Green Bean Chili
Hi All! Cold enough for you? In my neck of the woods, the mercury has certainly spent a lot of time below freezing lately. I am not a huge fan of the cold weather. I mean, it is nice to have a snowfall once in a while (as long as I don’t have to drive in it) and a little nip in the air is great during the holidays. And, I must admit that I do love the change in the seasons when it comes to cooking and baking. I adore making soups and casseroles and there is nothing quite like baking a batch of chocolate chip cookies on a cold day. Lately, I have been on a chili kick which is kind of weird for me. I have never been a lover of plain old traditional chili, but it is growing on me. I do really enjoy making and trying different types of chili with funky ingredients. I have a turkey chili recipe that I absolutely love but it is far from traditional. The Green Bean Chili recipe that I want to share with you today is actually a variation of the Weight Watchers Chili from back in the day.
This recipe first came to me from family members. I used to work at my sister-in-law, Bev’s, flower shop part-time. I had such a good time working there and I learned so much about flower arranging. I also learned a lot about good cooking. You see, during especially busy times like Valentine’s Day, Christmas Open House, and when there were several funerals or weddings at the same time the entire group of ladies might have to pull late-night sessions. It was exhausting and sometimes stressful, but we relied on each other to get through with lots of laughs and some crockpots full of home cooking. One year, during a late-night session some wonderful family members brought us a crockpot full of Weight Watchers Green Bean Chili. I had never eaten it before and was skeptical, but I really loved it. I made it a couple of times at home but then put the recipe aside because my boys were not terribly fond of it during their teenage years. Lately, I was reminded of that delicious concoction and looked online for the recipe. I made a big pot asap. It was just as good as I remembered although I am not positive that this recipe is the exact one that I had 15 years ago. This one has turkey and I can’t remember using that before. Anywho, I made some to take to work for my lunches for the week. I was talking about how good it was to my bosses and both of them asked for the recipe. I willingly shared and they both love it too. They made it for their families with great success which made me extra happy. So, I couldn’t wait to share it with all of you too! This version of chili is chock full of chunks of turkey and veggies. It has a wonderful thick tomato base and is spiced just right.
Now, this is definitely not a traditional chili. While it does have chili powder and a tomato base, there are no beans other than green beans and you do use turkey rather than beef. I like to make mine very thick, but you can easily control the consistency by draining (or not draining) the canned green beans. I like to use French style green beans, but you can use any type that you like. If you want the chili to be truly weight-watchers worthy you need to use the extra lean ground turkey. When I add up all the calories of the ingredients for this chili, the whole pot is around 1000 calories! That is crazy low, and the flavor is crazy good!
So, for this chili, you will need 3 pounds of ground turkey. Use the leanest you can get. Mine was 93% but you can sometimes find 99% which would be great. You will need about 1 cup of diced onion. I just diced up 2 medium Vidalia onions for mine. You can use whatever type floats your chili boat. Also needed are a 28 oz can of crushed tomatoes, a 29 oz can of tomato sauce and 5 of the 14.5 oz cans of green beans. I like to use French style but feel free to use regular cut if you want a bigger bean bite. For the spices, you will need salt and pepper, chili powder, and garlic powder. I have given measurements for the spices, but you can adjust those to your own taste.
Sautee the ground turkey and onions in a large soup pot until the turkey is browned and completely done. The onions should be softened and translucent by then. Season the turkey and onions while they are cooking with 1 teaspoon of salt and ½ teaspoon of black pepper. Make sure to break the turkey up into small pieces while cooking.
Add the undrained crushed tomatoes, tomato sauce, 3 or 4 Tablespoons of chili powder (depending on how spicy you like chili), 2 teaspoons of garlic powder, 1 teaspoon salt and ½ teaspoon pepper (this is the 2nd time that you add salt and pepper). You can adjust the salt to your needs. Start with less and add more if you want.
Open all the cans of green beans. I like to drain 4 cans and leave 1 undrained. You can adjust this to your liking. I just happen to like thicker chili. Add the beans and stir until everything is combined.
Cook over medium or medium-low heat for 30 minutes, stirring frequently. If the chili thickens too much you can add water. If it is too thin you can cook it a bit longer.
Turn off the heat and prepare to enjoy a nice bowl of comfort…without the guilt. I like this chili because it is thick and flavorful and so easy to prepare. The fact that it is a healthier option is a great bonus.
Green Bean Chili
Ingredients
- 3 lbs lean ground turkey
- 1 cup onion diced
- 1 tsp salt
- 1/2 tsp pepper
- 28 oz crushed tomatoes
- 29 oz tomato sauce
- 5 cans green beans (french or regular cut) 14.5 oz each
- 2 – 4 Tbs chili powder
- 2 tsp garlic powder
- 1 tsp salt
- 1/2 tsp pepper
Instructions
- Sautee the ground turkey and onions in a large soup pot until the turkey is browned and completely done. The onions should be softened and translucent by then. Season the turkey and onions while they are cooking with 1 teaspoon of salt and ½ teaspoon of black pepper. Make sure to break the turkey up into small pieces while cooking.
- Add the undrained crushed tomatoes, tomato sauce, 3 or 4 Tablespoons of chili powder (depending on how spicy you like chili), 2 teaspoons of garlic powder, 1 teaspoon salt and ½ teaspoon pepper (this is the 2nd time that you add salt and pepper). You can adjust the salt to your needs. Start with less and add more if you want.
- Open all the cans of green beans. I like to drain 4 cans and leave 1 undrained. You can adjust this to your liking. I just happen to like thicker chili. Add the beans and stir until everything is combined. Cook over medium or medium-low heat for 30 minutes, stirring frequently. If the chili thickens too much you can add water. If it is too thin you can cook it a bit longer. Remove from the heat and enjoy.
