Its been hot here….I mean really HOT! The heat index this past week hit 115!! I am an up north Minnesotan girl!! I was very much not built for that kind of heat. This has lead to very few nights of cooking in the house, and very few opportunities to grill outside for fear of melting on the patio! After my trip to the farm for veggies the little old lady who runs the place was telling me to buy jalapeno’s and make chili….I thought really on a hot day like this!?! But she starting telling me that eating spicy foods on a hot day will actually cool ya down (Think spicy food making ya sweat, in turn cooling you down)! Hmm…Thought I would give it a try!! So we threw in a bunch of fresh veggies and some grass fed beef into the slow cooker (no extra heating of the house!) and made up some yummy chili!!
Slow Cooker Summer Chili
Prep Time: 20-30 minutes
Cook Time: Low 6-8hrs, High 4-5hrs
Ingredients:
- 1lb Grass Fed Beef
- 1 Red Pepper, diced
- 1 medium onion, diced
- 1-2 jalapeno’s, seeds and ribs removed, diced
- 2-3 medium tomatoes, diced
- 1 cup Salsa
- 2 tbsp Olive Oil
- 1-2 tbsp Cumin
- 1-2 tbsp Chili Powder
- 1 tbsp Garlic Powder
- 1/2 cup Water
Saute diced onions and jalapenos in the olive oil until they start to brown slightly. Add the spices to the onions and jalapenos to coat and then add the beef and continue cooking until beef is mostly browned.
Meanwhile, add diced peppers, tomatoes and salsa to a 5-6 quart slow cooker. Add the cooked beef and veggie mixture, stir. Add the 1/2 cup water. Place the lid on your slow cooker and set to low. It should cook for 6-8 hours. Or you can cook it on high for 4-5 hours.
I prefer the low and slow method with this chili. Grass fed beef is much like our venison chili, when you cook the meat low and slow it stays nice and tender.
I got all my veggies from the farm and that made this chili taste nice and fresh. It was great with some full fat sour cream and shredded cheddar cheese on top!!
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