Recipe - Hearty Slow Cooker Chili & Homemade Cornbread



A hearty, slow cooker chili recipe for those cold Winter days!

Slow Cooker Chili:

1lb ground beef

1 can red kidney beans, rinsed & drained

1 small yellow onion, diced

1 green pepper, diced

1-28 oz. can diced tomatoes, undrained

1-6 oz. can tomato paste

1 - 1 1/2 cup (or sufficient amount to fill slow cooker) vegetable or tomato juice

3 teaspoons chili powder

1/4 teaspoon ground cumin

Brown ground beef. Drain fat. Mix in chili powder and cumin. Cook an additional 2-3 minutes.  Add browned meat to slow cooker.  Add kidney beans, diced onion, diced green pepper, undrained tomatoes, vegetable/tomato juice and tomato paste to slow cooker.  Stir to combine.  Cook on low for 10-12 hours or high for 4-5 hours.

To add more heat to the chili, add 1 chopped jalapeno pepper to the browned meat. Also substitute one 14.5 oz. can of diced tomatoes with green chilies and one 14.5 oz. can of regular diced tomatoes for the 28 oz. can of tomatoes.

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A perfect accompaniment to the chili is this homemade cornbread recipe.  The recipe is from one of my Momma's old cookbooks, The Modern Family Cookbook by Meta Given (1953 edition).

The recipe is for corn sticks or muffins, but I usually bake my cornbread in a cast iron skillet.  

3/4 cup all-purpose flour

3/4 cup yellow corn meal

3 teaspoons baking powder

2 tablespoons sugar

3/4 teaspoons salt

1 egg

1 cup of milk

1/4 cup melted shortening (can substitute canola or vegetable oil)

Mix ingredients, pour into a prepared pan or tins and bake at 425 degrees for 20 - 25 minutes.   

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