Originally posted March 1, 2008.
Are you looking for something to bring to a potluck, bbq, party, or even dinner that is tasty and full of protein and fiber? I used to make this dish when I lived in New England and then sort of forgot about it. This is surprising because it’s easy and delicious.
I was getting ready for a party one day and remembered this recipe so that was the dish I brought along with me. Moms, dads, and kids alike all enjoyed it. I’ve made it a few times after that and I have always gotten the same results. Oh, and of course, everyone wants the recipe! So here it is along with some tips at the end for variations.
Western Chili
Makes 4-6 Servings
- 1 lb lean ground beef
- 1 medium or 1/2 large onion, diced
- 12-16 ounces natural, uncured bacon, diced
- 1 28 ounce can baked beans with liquid
- 1 15-15.5 ounce can kidney beans, drained and rinsed
- 1 15-15.5 ounce butter beans, drained and rinsed
- 1/4 cup molasses
- 1/4 cup brown sugar
- 1/2 cup ketchup
- 1 tablespoon yellow mustard
- In a large pot, over medium to medium high heat, cook beef, only stirring occasionally so as to get good browning and caramelization. When the meat is about half way cooked, add the onion. Cook this until there is no more pink in the meat and the onion is translucent. Drain any extra fat. Remove and place in a medium bowl.
- In the same pot, fry bacon until crisp. Remove bacon and pat dry. Drain fat from pot and wipe out.
- Add all ingredients back to pot and simmer 20-30 minutes. Taste and adjust seasoning if necessary.
- Serve by itself or over brown rice.
Variations:
*You can use ground pork, turkey or veggie ground round to substitute the beef
*If you don’t have bacon, use chopped ham.
*Keeping your sugar low? You can omit the added brown sugar and use baked beans with a sugar substitute.
*Butter beans are lima beans. If you can’t find them, you could also use white kidney beans.
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