Thursday, December 23, 2010

Recipe: Chicken Chili with black beans and sweet potatoes

This post promises to be lackluster. No pictures. No humor. Straight to the point. I made a crock of .... something (which shall be referred to as "chili" from this point on) that was tasty. I tweeted. Recipe requests followed. Those who know me are well aware that I'm a fly-by-the-seat-of-my-pants kind of cook in the kitchen but I'll dish my secrets for ya'll.

Without further ado, I present to you the recipe for my on-the-fly Chicken Chili with black beans and sweet potatoes.

Ingredients:
3 large sweet potatoes, peeled and cut into 1" cubes
2 15 oz cans of black beans, undrained
1 lb frozen corn
2 15 oz cans diced tomatoes
1 sweet onion, diced
1 envelope taco seasoning
3 cloves garlic, minced
2 large boneless, skinless chicken breasts
1 green pepper, diced
2 15 oz cans chicken broth
1/2 cup - 1 cup apple cider

Method:
Toss everything into a crock pot or a large, HEAVY pan with a lid. Place whole chicken breasts on top. Cook on low for 8-9 hours or bake in oven at 325 degrees for 4-6 hours. I'm sure that the chili would probably be done MUCH sooner than this, but I was out shopping and came home to it being perfect after this time period. It helps that I used a porcelain covered cast iron dutch oven to cook this--the super heavy lidded pan cooks evenly and keeps things nice and steamy inside the pan. When the sweet potatoes, peppers and onions are soft, you know you're ready to rock. I take the chicken out of the pan, dice or shred it and return it to the pot for 10 or 15 minutes. That's also when I pour some apple cider in, just to get the chili to the consistency that I like. I think it complements the sweet potatoes nicely but if that's not the style that makes you smile, you can use chicken broth just as easily.

Recipe can be halved super easily and leftovers are great. Enjoy!