Bob's Red Wok Chili

Crisp autumn days with her leaves colored and blowing in swirls are just what I'm experiencing here in Utah. It's fall and I love it. These exact sights and sounds summon me to the kitchen to make soups, stews and chilies, along with savory cornbread and an eagerness to work down my fall baking list.

Today, my friend Lindsey and I are teaming up again to each share a soup, stew or chili recipe on our blogs for October. I'm revisiting my childhood kitchen through my father's chili recipe and Lindsey shares her Roasted Pear and Parsnip Soup with Rosemary Balsamic Caramelized Pears.

Teenage memories with those exact fall sights, sounds and feelings remind me of my Dad's chili. Dad made it all throughout my adolescence but only when he was in the mood. It was always spontaneous, using staples from our pantry.  The recipe is a compilation of tastes and textures he judged in our church chili cook-off circuit throughout the years. Bob's Chili has a notable tang, which comes from the secret ingredient: chili sauce.

The chili is straightforward, just like my dad, and quick with a turnaround time of less than 30 minutes. The recipe is filled with three types of beans and hearty ground beef.  For some reason he always made it in our portable red wok. It wasn't until my twenties that I realized how uncommon the wok-chili combo was for preparation. I thought everyone made their chili in a wok.

I made Bob's Red Wok Chili myself for the first time this year. At first I questioned some techniques like not draining and rinsing the beans (thick liquid for the recipe, mimicking hours of stewing), or cooking the onions before the ground beef so they became tender (the onions are supposed to be a bit crunchy and I love it that way). But it all makes sense and comes out great in the end.

Give my dad's chili recipe a try. I bet you have most, if not all, ingredients on hand.

Bob's Red Wok Chili
by Becky of Project Domestication

Ingredients:
1 lb. hamburger (lean to extra lean)
1 onion, chopped
1 can white northern beans, undrained
1 can red kidney beans, undrained
2 cans pinto beans, undrained
1 pkg. chili seasoning
1/3-1/2 bottle chili sauce (such as Heinz)*
1/2 an 8 oz. can tomato sauce (more if preferred)*
salt and pepper to taste

Directions:
Brown hamburger and onion together. Add remaining ingredients and simmer on low for 10 minutes. Taste and season accordingly. I recommend just having salt and pepper at the table for each individual to season themselves. Delicious with cornbread.

*Notes: I use all 8 oz. of tomato sauce and probably 2/3 of the chili sauce. I taste as I go to make sure there is a nice vinegar tang to the chili. If not, add more chili sauce. Serve with cheesy cornbread.



Other chili recipes you may like:
Vegetarian Chili with Quinoa on Mountain Mamma Cooks
Roasted Butternut Squash and Turkey Chili on Foodie Crush
Easy Vegetarian Chili on Two Peas and Their Pod
Crockpot Pumpkin Chili with Ground Beef, Black and Kidney Beans on Kalyn's Kitchen
Chili Verde on Simply Recipes
Authentic Texas Crockpot Chili on Heather's Dish
Mexican Chili on Sweet Treats and More

Other recipes from my childhood kitchen:
Gone with the Wind Lime Jell-O Dessert
Chicken Pot Pie (aka Potato a la Creme)
Peanut Butter Chews
Texas Sheet Cake