For as long as I can remember, I have been making this Chili dish. It is so easy and delicious and it even has a “secret weapon”  ingredient that I’ll reveal later. I happen to love serving this Chili over white rice, but that is just personal preference. I enjoy this Chili because it isn’t extra chunky. I don’t happen to love large chunks of meat, tomatoes or onion in mine, so I keep it simple. Chili seems a lot like meat loaf to me, in that you can pretty much add anything you want and it somehow works out! For instance, my sister once added a can of chicken noodle soup to her meat loaf! I don’t actually remember how that turned out though…

Lets get started, shall we?

In a large pot saute a clove or two of minced garlic and about half a medium sized diced white onion.

I happen to love this here Fiesta Chili Powder from the bulk section at Whole Foods. This not only has an extra flavor kick, but I know it will remain fresh because I only buy a small amount at a time instead of the bigger bottle that will hibernate in my pantry all season. (Learned that the hard way…).

I only use about a 1/2 teaspoon of it, but the loveliness of this, is that you can put however much you want personally! So, go ahead and put a whole tablespoon if you like it that much!

Go ahead, then, and add the ground beef to the chili powder, garlic and onion. Sprinkle some salt and pepper in there, too, if you feel like it!

You can’t believe it, but the next three ingredients come from cans! Oh my word! I often use one can of Campbell’s Cheddar Cheese soup, but the Cream of Onion as well as the Fiesta Cheese Soup are also winners. Your choice!

Follow the cheese soup with a small can of tomato paste.

Then a can of chili beans. See that can back there? It says, “hot.” They are not hot at all, so don’t hesitate to try that one. If anything, maybe it offers just a little more flavor.

Shh! This right here is the “secret weapon” ingredient. About a half cup of light brown sugar! This may be common knowledge to Chili professionals, but it wasn’t for me, and I love the slight bit of sweet that it gives next to the savory and spice of the other ingredients.

Let it all cook together on your stove top over low to medium heat for a couple hours at least. Here’s a hint, by the way, after each ingredient is added, stir it together well before adding the next one. This ensures that everything is fully incorporated and makes it extra creamy and smooth.

Pour the chili over the white rice (sorry no picture, but you know what rice looks like, after all!).

Top with shredded Cheddar Cheese and serve with Fritos!

 I happen to think this dish tastes best with Root Beer.

Please enjoy!