Chicken & Beef Chili

This recipe has become a staple; I probably make it twice per month. The best part about it is 1) delicious of course and 2) the recipe makes plenty for dinner and provides lunches for about 2 days. The ingredients I am listing, per usual, may not be 100% exact because I send to switch it up and do not measure. Another thing to note is for this recipe I am listing the ingredients as 1 Lb of ground white chicken and 1/2 Lb of 85/15 ground beef... you can change the quantities as the total remains around 1.5 Lbs.

Ingredients:

1 Crockpot
1/4 cup olive oil (Bertolli Extra Virgin Olive Oil, 51-Ounce Bottle)
1 Lb. Ground White Chicken
1/2 Lb. 85/15 Ground Beef
1-2 (small-medium) Whole yellow onions diced
1 Red Pepper, dices
1 Poblano Pepper or Habenero Pepper (I like poblano, Rob likes Habenero), diced
3-5 Cloves of freshly minced garlic (Use REAL garlic)
2 Cans of Roasted diced tomatoes with green chilis Muir Glen Organic Diced Tomatoes, 28-Ounce Cans (Pack of 12) This is the brand I use, just not the flavor)
1 Can of Roasted roasted garlic diced tomatoes
1 Tb of tomato paste
1 Can black beans, rinsed and dried (Westbrae Natural Vegetarian Organic Black Beans, 15 Ounce Cans (Pack of 12))
1/3 of a jar of tomato sauce (preferably a regular flavor like marinara) (Cucina Antica Tomato Basil Sauce, 16-Ounce Jars (Pack of 6) This is a yummy brand!!)
Chili Powder
Cumin
Pepper
Lawry's season salt
Oregano

Procedure:

First, turn your crockpot onto low heat and add all but 2 Tb of the olive oil into it, leave it alone to start heating. Then, in a large skillet (on medium heat), add the remaining olive oil. Let the olive oil heat for a minute and then add all the diced onions to start sautéing. Sauté the onions for about 2 minutes then add in the diced red pepper and poblano pepper). Let these sauté until they start to become soft but not brown. Once vegetables are soft(er) add in the ground beef, chicken, about 1/2 tsp of cumin, 1 tsp of chili powder, 1/2 tsp of Lawry's and a 1/2 tsp of pepper. Sauté until cooked through. Once the meat is cooked, turn the skillet down to medium/low heat and add in the freshly minced garlic. Make sure you mix it around so the garlic goes all through your skillet mixture. Allow that to cook for 2-3 minutes. Once that has had 2-3 minutes to cook, dump everything in the skillet into the crockpot. Cover the crockpot and turn it up to high.

Now for all the cans... open all 3 diced tomato cans and dump them into the crockpot, juice and all. Then add in the tomato sauce and add in black beans. Finally, add in the tomato paste along with spices. Approximation of the spices are as follows: 2 Tsp of chili powder, 1 tsp of cumin, 1/4 tsp of oregano and 1/4 tsp black pepper (this is in addition to the spices you added to your skillet mixture). Mix well and allow to cook on high for about 2 hours without stirring. After 2 hours (or it starts to bubble) turn down the mixture to low heat for at least another 2 hours, preferably 4 hours. 30 minutes before serving, turn the crockpot down to the "keep warm" setting, this allows for the chili to start to settle. After 30 minutes, serve in bowls with spoons-- ENJOY!
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I like to sprinkle either a little cheddar cheese or sour cream on the top (sometimes freshly chopped scallions) and serve corn muffins (Jiffy Corn Muffin Mix 8.5oz) on the side.

This recipe really warms you up on a fall or winter day! If you have any thoughts or suggestions please let me know! If not.. hope you enjoy this!