Chicken Chili

I grew up notorious for being a very plain, habitual, consistent eater. The past year or two, I have taken an active role in trying to push the boundaries of my self-imposed limitations. There are still plenty of areas that I'm not ready to push past, but this recipe for Buffalo Chicken Chili that I found on Pinterest was one of the ones out of my norm that I decided to give a try. It actually was a nice alternative to my regular chili, and worth a look at if you like chicken and chili. I messed with the recipe a little. The original is cooked in a crock pot, which I passed on. And I left out a few ingredients that I wasn't interested in. I don't think the recipe suffered any, because it was still rather delicious.

2 1/2 lbs. boneless, skinless chicken breasts
1 large red (or orange or yellow) pepper

Assortment of hot peppers - jalapeño, cayenne, Anaheim, cowherd
1 large onion
5 cloves of garlic
1/3 cup chili powder
2 Tbsp ground cumin
1 Tbsp paprika

1 Tbsp Ancho chili powder
Other possible chili powders are cayenne, chipotle, hot Mexican chili powder (I added an addition 2 Tbsps or so)

Dash of Adobo
3 (15 oz) can tomato sauce
1 (15 oz) can kidney chili beans
1 (15 oz) can black chili beans
1 (15 oz) can pinto chili beans

1 (15 oz) can corn, drained
Salt and pepper to taste

Boil chicken in large pot until cooked and easy to shred.

Shred chicken. Heat about 2 Tbsps oil in the pot. Add onions and bell pepper and sauté for 2 minutes. Add chicken and garlic to pot and sauté for 5 minutes.

Add corn, beans, tomato sauce, hot peppers and spices, and mix well.

 Cook on low for several hours until hot and flavors come together. 

Taco Soup

While perusing Pinterest one day a few weekends ago, I saw a picture for a Slow Cooker Taco Chili, and it looked goooood! So, I finally got the ingredients, and gave it a try today, with a few minor adjustments. Well, one big one... I just used a pot on the stove and not the crockpot. And not only was it quite easy, but it was very tasty!

1 lb. ground beef
1 can (15.25oz) sweet corn (don't drain)
1 can (15oz) black beans (don't drain)
1 can (15oz) red kidney beans (don't drain)
1 can (15oz) tomato sauce
1 cup salsa (I used a thick and chunky style)
3 Tbsp taco seasoning
1 tsp salt

In a large soup pot, cook the ground beef until brown. Drain if needed - I use a 90 percent or 97 percent beef, so I usually keep what little grease is left to add flavor. Add corn, beans, salsa, tomato sauce, salt and taco seasoning. Make sure to add the liquid from all your cans of corn and beans. Give a quick stir to combine the ingredients. 

Simmer on low/med-low for an hour or two to allow the flavors to meld, stirring occasionally.

Top as desired. I used cheddar cheese and Fritos. You can add avocado, sour cream, cornbread, or anything else you like.