Red Bean Chili

You can never go wrong with a traditional red bean chili that lets you dive into a bowl of tomatoes, ground beef, and a sauce made up of deliciously unique flavors. I have been looking for ways to perfect my chili recipe and while doing my research came across a pretty unusual addition to making chili so perfect: Dr. Pepper. Yes, you read that right. After pouring in Dr. Pepper to my chili, it enhanced so many of the flavors and added a slight sweetness to the dish that helped balance the spicy and salty tastes you get as well. Trust me with this, you are definitely going to have to try this out!

I cooked this chili on the stove stop in less than an hour, but you can use a Crockpot on low for 6 hours!

I used many toppings that paired really well with a red sauce chili, like cheese, sour cream, saltine crackers, and green onions.

Chili is such a perfect dinner option when temperatures are frigid, or you're just too lazy to really stand in the kitchen for hours to prepare a meal. You can throw everything in the pot within 10 minutes and let the pot do the rest of the work, by allowing the flavors to combine together and really create a delicious meal. I did a few special things differently that I feel really impacted the dish in a delicious way!

For starters, I used Dr. Pepper as one of the base liquids in this dish. All of the carbonation gets cooked out and what's left is a caramelized flavor that adds a slight sweetness to the chili. I also used Tajin seasoning to give the chili more of a Mexican flavor palate. Both enhanced the meal and were very worth it!

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Prep Time: 5 minutes Serves: 4 People

Cook Time: 45 minutes

Total Time: 50 minutes

INGREDIENTS

• 1 Tbsp. Vegetable Oil

• 1 Medium Onion, diced

• 1 lb. Ground Beef

• 12 oz. Dr. Pepper

• 18 oz. of Tomato Sauce

• 14.5 oz. Chili Beans

• 14.5 oz. Petite Diced Tomatoes

• 2 Tbsp. Taco Seasoning

• 1 Tbsp. Tajin Seasoning

• 1 Tbsp. Chili Powder

• 1 Packet Ranch Dressing Powder

• 2 tsp. Garlic Powder

Optional Toppings:

• Shredded Cheese of your Choice

• Sour Cream

• Fresh Limes

• Green Onions

• Tortilla Strips

• Saltine Crackers

INSTRUCTIONS:

1. In a large pot, over medium heat, add in the vegetable oil. Once the oil is heated, add in the onions and saute for about 2-3 minutes until the flavors are released.

2. Add in the ground beef and continue breaking it apart as it cooks. Cook for about 8-10 minutes. Season with salt and pepper, to taste.

3. Reduce the heat to a medium-low, and pour in the Dr. Pepper, tomato sauce, chili beans, diced tomatoes, taco seasoning, Tajin, chili powder, ranch powder, and garlic powder.

4. Stir all of the ingredients together and cook for 25-30 minutes until flavors have evenly adjusted to each other.

5. Serve with toppings and enjoy!