Mom's Homestyle Chili

One of my favorite winter meals to make is a big pot of chili and Fritos! I love making my Mom's Homestyle Chili .  It is so easy to make with items that I keep in my pantry and aside from the spices I put in it there is only five ingredients!  It tastes so much better than the canned chili you get off the grocery shelves too.  I like to make a big pot so there is plenty of leftovers to makeover and use in other dishes, like nachos or for topping a baked potato.

My kids wish that I did not have to put beans into every pot I make but I just can't bring myself to make it without beans! It just wouldn't be chili and the beans add extra nutrients to the pot.  I have started taking 1/2 of the can of beans and mashing them or pureeing them in the blender so it appears that there is not a lot of beans in the pot. I found that pureeing the beans actually helps to thicken the chili so it is easier to use for nachos and baked potato topping.

Mom's Homestyle Chili

2 lb ground meat(venison or beef)
2 cans tomato sauce(15 oz)
1 can tomato soup
1 can red kidney beans(or ranch style beans)
3 medium size carrots, shredded
2-3 tsp. chili powder
1 tsp. garlic powder
2-3 TBSP dry minced onions


Mix all together. Simmer in crockpot all day(4-6 hours) on low.

Notes: The carrots are used as the sweetener instead of sugar. You can add other veggies, like shredded zucchini, chopped green peppers, and celery; but I haven't been able to find a way to add them to my pot due to picky eaters.  You can adjust the amount of chili powder in the pot to effect the "hotness"/zing of the pot.

I serve this with a double batch of corn muffins or a bag of Fritos or sometimes both!

This post is linked to:

• Tempt My Tummy Tuesday at Blessed with Grace!
• Tasty Tuesday at Balancing Beauty and Bedlam!
• Tuesdays at the Table at All the Small Stuff!
• $5 Dinner Challenge at $5 Dinners!