Deep Red Sweet Potato Chili With Ground Beef
A thick, dark red brown chili with crumbled 85/15 beef, half inch sweet potato cubes, kidney beans, chipotle and smoked paprika. One pot in 55 minutes, with slow cooker directions.
Servings 6 servings
Ingredients
For the Chili
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
- 1 pound ground beef 85/15
- 1 large yellow onion diced
- 1 red bell pepper diced
- 4 cloves garlic minced
- 2 tablespoons tomato paste
- 1 ½ tablespoons chili powder
- 1 tablespoon ground cumin
- 1 teaspoon smoked paprika
- ¼ teaspoon chipotle powder or to taste
- 1 teaspoon dried oregano
- ¼ teaspoon ground cinnamon
- 15 ounce can fire roasted diced tomatoes with juices
- 2 cups low sodium beef broth
- 1 pound sweet potatoes peeled and cut into ½ inch dice
- 15 ounce can dark red kidney beans drained and rinsed
- 1 ½ teaspoons kosher salt plus more to taste
Instructions
Brown and Build
- Heat the olive oil in a large pot over medium-high heat. Add the ground beef and break it into small crumbles with a wooden spoon as it browns, 7 to 8 minutes. Drain excess fat, leaving about 1 tablespoon in the pot.
- Add the onion and bell pepper and cook 5 minutes, scraping the bottom of the pot. Add the garlic and cook 1 minute more.
- Stir in the tomato paste, chili powder, cumin, smoked paprika, chipotle powder, oregano, and cinnamon. Cook 2 minutes, stirring constantly, until the paste darkens to a deep brick color.
Simmer
- Add the diced tomatoes with their juices, the beef broth, the sweet potato cubes, and the salt. Scrape the bottom of the pot as it comes to a simmer.
- Simmer uncovered 20 to 25 minutes, stirring occasionally, until the sweet potato cubes are tender all the way through but still hold their shape.
- Stir in the kidney beans and cook 10 minutes more.
Finish
- Taste and add salt as needed. Add a small splash of lime juice or red wine vinegar off the heat to sharpen the flavors, then serve with your toppings.
Notes
- Slow cooker: brown the beef and cook the paste and spices in a skillet first, transfer to the crock with only 1 cup of broth, cook 4 hours on low, add sweet potatoes for the last 90 minutes and beans for the last 20.
- No bean version: leave out the kidney beans and add another ½ pound of sweet potato.
- Fat percentage: 85/15 beef stays tender. Lean beef goes chalky in a long simmer.
- The cinnamon: a quarter teaspoon adds depth. Do not round up.
- Storage: keeps 5 days refrigerated and freezes 3 months.