Do you feel that? The cool breeze, the leaves crunching under your feet… It’s chili season!
My big batch Sweet Potato Chili is not only perfect for the cooling temperatures, but it even looks like Halloween with the orange sweet potatoes and black beans running through it. I use dark meat ground turkey because it pairs beautifully with the sweet potatoes and it just feels more like fall with Thanksgiving quickly approaching, though lean ground beef would work as well. The sweet potatoes are also a nice complement to the warm spices and balance out my holy trinity of peppers – jalapeños, poblanos, and Hatch green chiles – just take care to cut your sweet potatoes into ¾ inch cubes here; if your cubes are too small you risk your sweet potatoes breaking up and going to mush in the chili, but you also don’t want them so big that they are no longer bite sized. My Sweet Potato Chili is another big batch recipe that easily feeds a hungry crowd without much fuss, just set up a toppings bar and you’re ready to host; it also makes for a great Sunday dinner, if you’re looking for lunches and/or dinners throughout the week. I made a batch of my Sweet Potato Chili a few weeks back for dinner, then took some over to my parents for their dinner, and we still had plenty left over for Michael to take to work for lunches during the week.
TIP: If you really enjoy beans in your chili, this recipe can handle a second can of black beans; for us, one can is the perfect amount.
Sweet Potato Chili
Ingredients
2 tablespoons avocado oil or extra virgin olive oil
1 large yellow onion, diced small
2 poblano peppers, diced small
2 jalapeño peppers, diced small
2 pounds ground turkey, preferably dark meat (93% lean)
2 ½ teaspoons coarse kosher salt, divided
1 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper, divided
6 garlic cloves, minced
¼ cup dry white wine (alternatively, chicken broth)
3 tablespoons chili powder
1 ½ tablespoons ground cumin
1 tablespoon unsweetened cocoa powder
28oz can crushed tomatoes
28oz can diced tomatoes with their juices, no salt added
15oz can black beans, drained and rinsed
4oz can diced mild Hatch green chiles
1 cup chicken broth
1 lime, juiced (about 2 tablespoons)
2 ½ pounds peeled and cubed (¾ inch cubes) sweet potato, about 3 large sweet potatoes
Recommend toppings
Shredded Monterey jack or cheddar cheese
Plain Greek yogurt or sour cream
Sliced avocado
Sliced jalapeño peppers
Lime wedges
How to make Sweet Potato Chili
In a large Dutch oven or heavy stockpot, heat oil over medium-high heat. Add onion and cook until soft, translucent and starting to brown, about 8-10 minutes. Add the diced poblanos and cook, stirring occasionally, until starting to soften, about 4 minutes. Add diced jalapeños and cook 3 minutes.
Add ground turkey, 2 teaspoons coarse kosher salt, and ¾ teaspoon freshly ground black pepper to the vegetables and cook until cooked through and browning, breaking up the ground turkey with the back of your wooden spoon and mixing into the vegetables as it cooks, about 10 minutes. If you used dark meat turkey (or ground beef), drain off all but 2 tablespoons of the accumulated fat – for dark meat turkey, it’ll probably be close to ½ cup, stir the remaining 2 tablespoons of fat back into the turkey. Add minced garlic and cook 1 minutes, until very fragrant, stirring constantly.
Stir in ¼ cup dry white wine, or chicken broth, and cook until fully absorbed and cooked off.
Stir in chili powder, cumin, and cocoa powder; mix throughout the turkey and vegetables and cook for 2 minutes, stirring occasionally.
Add crushed tomatoes, diced tomatoes with their juices, chicken broth, canned green chiles, and lime juice, and mix well to combine.
Stir in cubed sweet potatoes and black beans. Bring to a boil. Once boiling, reduce to a simmer, cover, and cook for 30 minutes. Uncover, stir, and cook at a simmer uncovered for 15 minutes, stirring occasionally. Stri in remaining ½ teaspoon coarse kosher salt and ¼ teaspoon freshly ground black pepper.
Serve with desired toppings.
Comments