Terrific Turkey Chili

The turkey chili I made on Friday night was, indeed, terrific ... this picture? Not so much. Unfortunately, the focus is on the cruet set, not the dish. Eh, you get the idea. The important thing is that the chili was magnificent. The husband proclaimed it the best chili ever and says he now prefers the use of the left-over roast turkey to the usual ground turkey breast. He thought the flavor was richer and more meaty than our usual variety. I like them both equally, but was delighted with the finished product. We both had seconds!

I used my standard turkey chili recipe and adjusted the technique somewhat to account for the already cooked turkey. You can certainly substitute ground turkey breast if you don't have any roast turkey on hand. In that case, I would add the ground turkey just after the vegetable have sauteed, allow it to brown and then proceed accordingly.

When making chili, I will often use a packaged spice mixture, such as Wick Fowler's 2 Alarm Chili Kit, pictured above. I don't use the recipe printed on the box, but find the little bags of spices very handy. They're fresh and the amounts included are enough to make more than one batch of chili - because I don't use the entire amount of spices included. I've certainly made chili without this kit - but its nice and easy to have everything at the ready. It really cuts down on the spice-search time. I don't know about you, but my spice cabinet overfloweth! Really, its out of control. I'll post a picture sometime and you'll see what I mean.

If you can't find, or don't want to use, this chili kit - go right ahead and use the spices in the amounts I've listed. The only change being the oregano-cumin mixture ... both spices are combined in this kit - so if you're not using it, just use a teaspoon of each, or to taste. Its all flexible.

Roasted Turkey Chili:

• 2 tbsp. extra-virgin olive oil
  
• 1 medium to large onion, chopped
• 1 large clove of garlic, minced
• 1 large green bell pepper, seeded and chopped
• dash of crushed red pepper flakes
• 1 cup of low-sodium chicken broth*
• one 8 oz. can of tomato sauce
• one 14.5 oz. can of DelMonte Petite Diced Tomatoes with Zesty Jalapeno
  
• 2 1/2 tbsp. chili powder
• 1 1/2 tsp. of the oregano-cumin powder
• 1 tsp. of paprika
• 1 tsp. cayenne pepper, or to taste
• 2 tsp. of dried onion flakes
• 1 tsp. of unsweetened cocoa powder
• 3 cups of skin-less, roasted turkey breast, chopped
• one 15.5 oz. can of black beans, rinsed and drained
  
• Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper, to taste
• dash or two of Tobasco or other hot sauce, to taste
  

Heat the oil in a large, deep skillet over medium high heat and add the onions, garlic, green peppers and a dash or two of the crushed red pepper flakes. Saute for 3 or 4 minutes or until the onions begin to soften. Add the chicken broth, tomato sauce, diced tomatoes with jalapeno and stir to combine.

Add the chili powder, oregano-cumin powder, paprika, cayenne pepper, onion flakes and cocoa powder and stir well to combine. When the mixture begins to thicken slightly, add the cooked turkey and the black beans. Let the mixture come to a boil and reduce heat to low. Cover, and allow the chili to simmer for at least 30 minutes or longer so the flavors will meld, stirring occasionally. At this point, the chili can cook/simmer for as long as you like. You really can't over-cook it. Have some additional chicken broth on hand to add if necessary.

After it has simmered for awhile, taste for seasoning and adjust - adding more of anything you wish as needed. I will often add some extra cayenne, chili powder and hot sauce to amp up the heat. At this point I would also add some Kosher salt and a grinding of fresh black pepper as well. When it tastes delicious, as it most certainly will, its done. Serve and enjoy!

I like to serve the chili over brown rice that I've cooked in non-fat chicken broth topped with any and all of the following ...

Garnishes:

• 1/2 of a small red onion, diced
• shredded extra-sharp cheddar cheese
  
• non-fat sour cream
• chopped fresh parsley - flat leaf only, please

Cilantro would make a wonderful garnish as well, but for some reason I prefer the bite of fresh parsley as a foil for the spicy chili. If you're not on The Beach, you certainly couldn't go wrong with some crushed tortilla chips as a topper as well. Live it up!

* Typically, I like to use a mixture of chicken broth and beer ... but we were out of beer on Friday night. If I'd had some I would have used 1/2 cup of chicken broth and 1/2 cup of beer - lager style, not a dark beer. Hopefully you'll have some in your fridge, because the beer is a nice touch and really enhances the chili. As written this will serve 4 to 6. We certainly had plenty left over ... guess what's for dinner tonight?

Bon appetite!