Today’s offering is from Joey Grease, who knows damn well that adding a pound of bacon to any recipe is a foolproof way to succeed. Make sure to cook the bacon good and slow, because you’re building a lot of flavor into the chili with it. Charring it will jack up the taste of your chili and make the grease (more valuable per ounce than platinum) useless. Go easy on it and your chili will taste twice as good.

Grease’s recipe calls for a slow cooker. As some of us have tiny kitchens, I’ve tried to add directions for using a regular pot. If you can manage it, though, you can set up the chili, go to work, and come home to an amazing dinner.

The Setup

- 4 lb ground beef/pork mix
- 1 jalepeno, chopped (w/seeds)
- 1 carrot, chopped
- 1 tsp cumin
- 2 1/2 tbsp chili powder
- 1 tbsp Cholula hot sauce
- 30 oz tomato sauce
- 1 14.5 oz can kidney beans, drained
- 1 lb thick-sliced bacon
- 1 tsp salt
- Vegetable oil
- 2 tbsp extra-thick Worcestershire sauce

Cooking

1. In a large skillet over medium/med-low, slowly and evenly cook the bacon, 5-7 minutes per side. Remove to paper towels and reserve the fat.

2. Wipe out the skillet, heat a tablespoon of vegetable oil, and add the beef/pork mix. Brown it, breaking up the texture as you go.

3. Add the jalepeno, carrot, cumin, chili powder, hot sauce, tomato sauce, beans, Worcestershire, and salt to a slow-cooker or large pot. Crumble the bacon into the chili and add 1/2 c of the reserved bacon fat.

4. Set the slowcooker on high (if using a pot, bring to a boil, uncover, and simmer), and let cook for 8 hours, stirring every hour. The chili should be ready to eat earlier (an hour or so in the pot), but will taste much better with hours of simmering to blend the flavors.

5. Check the seasoning, adjust with salt and pepper, and serve with shredded cheese and sliced jalapenos.