If you ever have the chance to read the Little House books as an adult, you will probably notice, as I did, that the true heroine of those stories is Carolyn Ingalls, a.k.a. “Ma.” While Laura happily chats on about dinner on the trail, the homey little dugout, or the fun games of Kitty in the Corner while Pa is lost out in the snowstorm, it becomes striking how much work Ma has done behind the scene to make life so sweet. The cooking of meals over campfires and iron stoves was particularly impressive to me in my most recent read of LHOP, and I think of that often as I’m throwing a frozen pizza in the oven or heating up my pre-cooked pot roast from HEB. What would it be like to have to think of what’s for dinner as soon as the lunch dishes were finished?

Well, I like to think I got a little taste of pioneer living last night, when I tried my hand at making chili for the first time. I’m still part of my “Lunch Bunch” at school, and when my turn to cook comes up, it’s a nice excuse to try something new.

Anyway, on to the hardship. 1. My garlic press is lost, so I had to finely mince six cloves of garlic by hand with my microplane grater (ouch on the fingertips!). 2. I had to close my eyes while cutting up two onions because I was tearing up so bad. This is no small feat, I assure you! (I ended up grating them on my regular cheese grater, which was a perfect solution- great flavor but no oniony chunks to pick out of the finished dish) 3. The recipe had to cook for TWO HOURS! Not even counting the 45 minutes of prep and initial browning/sauteeing. And, since I have a gas stove in the new house, this means that I was cooking over an open flame for most of the night. When I topped it off with my homemade johnnycake (Jiffy-mix cornbread), I felt like quite the pioneeress.

Now, one teeny advantage I may have had was that I had the luxury of buying my dinner at Chick-fil-A on the way home from the grocery store, since I was hungry before I even started cooking. And it was a good thing, too, because the chili wasn’t finished until 10:30! But it made a delicious lunch for the group today, and I’m reheating the whole pot to feed to my Office-watching family tonight.

Here is my yummy recipe- the actual hands-on part of the cooking is very easy–courtesty of America’s Test Kitchen:

Simple Chili with Kidney Beans

Ingredients

2 tablespoons vegetable oil or corn oil
2 medium onions , chopped fine (about 2 cups)
1 red bell pepper , cut into 1/2-inch cubes
6 medium cloves garlic , minced or pressed through garlic press (about 2 tablespoons)
1/4 cup chili powder
1 tablespoon ground cumin
2 teaspoons ground coriander
1 teaspoon red pepper flakes
1 teaspoon dried oregano
1/2 teaspoon cayenne pepper
2 pounds 85 percent lean ground beef
2 (15-ounce) cans red kidney beans , drained and rinsed
1 (28-ounce) can diced tomatoes , with juice
1 can (28 ounces) tomato puree
Table salt
2 limes , cut into wedges

Instructions

  1. 1. Heat oil in large heavy-bottomed nonreactive Dutch oven over medium heat until shimmering but not smoking, 3 to 4 minutes. Add onions, bell pepper, garlic, chili powder, cumin, coriander, pepper flakes, oregano, and cayenne; cook, stirring occasionally, until vegetables are softened and beginning to brown, about 10 minutes. Increase heat to medium-high and add half the beef; cook, breaking up pieces with wooden spoon, until no longer pink and just beginning to brown, 3 to 4 minutes. Add remaining beef and cook, breaking up pieces with wooden spoon, until no longer pink, 3 to 4 minutes.
  2. 2. Add beans, tomatoes, tomato puree, and 1/2 teaspoon salt; bring to boil, then reduce heat to low and simmer, covered, stirring occasionally, for 1 hour. Remove cover and continue to simmer 1 hour longer, stirring occasionally (if chili begins to stick to bottom of pot, stir in 1/2 cup water and continue to simmer), until beef is tender and chili is dark, rich, and slightly thickened. Adjust seasoning with additional salt. Serve with lime wedges and condiments if desired.