Homemade Chili Recipe

My Grandpa Brown made wonderful chili. He had family from Texas and Mexico, and this recipe comes from them. Every year on Christmas Eve he would make his famous chili recipe for his family, and serve it with grilled cheese sandwiches. His family included my mother, her twin brother, and my grandmother. It started a family tradition. My mom made it for our family when my brother and I were growing up, and now I make it every Christmas Eve for my family. This brings backs great memories for me, so I have continued the tradition with my own family, and I hope they do the same with theirs.

This makes a great meal to serve on Christmas Eve because it's easy and you don't have to fuss much with it if you have Christmas presents to wrap or a church service to get ready for. But it's also a great meal to serve anytime during fall or winter on a cold night. And the chili is easy to prepare and bring in a crock pot to a potluck dinner.

This chili is easy to make, and the recipe was not written down, just handed down from generation to generation. It is great served on a cold Winter's night with grilled cheese sandwiches, cheese, and crackers, or cornbread.

Ingredients:

1 pound ground hamburger

1 16 oz. can light red kidney beans

1 16 oz. can dark red kidney beans

1 28 oz. can of stewed tomatoes

1 medium to large onion chopped

Dash of garlic

Dash of chili powder

Dash of Tabasco Sauce

Salt (to taste)

Directions:

Brown hamburger and onions in bottom of a large pot. Drain fat. Add both cans of beans and the can of tomatoes with juices into the pot ( Do not drain cans before adding the contents). Add Tabasco Sauce, chili powder, garlic and salt to the mixture. Mix well with a large spoon. Cook on medium-low heat, stirring periodically for 1.5 - 2 hours. If chili tastes a bit bitter due to the tomatoes, add one tablespoon of sugar and stir in. Add more chili powder, Tabasco sauce and salt to taste before serving. This chili can be made mild or hot depending on your tastes. This recipe makes four large servings.

I double this recipe every time I make this chili and have lots leftover for another meal during the week. Personally, I think it tastes even better the next day!

And everyone who has ever eaten this tells me they love it. I think a big draw for this is that I make it mild and have hot sauce and chili sauce available for people to create the seasoning they desire. I know a lot of people who don't like really hot and spicy chili, so this works well for them. And for those who want to "bring on the heat" the extras are available and that keeps everyone happy!