Very often when I make chili I only use ground turkey to do it. We like the flavor of the chili and there is less fat and grease to deal with during the cooking process. I was looking for a recipe that would be just a little bit different from the standard recipe I have been using for years for chili when I cam across this one at myrecipes.com. There are just some slight differences in this recipe from the one I normally use, but you can adapt this recipe to make it as hot or as mild as you would like.

Turkey Black Bean Chili

2 tablespoons olive oil

1 onion, chopped

1 yellow or orange bell pepper, seeded and chopped

1 poblano chile, chopped

2 garlic cloves, minced

1 pound ground turkey

2 cans (28 ounces each) diced tomatoes

2 cans (15 ounces each) black beans, rinsed and drained

3 tablespoons tomato paste

3 tablespoons chili powder

2 teaspoons ground cumin

1 1/2 teaspoons agave nectar or 2 teaspoons sugar

Juice of 1 lime

Kosher salt

Shredded cheddar cheese (optional)

Sour cream (optional)

Heat the olive oil in a Dutch oven over medium-high heat until the oil is shimmering. Saute the onion, bell pepper, poblano chile and the garlic, stirring often, until the vegetables begin to soften, about 5 to 6 minutes. Add the ground turkey, increase the heat to high and cook, stirring often and breaking the meat into chunks until the meat is no longer pink, about 4 to 5 minutes.

Stir in the diced tomatoes, the black beans, tomato paste, chili powder, ground cumin and the agave nectar or sugar. Bring the chili to a boil, stirring often. Reduce the heat to a simmer and cover, stirring occasionally, and cook until all the flavors are blended, about 45 minutes to 1 hour. Stir in the lime juice. Check the seasonings and add kosher salt if desired or necessary. Serve the chili with shredded cheese and sour cream.

This recipe carries a little more heat to it than the one I had made in the past, thanks to the poblano pepper, but I really liked it and so did Michelle, who is the real chili lover in our family. You can always leave out the poblano if you prefer to have it a little milder. I used the sugar instead of the agave nectar because that is what I had on hand and it did help to cut down the acidity of the tomatoes. The lime juice really adds to the dish as well. I also seasoned the ground turkey before putting it in the chili with some Montreal chicken seasoning for some extra flavor because I find that ground turkey alone can be kind of bland, even in chili, but you can always season it in another manner if you choose or not at all and I think you will still get pretty good flavor out of this recipe. Of course, the flavor gets even better after a day or two and it has been great for lunches or even just as a snack with some tortilla chips.

That’s all I have for today. Check back next time for another recipe. Until then, enjoy the rest of your day and enjoy your meal!