Slow-cooker Chili

Well hello to all you beautiful people ;) 

It is yet time again for another recipe! I was thinking - oh what am I saying - DREAMING of some good Chili, since I posted about it about erm, a week or so ago, so now it is time for the BEST Chili (obviously - and don't try to fight it - don't mess with "zee Germans" hehe).

So let's do this: 

You will need:

• 2 lbs ground beef(Grass fed if possible, because it tastes so much better)
• 1 onion (diced)
• 1 big Garlic clove (minced)
• 2 Bell Peppers (diced) pick your favorite colors:)
• 4 stems of Celery (diced)
• 5 carrots (diced)
• 1 Habanero (diced) (yup autocorrect wants me to change it to "handbarrow" - go home autocorrect - you're drunk!)
• 1 28oz can of crushed tomatoes
• 1 14oz can of diced tomatoes
• 1 14oz can of tomato sauce
• 1 pair of disposable gloves
• 1 Tbsp Olive Oil
• optional: 1/4 cup of red wine
• and: a Slow-cooker

Spice-y stuff:

• 3 Tbsp Chili powder
• 1 Tbsp Red Chili Flakes
• 1 Tbsp Oregano
• 1 Tbsp Basil
• 1/2-1 tsp cumin (to taste)
• 1 tsp Salt
• 1 tsp Pepper (I prefer black pepper)

The Spices

Okay not much to say about the ingredients, other than: gather them and put them all into a bowl (I didn't, for presentation purposes;)), just leave the Garlic and Onions separately, since they need to be browned first.

The picture below shows my beautiful Habanero (a.k.a. Handbarrow). From painful past experiences I have learned (that's a first!) to put on disposable gloves...So, I would recommend the same to you guys (unless you are tougher than me - but this is NOT a challenge ;))

Okay now dice the Habaneros as finely as you can (you don't want to bite on a large piece of Habanero later on. Again - painful!), and put them aside. 

I am aware of the fact that I should have cropped the pic below, but I was really lazy ;) That way you at least get to experience a larger part of my kitchen. I am also very proud of that "action-shot" - you don't know how difficult it is to spray, take a picture at the same time (that is not blurry), and don't over-spray. 

Anyway - I am drifting off here. So, the next step is to (you guessed it) spray a pan with Olive Oil, or even use 1 Tbsp of Olive oil (which I would recommend, I just didn't have any at home).

Turn the stove to a medium high level and add the Onions and Garlic. Many people wait until the pan is hot to add the Onions, but I don't believe in it. The reason for that is that everything happens TOO FAST for me, if I wait until the pan is blazin' hot, and I end up burning my onions all.the.time. So, no - this is not for me, and anybody else that rather likes to relax while cooking.

Once the Onions and Garlic are translucent you can (no, you HAVE TO) add the ground beef. Leave the stove on a medium-high setting and separate the beef / hack the beef a bit with a wooden spoon, so it turns into smaller chunks.

Once you have "hacked the beef" into smaller chunks (sounds violent...), you can add the spice mix and give it a good stir.

You want the ground beef to be somewhat cooked through (can still be pink in some places, but the roasted areas just taste great in my opinion (and no slow cooker can do that). Once the beef is roasted-ish, you can transfer the mix to the slow cooker.

Now is your chance btw: ADD THE WINE! (and drink some to congratulate yourself on your almost-done-Chili)

So now comes the easiest part:
add the veggies

 ...and the tomatoes and beans

then give the Slow cooker a good stir, close the lid, and cook the whole mix on low for 6-8 hours, which leaves you with a lot of time to clean up your mess and binge on Netflix (student talking here, so scratch that whole cleaning stuff - ahem sorry Nico...)

Tadadadaaaaaaa - this is what it looks like after 6-8 hours: Isn't it just gorgeous?

Aaaaand that is it. You can eat this Chili by itself, and feel good about yourself because it is sorta gesund-ish (see how I sneaked that in?), or add some rice or bread, which my husband prefers to do, because heaven forbid I would not provide him with some good carbs ;))

I hope you guys enjoyed it, and will try the recipe. If you don't have a slow-cooker you can also make this recipe in a big pot, but you would have to cook and look after it for at least 4 hours, so the spices can really seep in. But since you have a bottle of wine open anyway, this should not be a problem;). 

Let me know if you have any suggestions on what I should make for my next blog. This is actually quite fun, I have to admit! Now I just hope that filming my German lessons is as much fun (I have it on my phone, but I just can't submit it. I am quite the dork (Trottel - in German, for anybody who wants to know;))

Give me this week to upload it, and I WILL DO IT! 

Thanks for being patient! Love you guys <3