French Lentil And Hominy Chili Recipes

SMOKY MEATY CHILI

Steps:

• Heat a large Dutch oven over medium-high heat. Add 2 tablespoons of the oil to the hot pan. Season the pork and beef with 1/2 teaspoon of the salt. Working in 2 batches, brown the meat on all sides; this will take about 7 minutes per batch. Remove the browned meat to a plate and continue with the next batch.
• When all the meat is browned and removed, add the remaining tablespoon of oil to the pan along with the garlic, onion and pepper. Cook, stirring often, for about 3 minutes. Season the vegetables with the chile powder, cumin, chipotle, coriander and 1 teaspoon of salt. Continue to cook the vegetables until the spices are fragrant and the vegetables are soft, an additional 2 minutes. Stir in the diced tomatoes and kidney beans along with 3 cups of water. Add the seared meat and the remaining 1/2 teaspoon salt. Reduce the heat to medium low, cover and simmer until the meat is tender and the chili has thickened slightly, about 1 hour. Stir in the bourbon, espresso and agave and turn off the heat.
• Serve garnished with shredded Cheddar cheese and a dollop of sour cream if desired.

FRENCH LENTILS WITH GARLIC AND THYME

Steps:

• Place a large saucepan over medium heat and add oil. When hot, add chopped vegetables and sauté until softened, 5 to 10 minutes.
• Add 6 cups water, lentils, thyme, bay leaves and salt. Bring to a boil, then reduce to a fast simmer.
• Simmer lentils until they are tender and have absorbed most of the water, 20 to 25 minutes. If necessary, drain any excess water after lentils have cooked. Serve immediately, or allow them to cool and reheat later.

SKYLINE LENTIL CHILI

Steps:

• Mix chili powder, garlic powder, unsweetened chocolate, cinnamon, cumin, salt, cayenne pepper, allspice, cloves, and bay leaf together in a bowl until seasoning mix is well combined.
• Heat olive oil in a Dutch oven over medium heat; cook and stir onions and green bell pepper until lightly browned, about 10 minutes. Add vegetable broth and lentils; simmer for 20 minutes. Stir in seasoning mix, tomato sauce, apple cider vinegar, and Worcestershire sauce; simmer for 1 hour more, adding water if chili gets too thick.
• Remove bay leaf from chili. Blend chili using an immersion blender until desired consistency is reached.

HOMINY BEEF CHILI

Steps:

• In a large skillet, heat oil over medium heat. Brown beef in batches. Remove with a slotted spoon to a 5-qt. slow cooker; discard drippings., Stir in hominy, broth, tomatoes, red pepper, onion, chiles, garlic and seasonings. Cook, covered on low 6-7 hours or until meat is tender. Stir in corn; heat through. If desired, serve with cheese and sour cream.

LENTIL AND MUSHROOM CHILLI

Steps:

• Heat olive oil in a large saucepan, then add spices (cumin, coriander and chilli) to the hot oil for a few seconds. Add onion, garlic, carrot and chilies and cook for a few minutes until onion softens. Add chopped mushrooms, and continue to cook for a few minutes until mushrooms soften. Add washed lentils and stir for a minute. Add stock, tomato and garlic puree, bay leaves, soy sauces and Worcestershire sauce.
• Bring to the boil, then reduce the heat to simmer the lentils. Cook for an hour at low heat, stirring regularly, and adding boiling water when the contents start to stick to the pan. Towards the end, add tin of kidney beans. Can use the juice from the can in addition to the boiling water additions.
• Done when the lentils are soft.
• Options & serving suggestions: can add finely chopped celery, fresh chillies (according to taste), red wine to flavour. I prefer to eat with mashed potato, but of course would go with rice.
• Chilli powder varies in strength - I only used 1 tsp, but it is a very fiery batch!

FRENCH LENTIL DIP

Steps:

• Combine cooked lentils, green onions, garlic, walnuts, mustard, tamari, salt, and pepper in the bowl of a food processor; process until smooth.
• Drizzle oil through the chute and process to desired consistency.

HOMINY WITH RED CHILIES

Steps:

• Place the dried corn in a large bowl, cover with six cups water and set aside to soak overnight.
• Early the next day, or at least four hours before serving, drain the corn, place it in a three- to four-quart saucepan and add six cups water. Bring to a simmer and stir in the dried chilies or chili powder, oregano and cinnamon. Simmer uncovered about two and a half hours, until the corn is fairly tender. If necessary, add more water during cooking. At end of cooking period, the mixture should be quite moist but not soupy.
• Add the chicken stock, bring to a simmer, season to taste with salt and cook another 30 minutes. By this time the corn should be barely covered with liquid. Allow it to cool uncovered. It will thicken as it cools.
• Reheat it to serve as a side dish or use it to make a casserole. Refrigerate any unused cooked hominy and use within a day or freeze it for future use. Yield: 8 to 12 servings

WHITE CHILI WITH HOMINY

Steps:

• In a large saucepan, saute the chicken and onion in oil until chicken is no longer pink. Add the hominy, beans, broth, chilies and seasonings. Bring to a boil. Reduce heat; simmer, uncovered, for 30 minutes. , Remove from the heat; stir in the sour cream, half-and-half and 1 tablespoon cilantro. Sprinkle with remaining cilantro.