Tail Gate Meaty Chili Stew Gone Healthy

There is a chill in the air and that can only mean one thing. It is time for good old bone warming, chill stopping, and hearty Midwestern Chili Soup.

What I was trying to achieve here is the wonderful soup of my past as altered to today’s tastes and the health needs that we so want to achieve. I think this dish meets the need. It tastes deceptively meaty and is also very rich. I left it to a nice thick consistency. If you want to stretch this turn it into a Chili Two ways by putting it over spaghetti, on a bun, or adding water. However, I'd recommend leaving it just as it is!

Yes, it is quite full of calories but it is also full of the good carbohydrates and low fat alternatives to the red meats. It uses red kidney beans, ground turkey meat, Italian chicken sausage, and reconstituted healthy mushrooms to add an even meatier consistency. I also choose to use cane sugar products when I can. To this end I purchase my BBQ sauce and ketchup at Trader Joe’s where the cane sugar ketchup and BBQ sauce are regular priced, not over priced like many other grocery stores price these items

This would make a great tail gate dish. You can make it ahead, put it in a crock pot, and just bring the whole pot to the tail gate. Serve it over buns for the hungry crowd.

The layering of flavors results in a most satisfying dish. Chili soups are by definition several ingredients that take their time while simmering to meld together.

Chili soup does not normally incorporate BBQ sauce, Italian Chicken Sausage, or mushrooms. Each of these ingredients imparts a flavor layer. The BBQ sauce adds a tang with the tomato base that it is made from. The Italian Chicken Sausage provides a spice bit with undertones of Italian flavors. The mushrooms are a meaty consistency addition that also gives the dish an earthy flavor as well as a healthy way to provide the ‘mouth feel’ of beef.

There is a distinct difference between the two types of dishes that are, unfortunately, both called chili/chile. They suffer in that they are both somewhat similar looking as well as named the same, yet, they are most certainly NOT the same dish.

So, let’s just all get over taunting one another over how one style is better than the other. They are not the same thing.

This Midwestern Chili soup is a hearty dish that trades on tomatoes, ground meats, kidney beans, and a milder chili spice.

The Southwestern Chile is more of a stew that trades on chiles, cubed meat, no beans but perhaps potatoes, and the many variations of hot to mild chile peppers or powders as grown and harvested in that area of the United States.

I literally threw this together in 20 minutes. It bubbled on the stove for another two hours and then I removed it from the heat and let it sit for another hour. It remained steaming hot in the cast iron pot. I highly recommend you cook in such a caste iron type of pot. It will make your cooking easier.

Everyone who came near the kitchen commented on how good the dish smelled.

The most complicated thing is organizing the ingredients. There are no high tone expensive items here. This is both easy to prepare and inexpensive.

Here are a couple of other chili soups that you may like.

The Little Bowl of Heaven is heavily a Midwestern USA chili. It is very satisfying. http://nmlady.hubpages.com/hub/Little-Bowl-of-Heaven-Chili-Recipe

The White Chili was also first tasted in the Midwest. It is a great alternative chili. http://nmlady.hubpages.com/hub/White-Chili-Soup