This is my version. It serves 2 fairly comfortably if you have
cornbread, too.

Quick and Easy Chili Con Carne

~1lb ground meat (turkey, beef, chicken, pork... whatever) (low fat)
3-5 slices bacon, chopped OR 50g/2oz pre-chopped bacon
2 cloves fresh garlic
1 small onion
1 tin red kidney beans in plain water
1 tin chopped tomatoes
2 Tbsp chili powder
(note: not chile powder, which is made entirely from chiles)
OR
1 tsp paprika
2 tsp ground cumin
1 tsp ground cayenne
1 tsp dried oregano
1 tsp garlic powder
and
1 pinch allspice powder
+ 1 tsp cumin powder (in addition to that in the chili powder)

Optional:
2-3 fresh jalapeno chiles, seeded and cleaned of seeds and pith, chopped
1/2 tsp salt (you may not need it, depending on your bacon)


Brown the ground meat and chopped bacon in a pot. While you're doing
that, chop the onion and garlic fairly finely. The meat should be
*mostly* done by the time you're finished with the chopping. Drain off
the water and/or fat from the mostly cooked meat, add the onions and
garlic and continue browning until the meat is cooked and the onions are
translucent, but not brown; about 5 minutes or so over medium heat.

Add the spices (and jalapenos if you have them) and mix thoroughly.
Leave for a couple of minutes while you open the tins of beans and
tomatoes, then add those to the meat mixture (including the water in the
beans). Cook until thoroughly hot and the consistency you want. You
may need to add water or let it cook down to the right thickness (it
should definitely not be watery!)

Notes:
This recipe rarely ever takes me more than half an hour to make up and
is a good quick fix when I'm in need of chili and don't have 6 hours to
make up my usual recipe. The spices are just a guess, really - but they
seem about right. Serve up with cornbread or sourdough (Hey, I'm
from California, near SF... sourdough goes with EVERYTHING... heh.
You can also top with sour cream; chives or green onions; and/or cheese.
If you're feeling especially gourmet, you can toast the spices in a
small dry skillet before adding them to the meat. This recipe can
easily be doubled.

Source: Jennifer Pollard's Brain!


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