Turkey, Corn & Black Bean Chili (and a Red Gold giveaway)

The other night I defrosted a pound of ground turkey intending to make a white turkey chili recipe that features green peppers, white beans and tomatillo sauce. It was only once I began to cook that I realized I was out of white beans. That’s odd for me. I consider cannellini beans to be a pantry staple — great for minestrone and even a quick dip. I did, however, have a can of black beans and so I decided to take my ground turkey in another direction. I came up with this recipe for a turkey and black bean chili that included some frozen corn for extra color.

My husband declared the new recipe a keeper. So, I’m sharing it with you. But the real lesson here is that chili is a dish perfectly suited to experimentation and cooking with what is on hand. There’s almost no wrong way to make chili. You can make it with meat or without. Most chilis include tomatoes, but the white chili that I had intended to make the day that I came up with this recipe does not. I suppose a chili is really a stew that gets its heat from chile peppers in some form or another. But beyond that, the definition is wide open. I guess that’s why people are always having chili cook-offs. So, as always, I encourage you to think about the techniques involved in making a chili and then come up with your own recipe tailored to your family’s tastes and dietary limitations.

For any chili, start by sauteeing onion and garlic. If you’re using ground meat, add it to the softened onion and brown it thoroughly. Then season the onion and meat mixture. You will want chili powder certainly. Cumin and coriander are other common spices in Mexican and southwestern cooking. Cinnamon would not be out of place, although don’t use too much. Don’t forget salt and pepper too! Then, to the seasoned onion and meat mixture, add your tomatoes and liquid. You will see that I use a bottle of beer as my liquid. I think it is fitting for chili somehow. But you can also use two cans of tomatoes or chicken or beef broth. Bring the chili to a boil and then reduce the heat and simmer it. You can simmer for hours, which will allow for the flavors to really develop, but just until the chili thickens is okay too. Add ingredients that need less cooking time, such as canned beans or frozen vegetables ten or fifteen minutes before serving or else they will get mushy. I almost serve chili over rice and pass grated cheese and sour cream as a garnish. Other possible garnishes include chopped scallion, diced avocado, or canned green chiles. You can also skip the rice and serve cornbread. It’s really up to you.

For this chili, I ended up using canned tomatoes, which are definitely a pantry staple in my house. I recently received a very nice sampler package from Midwestern favorite Red Gold Tomatoes, which included the hot and spicy Petite Diced Tomatoes with Green Chiles and a can of Chili-Ready Diced Tomatoes. These will definitely add an extra kick to your chili. Red Gold has offered me a similar sample pack to give away to a West of the Loop reader. This prize will keep your family in chili and pasta sauce for weeks. To enter, leave a comment to this post telling me about your favorite chili recipe, or why you hate chili, if that’s the case. You can earn an extra entry the following ways:

Follow @westoftheloop on Twitter
Tweet about the giveaway with a link back to this post and mention @RedGoldTomatoes
Follow @RedGoldTomatoes on Twitter

Not on Twitter? Well, you can always like West of the Loop on Facebook and let me know about that. (I know you are on Facebook. Everyone is, except my brother.) Entries must be received by Thursday February 2. I will select one winner at random. Good luck. Now, on to the recipe:

Turkey, Black Bean and Corn Chili

2 Tb Olive oil
1 large onion, chopped
2 cloves garlic, minced
1 lb. ground turkey, preferably dark meat
3 TB chili powder
2 tsp. ground cumin
1 tsp. ground coriander
1 28 oz. can whole tomatoes with their juice
1 bottle beer
1 can black beans, drained and rinsed
1 cup frozen corn kernels
Sour cream and grated cheddar cheese for garnish (optional)

Saute the onion and garlic in olive oil over medium heat until translucent. Add the ground turkey and continue to saute until the turkey is cooked through and loses its pink color. Season with chili powder, coriander and cumin, as well as salt and pepper to taste. Add a 28 oz. can of whole tomatoes, with their juice, crushing the tomatoes by hand or with the back of a spoon. Add the bottle of beer. (The alcohol will cook off, so do not worry about serving this chili to children.)

Bring the chili to a boil and then reduce the heat and simmer until thickened, at least ten to fifteen minutes. Add the black beans and stir to combine. Add the frozen con kernels, adjusting the heat slightly. Cook until the beans are warmed through, approximately another ten to fifteen minutes. Serve over rice and garnish with grated cheddar cheese, chopped scallions and sour cream.