This is the chili I grew up with, inherited from my Norwegian grandmother. My mother added her own tweaks, and I have done the same. My husband Ed loved this chili, even though it contains beans. He took the Texan position that beans don’t belong in chili, so he just called it “Norwegian bean soup” and ate it with enthusiasm. Whatever you call it, it’s delicious.
| Ingredients | Large batch | Small batch |
| Medium onions, chopped fine | 3 to 4 | 2 |
| Medium green peppers, chopped fine | 2 | 1 |
| Cloves garlic, chopped fine | 2 | 1 |
| Lean ground beef or ground turkey | 2 pounds | 1 pound |
| Chili powder | ¼ to ½ cup | 2 Tbsp to ¼ cup |
| Ground cumin | 1 tsp | ½ tsp |
| Crushed red pepper | ½ tsp | ¼ tsp |
| Brown sugar | ¼ cup | 2 Tbsp |
| Salt | To taste | To taste |
| Diced tomatoes, 15-ounce cans | 3 | 2 |
| Dark red kidney beans, 15-ounce cans | 4 | 3 |
| Condensed tomato soup | 1 can | 1 can |
Sauté the onions, green peppers, and garlic in a little olive oil in a Dutch oven or soup kettle. Once the vegetables are soft, crumble lean ground beef (I use chopped sirloin) or ground turkey into the pot, and continue sautéing until the meat is cooked.
Add the spices and brown sugar to the pot, and stir thoroughly. (Don’t let it throw you—the chili powder and brown sugar complement each other beautifully.)
Add the canned tomatoes and tomato soup, and stir thoroughly. Drain the kidney beans, reserving the juice from one can. Add the kidney beans to the pot. Stir. If the mixture is too thick, add some of the kidney bean juice to thin it a bit.
Bring everything up to a simmer, and adjust seasonings to suit your taste. Usually I keep it simmering for an hour or so, just to blend the flavors. Longer cooking will make the beans mushy.
It’s even better the second day!
