This fun Green Bean Chili is an easy one pot meal that’s kid friendly too!
I’ve mentioned before I was kind of a picky kid. I always tell myself my future children won’t be picky. They’ll love eating a variety of healthy and delicious foods, and they’ll never complain or refuse to try something new. And then I realize what will really happen is payback. Big time. My children will probably organize a sit-in against broccoli and then bring their friends over to picket me while I’m making dinner. Apparently, my children will also be very into non-violent resistance.
Included on the long list of things I didn’t like as a child was chili. IÂ hated kidney beans, and I thought chili was too acidic and, I don’t know, tomato-y?? to be fit for consumption. Silly, silly me.
Not to be deterred, my mom came up with her own chili recipe that I would actually eat. She used green beans in place of kidney beans and added some curly rotini pasta. What kid can resist pasta? It was a weakness then, and it’s a weakness now. Luckily for all of us, her trickery worked and I’ve been enjoying this chili ever since.
This recipe is beyond easy to make and comes together in a single pot. It has all the chili standards–ground beef, onion, tomatoes–along with mom’s clever additions. The tomato base for this is mild and slightly sweet. My family was never much for the spicy food, but you could spice it up with a little cayenne or throw a jalapeno in there if you’d like.
Here’s the other thing you need to know about Mom’s chili. It must be served with a generous sprinkling of shredded cheese, Ritz crackers, and a dollop of sour cream. (Unless you’re my brother, who doesn’t like sour cream <<<WHAT???! HOW ARE WE RELATED?)
The anatomy of the perfect bite of mom’s chili looks like this: a curly pasta, a few hunks of ground beef and tomatoes, at least one green bean, a swirl of sour cream, a crunch of cracker, and a string of melty cheese. When you get that bite–the tangy sour cream melting into the tomato sauce, the crackers adding salt and texture, and the cheese, well, being cheese–there are big, fat, chili-sparked fireworks.
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Mom's Green Bean Chili
Ingredients
- Olive oil (to coat)
- 1 lb. ground beef
- 1 yellow onion (chopped)
- Salt and pepper (to taste)
- 1 1/2 Tablespoons brown sugar
- 1 1/2 Tablespoons flour
- 1 Tablespoon chili powder
- 1 teaspoon smoked paprika
- 1 teaspoon garlic powder
- 1/2 teaspoon cumin
- 1 (14.5 oz) can chunk tomatoes
- 24 ounces tomato juice ((3 cups))
- 2 cups beef broth
- 1 can green beans (drained)
- 4 ounces rotini pasta (or other small pasta shape)
Instructions
- Heat oil in a large Dutch oven or heavy bottomed pot over medium heat. Add the ground beef and onion and saute, stirring occasionally and breaking up the beef into small pieces, until no pink remains. Season to taste with salt and pepper, then drain off any excess fat in the pan.
- Add the brown sugar, flour, chili powder, smoked paprika, garlic powder, cumin, tomatoes, tomato juice, beef broth, and green beans. Stir until well combined. Bring the mixture to a boil, stirring often.
- Add the rotini to the pot and continue to cook, stirring often, until pasta is al dente, about 10-12 minutes.
- Serve with shredded cheese, sour cream, and Ritz crackers.
Notes
- This recipe can easily be doubled to feed more people. This also freezes well. If you'd like to freeze it, omit the pasta, freeze, then add the pasta when reheating.
Nutrition
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