Is cooking chili at home generally a waste of time and money?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I think it's also a sodium bomb. Is there any way to keep the sodium low in chili? I've felt like rubbish after eating a bowl last night. Very dehydrated.

Don't use any premixed "chili spices" packets. They're 90% salt. Use your own spices.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Huh it’s so cheap. $7 for a lb of ground beef, $1 a can of bean and $2 for two cans of tomatoes plus a pack of chili seasoning. Maybe $12 tops. Box of $3 cornbread. $15 for four. No leftovers. Just paid $20 for two meals at chick fil a.

That's not chili. That is some sort of cheap slop they'd serve at a primary school summer camp in the woods.

Again, please post your recipe. Otherwise, STFU.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Huh it’s so cheap. $7 for a lb of ground beef, $1 a can of bean and $2 for two cans of tomatoes plus a pack of chili seasoning. Maybe $12 tops. Box of $3 cornbread. $15 for four. No leftovers. Just paid $20 for two meals at chick fil a.

That's not chili. That is some sort of cheap slop they'd serve at a primary school summer camp in the woods.

WTF do you think chili is some delicacy? These comments are so odd.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Huh it’s so cheap. $7 for a lb of ground beef, $1 a can of bean and $2 for two cans of tomatoes plus a pack of chili seasoning. Maybe $12 tops. Box of $3 cornbread. $15 for four. No leftovers. Just paid $20 for two meals at chick fil a.

That's not chili. That is some sort of cheap slop they'd serve at a primary school summer camp in the woods.

Hmm. NP here and I guess I also make cheap slop and call it chili.

Brown ground turkey with cumin/chili powder/garlic powder, add a can each of corn, rinsed kidney beans, and crush fire roasted tomatoes. Top it off with some bone broth and a little salsa from a jar. I also throw in a little steel cut oatmeal as a thickener. Bring to a boil and then simmer.

Not chili maybe but inexpensive and quick
Perhaps real chili is too time consuming?

[Anonymous]

My husband is not much of a cook and even he makes a pretty decent turkey chili (with some random recipe he found on the internet). This is not hard, people.

And I’m not sure where I’d even go for restaurant chili. It’s supposed to be a home cooked thing. Maybe Wendy’s? That used to be good, but I haven’t had it in 25 years.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:What are you using as a recipe? And why aren't you modifying it to better suit your preferences for next time?

Tend to switch it up since we make it so infrequently. The weather seemed to "call" for it last night. A NYTimes recipe recommended dumping a beer in. It turned out incredibly mediocre. And it stunk up that wing of the house. Pretty sure a good bowl of chili is all of $5. If I'm craving it, that's just $20 for the family. Much wiser.

Yeah, NYTimes doesn't seem like the best starting point for chili!

[Anonymous]

I disagree. I love my fresh chili and I think it’s very easy. I just sauté peppers and onions, garlic, ground beef, then adding tomatoes and spices until it is good… Not super expensive, very easy, keeps a while and I can freeze it if needed need it

[Anonymous]

We make turkey chili now and then and its fairly inexpensive (even with using organic turkey and veggies). It’s a pretty option to have for lunches that aren’t too carb-heavy.

[Anonymous]

Perhaps you are using a finicky recipe. I find chili really easy to make and less clean up than a lot of other things. Plus you can always adjust the seasoning after tasting.

A few years back I used a chili recipe that had a ton of ingredients - it took forever and somehow the ingredients cancelled each other out. I swear it was tasteless. Maybe you stumbled onto that recipe.

[Anonymous]

My DH made chili on Sunday and we ate it three nights in a row and it was delicious. It was only an hour if active cook time and the rest is passive. He did homemade cornbread too. I guess the ingredients are expensive but we got 9 meals out if it. We don’t put filet minon in our chili so it’s not that crazy. It’s kind of perfect to make while watching football on Sunday and then eat during those cold dark days when you want something really filling but don’t want to cook.

[Anonymous]

We only eat veggie chili, and I make it like I like it, and it's one of my easier dinners, so not at all for us!

I use:
-sautéed onions, garlic,green and red peppers, small amount of jalapeño, and often very very small cubed carrot or sweet potato or butternut squash
- spice blend is: cumin, chili powder, salt, pepper, garlic powder, onion powder, brown sugar (a lot more than you think), cayenne, and oregano
- spice and salt while cooking and when veggies are browned deglaze with half a can of beer
- add tomato sauce, crushed tomatoes, sometimes diced fresh tomatoes/rotel, can of green chilies, chipotle in adobo, frozen corn, handfuls of chopped cilantro, and a lot more spice mix

Ready in 30, better in a few hours (can thin with veggie broth or chicken broth).

Keeps great the next few days!

We add small pasta and top with sour cream, more cilantro/jalapeno, tortilla chips, cheese, and sriracha.
Sometimes I make guac or a simple green salad or cornbread.

[Anonymous]

I make vegetarian chili. While it isn’t hard, there is a lot of chopping, sautéeing and various spices to get out. It takes me about 30 min of hands on time, then the clean up and simmer for another 30 min-hour. But no one makes a vegetarian chili I like and when feeding a whole family it wouldn’t make sense to buy ready made vs make at home

[Anonymous]

You mentioned crock pots and instant pots - they both make pretty bad chili. It’s always watery. Our church does a cook off each year and it’s always the ones made on the stove that win - the flavors meld better and the flavor gets concentrated as some water evaporates.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:We only eat veggie chili, and I make it like I like it, and it's one of my easier dinners, so not at all for us!

I use:
-sautéed onions, garlic,green and red peppers, small amount of jalapeño, and often very very small cubed carrot or sweet potato or butternut squash
- spice blend is: cumin, chili powder, salt, pepper, garlic powder, onion powder, brown sugar (a lot more than you think), cayenne, and oregano
- spice and salt while cooking and when veggies are browned deglaze with half a can of beer
- add tomato sauce, crushed tomatoes, sometimes diced fresh tomatoes/rotel, can of green chilies, chipotle in adobo, frozen corn, handfuls of chopped cilantro, and a lot more spice mix

Ready in 30, better in a few hours (can thin with veggie broth or chicken broth).

Keeps great the next few days!

We add small pasta and top with sour cream, more cilantro/jalapeno, tortilla chips, cheese, and sriracha.
Sometimes I make guac or a simple green salad or cornbread.

Forget to say add beans but duh. We use black beans, kidney beans, and a Whole Foods three bean mix.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Huh it’s so cheap. $7 for a lb of ground beef, $1 a can of bean and $2 for two cans of tomatoes plus a pack of chili seasoning. Maybe $12 tops. Box of $3 cornbread. $15 for four. No leftovers. Just paid $20 for two meals at chick fil a.

That's not chili. That is some sort of cheap slop they'd serve at a primary school summer camp in the woods.

Hmm. NP here and I guess I also make cheap slop and call it chili.

Brown ground turkey with cumin/chili powder/garlic powder, add a can each of corn, rinsed kidney beans, and crush fire roasted tomatoes. Top it off with some bone broth and a little salsa from a jar. I also throw in a little steel cut oatmeal as a thickener. Bring to a boil and then simmer.

Not chili maybe but inexpensive and quick
Perhaps real chili is too time consuming?

Oatmeal. Oh my god. OH MY GOD. OH GOD!!!!!!!!