Temperatures are dropping and I feel the need for some good comfort foods to warm me up from the inside out. On a cold day when you want a comforting meal with great flavor, chili is the go-to dinner for our family. Starting with great quality Canadian beef makes all the difference in the world. The nice thing about chili is you can really customize it to your family’s own personal likes and dislikes. You can make it as spicy or as mild as you would like and even sneak in some leftover veggies that the kids won’t even notice.
Chili can be made using fresh ground beef or you can do a big round of big batch cooking. If you have not heard of that term before, it means doing a lot of cooking all at once and then freezing for future use. In this case, to do a big batch of ground beef you would cook four pounds of Canadian ground beef. You would add in garlic and onion for seasoning while cooking. Spread in a single layer on several foil or parchment paper-lined baking trays; freeze until meat is firm, for about 1 hour. Loosen into chunks, scoop meal-sized portions into freezer bags. Freeze for up to 3 months. These portion size bags of ground beef can then be pulled out for quick and easy meals such as this chili. This saves you time on busy days and if you buy in big quantities when it is on sale, it can save you money too.
To make this great Mexicali chili, you will use 2 cups from your frozen ground beef. 
Combine with one can of diced tomatoes, 1 cup of frozen corn, 1 diced green pepper, 2 tablespoons of chili powder, and 1 teaspoon ground cumin. You can choose to add more or less spice as preferred. If you are like our family you throw some shredded cheese on top and grab a slice of cornbread and you are ready to go. That is it! You’re done and have a delicious and healthy meal to warm up your family.
| 1 | can (28 oz/796 mL) diced tomatoes, drained |
| 2 cups (500 mL) | frozen Big Batch Ground Beef (recipe follows) |
| 2 | cans (19 oz/540 mL) kidney or black beans, drained and rinsed |
| 1 cup (250 mL) | frozen corn |
| 1 | sweet green pepper, diced |
| 2 tbsp (30 mL) | chili powder |
| 1 tsp (5 mL) | ground cumin |
- Combine ingredients in saucepan.
- Simmer over medium heat, stirring occasionally, for 15 minutes or until heated through.
- Big Batch Beef: Cook 4 lb (2 kg) Extra Lean Ground Beef in Dutch oven over medium-high heat for 10 minutes, breaking into small chunks with back of spoon, until browned. Drain and return to pot. Add 4 EACH onion and cloves of garlic, minced, simmer for 15 minutes until vegetables are softened. Spread in a single layer on several foil or parchment paper-lined baking trays; freeze until meat is firm, about 1 hour. Loosen into chunks, scoop meal-sized portions into freezer bags. Freeze for up to 3 months.