~Amanda~
Pretty much everyone can agree that one of the best things to eat on a cold winter day is a nice hot bowl of chili. There are so many different flavors and varieties of chili and I feel like my favorite kind changes each year. For the past year or so I have been hooked on this lighter and healthier chili filled with sweet potatoes, quinoa, black beans, and ground turkey as its base. Sweet potatoes may not be a traditional chili ingredient, but I tried adding them once and have completely fallen in love with putting them in my chili. Not only are they super healthy (they’re filled with so many vitamins, nutrients, and fiber), but they provide a great starchy texture to the chili, and a warm vibrant color.
Another non-traditional ingredient I love to add to my chili is quinoa. Like the sweet potatoes, quinoa is packed with vitamins and fiber, as well as protein and other minerals. You don’t taste the quinoa so much when eating the chili, but it adds a great textural component to the dish. I prefer a nice, thick chili over a soupy one and the quinoa really helps to achieve that. Aside from these delicious (and extra nutritious) additions, I keep my chili pretty traditional as far as the other ingredients go. I love black beans in chili and they complement the sweet potato so well. For the main protein, I prefer to use ground turkey as I’m not a huge fan of red meat. However, you can swap out the turkey for some lean ground beef, bison, or chicken breast. Or if you’re looking for a vegetarian option, you can omit the meat completely and still have a very tasty and hearty chili.
One of the greatest things about this chili is that you don’t have to cook it forever to achieve amazing flavor. All of the wonderful flavors develop within about 30 minutes of simmering so if you don’t have hours and hours to spare, but still want a big delicious pot of chili, it’s definitely possible! If you do have time though, you can let the chili cook for longer. I generally cook mine for about an hour or so, but you can go up to three hours. Once you’re ready to eat, spoon it into a nice big bowl and top it with your favorite toppings (like feta cheese, avocado, and greek yogurt instead of sour cream) and maybe even a nice big slice of our amazing Green Chile Cornbread. Now you can sit down, relax, and warm up with your big bowl of delicious and flavorful chili!
- 1 pound ground turkey (omit for vegetarian)
- 1/2 cup onion, diced
- 1 bell pepper, diced
- 3 cloves garlic, minced
- 1 sweet potato, cubed
- 1/2 cup uncooked quinoa
- 10 ounce can tomatoes
- 8 ounce can tomato sauce
- 8 ounce can black beans
- 1 cup chicken broth or water
- Salt and pepper for seasoning
- 1 teaspoon cumin
- 1/4 teaspoon paprika
- 1/2 teaspoon cayenne
- 1 teaspoon chili powder
- 2 bay leaves
- Toppings: cilantro, cheese, greek yogurt, red onion, avocado
- In a large skillet, brown the turkey meat over medium heat. Once it is partially cooked, add the onion, pepper, garlic, salt and pepper. Cook for about 5 minutes until veggies are becoming tender.
- Transfer turkey mixture to a large pot over med-high heat and add all remaining ingredients. If too thick, add extra chicken stock (or water) to bring to your desired consistency. Bring to a boil and then reduce heat and simmer for at least 30 minutes and up to 3 hours.
- Serve with your favorite toppings!
