Clean Carpets & Chorizo Chili - The Little Things...

As I'm sitting here getting our carpet cleaned, wearing a two month old in a sling with a nervous wreck of a wiener dog at my feet, I have to tell you - I AM EXCITED...

...to have freshly cleaned carpets.

That's the truth.

For some, maybe most, this would be the height of boredom, the zenith of mundanity, the death knell of that thing we call having a life.

But for me, having had one of those lives, the kind that pulled me in too many different directions and had my mind going at such a speed that I hardly had time to look down to even notice if the carpet was dirty, this is living.

Trying to keep four chrysanthemum bushes alive and succeeding 75% of the time, managing to eke 6 peppers out of 2 pepper plants, learning that I can safely stack upwards of 40 rinsed dishes on the right side of our really small sink, wiping down the kitchen floor with a wet rag and some diluted Fabuloso because that Swiffer crap is so sticky and overscented it makes me angerfied, making a weekly trip to the laundromat and being forced (in a good way) to get our clothes folded the same day they get washed, and feeling pretty good about doing those things the best I can even though no one's watching or writing me a paycheck for it, is living. And living well.

As is coming up with a rockin' Chorizo Chili recipe out of the odds and ends in the kitchen, some of them downright dregs, that makes the Man's chili lovin' eyes roll back into his head.

(FRICKIN' DELICIOUS) KITCHEN DUMP CHORIZO CHILI
Serves 6

- 1.5 Tablespoons oil
- 2 medium yellow onions, peeled and chopped into a 1/4" dice
- 1 large red bell pepper, cored and chopped into a 1/4" dice
- 4 jalapeños, minced (how to choose jalapeños)
- 10 cloves garlic, minced
- 2 pounds 80/20 ground beef
- 10 to 12 ounces of Mexican pork or beef chorizo (the kind you have to cook - the packages usually range from 10 to 12 ounces)
- 15 oz. can of tomatoes
- 2 Tablespoons tomato paste
- 2 teaspoons cayenne (or more to taste)
- 2 teaspoons cumin (remember, there's already quite a bit of cumin in the chorizo)
- 2 teaspoons chili powder
- 1 Tablespoon Tapatío (or other generally Mex-flavored hot sauce like Valencia or Cholula with a noticeable acid element. Tabasco will work in a pinch)
- 2 cups unsalted stock - chicken or beef
- 1 teaspoon kosher salt to start
- 1 or 2 (depending on how much beans you like in your chili) 15 oz. can(s) beans of choice, drained (I used garbanzos and ended up liking them so much in this recipe, I'm going to stick with them)

1) In a preheated medium pot (at least 4 quarts), sweat the onions, peppers, and garlic in the oil until the onions are translucent. (Probably 3 to 4 minutes.)

2) Then, turn the heat up to medium high, and, as the name of the recipe calls for, dump in the ground beef, chorizo, canned tomatoes, tomato paste, spices (cayenne, cumin, chili powder), hot sauce, and stock, using a spoon or spatula to break up the beef and chorizo, and give everything two or three gentle stirs to distribute all the ingredients evenly.

3) When the chili comes to a gentle boil (say a bubble per second), turn the heat down to medium low and simmer, partially covered (with a 1/2" opening on one side), for 15 minutes, stirring occasionally.

4) Add the beans and kosher salt and stir them in to distribute evenly. Gently simmer again (gently meaning that there's barely detectible movement under the surface), partially covered, for another 30 minutes, stirring and scraping the bottom every 10 minutes or so. Scraping the bottom is a good way to monitor if the heat is too high for slow cooking. If you can scrape fond off the bottom of the pot while doing a long simmer, your heat's too high, and you should adjust accordingly.

5) After 30 minutes, check the seasoning of your chili, and if you want to add more salt or spices, add them now, stir thoroughly a few times, and let it simmer again, partially covered for another 7 minutes or so. If not, it's ready to eat!

¡Buen provecho! Yeehaw! and all that,

shinae