Smoked Pork Chili with Cornbread
Some days as I drive home from work, my brain starts spinning with dinner possibilities. I don’t cook every night and I am a big believer in cooking a big batch of most meals and freezing them for the future. Last night as I took a mental inventory of what I had on hand I realized that I had the makings of a good and easy winter meal that turned out to be Smoked Pork Chili with Cornbread.
If you have canned black beans, canned or frozen tomatoes and corn, you have the beginnings of a quick chili, soup or stew. These three ingredients can take several different turns depending on what you have on hand and what spices you choose. Last night my additional ingredients included:
- Sweet onions and minced garlic sauteed in EVOO
- Leftover hickory smoked pulled pork from Saturday’s takeout meal
- About 2 cups of Swanson’s low sodium chicken broth
- 1-1/2 TBSP of Larry the Cable Guy Chili Seasoning
I found Larry the Cable Guy’s spices at our local Big Lots store. Larry’s chili seasoning is very spicy! The container called for 2 Tbsp in a batch the size I made. Next time I will cut it down to 1 Tbsp. It was a little hot for me so I added a couple of dollops of Greek yogurt since I was out of sour cream. It turned down the fire just enough.
Corn bread is the typical starch I serve with chili and stews. I found a package of Bob’s Red Mill Gluten Free Cornbread Mix also at our local Big Lots and it came in handy for this meal. It is a more dense, less sweet version than I usually make.
You can add any meat to this recipe. I’ve used chicken, ground beef, ground turkey and pork sausage. Make it vegetarian and add any vegetables in season and on hand such as carrots, squash, and potatoes. Change up the spice and make it Mexican by adding salsa and jalapenos. Use traditional chili seasoning with lots of cumin. Don’t want to saute? Add dehydrated onion flakes and garlic powder. The possibilities are endless!
What’s your “go to” meal for a quick weeknight supper?
Looks super good! My mouth is watering!
And even better the second day!
Sour cream is always good with spicy foods. As you said it knocks the edge off!
Wow does that look and sound good!