Pork & Beans Chili

I have always seen those ‘Chili making’ contests in movies or people saying ‘Have you tried my famous chili?” and always wondered what it tasted like, a meal on it’s own in a bowl which everyone went crazy about! Texas is pretty famous for their Chili, but did you know that the authentic Texas chili has no beans? Yeah, I came to know about this recently when I had a traditional Beef Chili in a local place in Austin, Texas. As tasty as it was, I kinda missed the beans in it. After that, I decided to make a chili on my own or at least my version of it with flavors I felt would go well with each other. I used pinto beans and ground pork in my recipe as I felt the ground pork fats would add more flavor to the dish and the pinto beans because, well, that was all I had in the pantry! The crushed tomatoes are probably the star ingredient as that helps to add the depth and thickness to the dish. Adjust the red chili flakes and cayenne pepper to your liking, though the coconut milk should help cool things down. The other ingredients can be added according to your preference too!

{Recipe}
Pinto beans and ground pork chili

INGREDIENTS:
Pinto beans – 450gms
Ground pork-250gms
Minced garlic-3tbsps
Crushed tomatoes-250 grams
Red chili flakes
Red wine vinegar – 1tbsp
Salt
Pepper
Italian seasoning-1tbsp
Five spice powder-2tbsps
Cayenne pepper-1tbsp
Shredded cheddar cheese
Parsley leaves
Coconut milk-1 cup
Water
Oil

PREPARATION:
1)In a saucepan, add some oil, then add the minced garlic, red chili flakes and sauté for a couple of minutes till golden brown.
2)Then add the ground pork, break it into small pieces and sauté for about 10 minutes. Add salt, pepper and mix well. Then add the can of pinto beans to the saucepan and mix well for about 5 minutes.
3)Now add the crushed red tomatoes and the cayenne pepper, five spice powder, italian seasoning, red wine vinegar and some water(depending on how much gravy you want). Mix well and let it cook at low to medium heat for about 30 minutes. Stir it in between.
4)Now, add the coconut milk and cook for another 10 minutes at low to medium heat. Serve as shown with some shredded cheddar cheese and parsley leaves. Enjoy! 🙂