Recipe - Chili

I love making chili, because - in my opinion - it's one of the ultimate low-fat, healthy, cheap vegetarian dishes.

Ingredients

1 packet store brand hot chili seasoning mix

1 can (14 - 16 oz) salt-free diced tomatoes, undrained

2 cans (14 - 16 oz. each) of the beans of your choice, undrained


Directions

Stir all of the ingredients together

Bring to a boil

Reduce heat and simmer, uncovered for 10 minutes


Serve with whatever "goodies" you like, such as cheese, sour cream (fat-free plain yogurt is a great alternative), green onions, etc.


Good Things to Know

1) I use a "hot" chili seasoning packet, but you can use "mild", of course. I add heat to my food whenever possible, because some research (read about it here) shows that spicy food speeds up your metabolism. Why not give it a shot?

2) I buy store brand products (or whatever is cheapest) whenever possible. Why not? Did you know that MANY store brands are made in the exact same plants using the exact same ingredients as the higher price name brand products? It's true! I just say give the store brands a chance. You might try an item and hate it. Fine - upgrade next time. But you might not notice a thing, and you'll save yourself a little change.

3) Most seasoning packets call for tomato sauce or whole tomatoes. Well, guess what. You're going to chop those tomatoes up into little bits...almost like they were diced. And a can of diced tomatoes are about half the price as a can of whole tomatoes. I don't use tomato sauce, because I like my chili to be a little thicker.

4) I use low sodium or no salt added products whenever possible. We all get more than enough salt in our diets. It's time to train our tastes away from salt. We'll all be much healthier for it.

5) Beans. Learn to love 'em! Beans are wonderfully full of fiber and protein and low in fat. Recent studies have found that the dark beans (black, red, kidney, etc.) have even more antioxidants than the blueberry. Plus, they're cheap! I like to have lots of beans on hand, and I throw a few different kinds in my chili. Not all beans taste the same, of course, so it's not a bad idea to sample them and see which ones appeal to you.


Other thoughts

I usually use a spice packet, although one of these times I'll throw my own spices together. Frankly, I see no shame in using a packet. It's cheap and it does the trick, but it would probably be even cheaper, and maybe tastier, if I used my own spices. I'll work on that one of these times. ;-)

Although I recommend store brands for cheapness, using organic products is another great option. Using those really does the most of your health and the environment.

Let's not forget buying locally grown vegetables. This is a great way to keep big business out of it, and you have a hand in reducing the gas and oil used to transport your products from far away. Not to mention that the longer a food (tomatoes, for instance) are off the vine, the more nutrients they lose. If you buy locally, you're increasing the nutritiousness of the foods you're using, reducing pollution, and hopefully decreasing your expense.

Although I talk about using plain yogurt and cheese, I would like to work towards following a vegan diet (no animal products at all). This is something that will take me awhile, so it will be awhile before I stop including eggs and dairy.