Do You Put Beans In Your Chili Recipe?
Call it a Midwest or a Michigan thing, I have always put kidney beans in my homemade chili. If you don’t have a lot of meat to put into your chili, adding beans is another protein and a great way to stretch your recipe to feed more people.
Do I Have To Peel My Tomatoes For Chili?
It is a personal preference if you peel or don’t peel your tomatoes. I would recommend that you use fresh tomatoes or canned tomatoes that you like to eat. They need to be ripe tomatoes that are not green or that taste will be transferred into the tomato sauce as you let the chili simmer.
Can You Make Chili With Whole Tomatoes?
The tomatoes doesn’t stay whole in the chili, they are slowly chopped down and made smaller and incorporated into the chili. As the chili is cooking, we chop them until they are small and in bite size pieces. You can also add tomato paste or powder if you want to add a stronger tomato flavor.
Can You Use Fresh Tomatoes In The Chili Recipe?
You can definitely use fresh tomatoes in your chili. Fresh tomatoes may need to cook longer to reduce down into your chili. You can simmer uncovered, but if they bubble to much, turn down the heat or cover.
Do You Season Ground Beef With Chili Powder?
You can use ground beef and season it with chili powder. We measure and taste as we go to ensure the heat level is where we like it. We definitely season from your heart that our tongue will tolerate and the fresh tomatoes just taste wonderful and add so much flavor too.
What Toppings Do You Serve With Your Chili?
We serve crackers (saltine, Ritz, oyster, cheese crackers). Fresh cheddar cheese is a preference, but the bagged cheddar cheese (sharp, medium and fine are all great). Serve with freshly chopped onions, jalapeno slices, sour cream, hot sauce or green chilis. If you want to counter the heat, add some sugar to your chili.
What Chili Spices Do You Put In Chili?
We Use chili powder, onions (sometimes dried minced) and if you love garlic, add some garlic. Additionally you can add green bell peppers and cayenne pepper for a spicy chili (or jalapeño peppers and red pepper flakes).
What Meat Substitute Can Be Used Instead of Ground Beef?
You can use what meat you like in your homemade chili. We have used ground turkey and ground chicken would also work. You may find that you need more spices as poultry has less flavor.
Whole Tomato Chili
Ingredients
- 1 pound ground beef
- 1/2 cup chopped onion
- 1 Tablespoon olive oil
- 1 can kidney beans
- 1 can chili beans
- 2-3 Tablespoons Chili powder (to your taste)
- 1 quart whole tomatoes
- 1 pint tomato juice
Instructions
- In a large pan, add olive oil and sauté onions on medium heat.
- Once onions starts to get translucent, add ground beef.
- Cook ground beef until brown, making sure it breaks down into small pieces.
- Once the beef is browned add a little chili powder to cook into the meat.
- Add the kidney beans (undrained) and can of chili beans.
- Mix together and allow to start to cook.
- Add the whole tomatoes and break them down a bit, allowing to cook down.
- Add the tomato juice and break down the tomatoes some more.
- Allow the chili to cook for a few minutes on low heat and every few minutes work to break down the tomatoes until they are in bite size pieces.
- Add the remaining chili sauce.
- Taste the chili and add more powder to your taste, keeping in mind as the chili sits overnight, it will develop more flavor and heat.
- Allow the chili to cook until the tomatoes are cooked thoroughly (if they were not canned).
- Once the chili is hot, you can serve with your favorite toppings.
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