Over the last few years, I have been searching for a chili recipe that both my husband and I would love. I can’t even count how many different versions I have tried, from vegetarian chili to regular beef chili and everything in between. Seriously – we’ve gone through a lot. But none was ever quite right and one of us would end up not really enjoying it. After each batch, I would always say that was it – I was giving up on chili – maybe it was something we just didn’t like.
Despite what I said, I’ve always had it in the back of my mind. I couldn’t get over it. The perfectionist in me knew that there had to be a version that we both would want to make again. This chili was a last ditch effort. And funny enough, we loved it.
I think the key here is the spicy Italian sausage – it added just the right amount of kick to this chili. Not too much, but not too little either. We also loved that this version is full of various beans, some veggies, and the beer doesn’t hurt either. It gives it that extra layer of flavor. Serve this chili along with some honey corn bread muffins and you’ve got one heck of a meal. I should also mention that this freezes incredibly well – I pulled another container out of my freezer to thaw out this week. We’re excited to have it again for lunch very soon.
Yield: 6 to 8 servings
Recipe for sausage and beef chili. Packed with loads of flavor from the spicy Italian sausage, beef, lots of veggies, beans and beer. And it freezes great!
*After the 2 hours, I turned the heat all the way down to low and allowed it to go for another hour (since we weren’t ready to eat). We thought that it tasted even better this way (as opposed to after just the two hours) since the flavors were able to develop even more. However, you can definitely eat this after the two – it tastes great that way as well.
Adapted from Jamie Deen via the Food Network.