Chili Cooking Contest Winner

The Ingredients:

1/4 pound diced bacon
1 pound ground venison
1 pound ground chuck 80/20
1 medium white onion, diced
2 cloves garlic, minced
2 Tablespoons chili powder
1 Tablespoon ground cumin
1/2-1 teaspoon chipotle powder (its spicy, so start with 1/2 t.)
1 teaspoon salt
1 Tablespoon sugar
2 bay leaves
28 oz can crushed or pureed tomatoes
16 oz. can red or kidney beans

 Instructions:

In your chili pot, fry the bacon on medium heat until crispy. Add the diced onion and fry until soft.  Now turn up the heat to brown the ground meat.  Stir continually until the meat is no longer pink.  Make a well in the center of the pan into which you add the garlic, ground spices and salt.  Fry and stir all this for a couple of minutes before adding the tomato puree, beans, and bay leaves.  Sprinkle on a tablespoon full of sugar, give a stir, reduce the heat to low, cover, and simmer chili for half and hour or longer.  Taste and adjust seasoning; add more chipotle powder if you like.  Stir occasionally and add a little water if the chili gets too thick.  Remove the bay leaves before serving.

Serving Suggestions:

Serve atop cornbread or corn chips.
Top with grated cheddar cheese, sour cream, chopped green onion, or minced jalapenos.