Meal No. 1360: Simple Beef Chili

The Sunday departure meal a few days ago was the amazing simple beef chili with kidney beans, which I've been making for over a decade now with this as the ideal recipe to get it just right. And Sunday's version was easily ranked among the top that I've ever made: it was so thick and hearty and full of delicious flavor with just the right amount of heat.

This might have been a result of how I tried to intensify the flavors a bit more while the onion, bell pepper, and garlic were sautéing in the bacon grease and spices (and I also added just a bit of beef broth near the end of this part of the process).

Then, with two hours cooking, half covered and half not, and topping off the taste with the right amount of salting, it was the perfect base for a layer of sharp cheddar cheese...and a busy spoon to ladle it all up into my waiting mouth.

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"Simple Beef Chili with Kidney Beans," from Cook's Illustrated, Number Sixty-One [March-April 2003], p. 10-11.