I've mentioned over and over how I'm willing fall to come. A couple of weeks ago I bought some ground buffalo and tucked it away in my fridge, waiting for that first real day of fall. Why? Because for me, it's not really fall until you eat chili. Preferably until you eat chili on the back porch with a beer while wearing an oversized Stanford hoodie. And you can't really eat chili until it is cool and fall-y (or maybe that's just me. I might be neurotic).
Luckily, today that day finally came. This was lucky for many reasons. For one, I got to use my buffalo before it went off. For two, J was driving me nuts about when we could finally have buffalo chili again. For three, fall makes life happy, so when the first real fall day comes, this is lucky for everyone. (Someone should put that last one in a fortune cookie, that was profound). So to celebrate this, the most fabulous day of the year, the day when we can finally pull out our long sleeve shirts, the day when we can drink cider again without being a lush, the day when we can put the scarecrow out on the front stoop,
Booty Kickin' Four Pepper Buffalo Chili
1-2 lbs ground buffalo meat
1/2 medium onion, chopped
1 red bell pepper, seeded and chopped
1 green bell pepper, seeded and chopped
1 Poblano pepper, seeded and chopped
1 jalapeño or serrano pepper, seeded and chopped (the serrano is much more hardcore spicy, so rock that out if you want it super spicy)
2 cloves garlic, minced
1/4 tsp ground cumin
1/2 tsp dried oregano
1/4 tsp ground coriander
1 TB chile powder
1 can mexican diced tomatoes
1 can crushed tomatoes
2/3 cup low sodium beef broth
1/2 TB brown sugar
2 TB of adobo sauce from a can of chipotles in adobo
1 chipolte
1 bay leaf
1 can spicy pinto beans, drained and rinsed
1 can red kidney beans, drained and rinsed
1 can black beans, drained and rinsed
sea salt, to taste
ground pepper, to taste
In a pot with a lid (big enough to hold all your chili goodness) brown the bufflo, breaking large chunks into smaller ones. (You may find it necessary to add some oil when browning the buffalo, even though this normally makes things greasy and gross, in order to keep that pesky smoke detector at bay, as buffalo is extremely lean and has a tendency to smoke. I like to use about a tablespoon of chili flavored sunflower oil but you could always do it old school with a good glug of canola.) When thoroughly brown and thus all e-coli risk is removed, remove the buffalo from pot, and drain off the excess fat, so it doesn't wind up on your bootay.
Chop up your onions, bell pepper, jalepeno or serrano and poblano pepper. Be sure and remove the seeds of the jalepeño or serrano, unless you want it to really be booty kickin'. Wash your hands. Don't touch your contact lenses in the mean time... not that I can say that from experience or anything.Now, bring yo' pot back to medium heat, throw in the onions and peppers and cook over medium heat for about 10 minutes. While the peppers cook, dance around your kitchen with some maracas in hand saying, "Arriba," "Te Queiro" and "No soy el baño," stopping occasionally to scrape the pan from time to time to get any stuck bits of browned meat mixed in with the vegetables. Add garlic, cook for another minute and then add cumin, oregano, coriander and salt and pepper to taste. Let spices cook a minute or so.
Dump the cooked meat back in the pot. Stir in the tomatoes and beef broth, brown sugar adobo sauce, chipotle and bay leaf. Raise heat and bring to a boil. Once boiling,
ladle up a big spoon of the chili goodness, taste sauce and adjust salt, pepper and hotness to taste. Lower heat to a slow simmer, cover with a lid and cook for at least 30 minutes. Add beans, continue simmering, covered, for another 10 minutes or until beans are warmed through.Serve in bowls and garnish with chopped cilantro and sour cream to be festive.
*These statements have not been evaluated by the FDA.
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