Recipe: Two Pepper Chicken Chili

Fall unofficially kicks off chili season — a time when a big pot of chili is the perfect meal to warm bellies on a chilly night or during football tailgates.

Many types of chili have a laundry list of ingredients, but usually require little effort to throw together. All you need to do is saute a few ingredients, add some heat and toss everything else in the pot, then let the chili simmer. The longer it simmers, the more the flavors develop. And it's usually even better the next day.

This chicken chili has a good bite to it, thanks to the hot New Mexican-style chili powder and fresh jalapeño pepper. Or you can use more or less chili powder according to your taste.

Many chicken chili recipes call for chopped canned green chilies, which are relatively mild. In today's recipe, I added a chopped poblano chili along with the jalapeño. Poblanos are mild green chili peppers that resemble green bell peppers. You can find them with the other peppers in the produce section.

At Mexican restaurants, poblanos are commonly used to make a dish called chiles rellenos; they're roasted, skinned, stuffed with cheese, batter-dipped and fried, and usually served with a sauce.

When poblanos are dried and ground, their flavor changes and they develop a sweet and smoky taste. Ground poblanos are what make up ancho chili powder — and it's this powder that gives today's chicken chili its earthy hue.

The key to thickening this chili is the beans and their liquid, so be sure to reserve some of both. Mash the beans with some liquid and stir it into the chili. If the chili still isn't thick enough for you, stir in more of the reserved liquid.

When the chili is ready to serve I make sure I have cornbread muffins ready. I start out with the basic recipe that's on the back of the cornmeal canister and doctor it up, using half-and-half in place of the skim milk and adding some chopped jalapeños, a sprinkling of chili powder and about 3/4 cup of shredded cheddar cheese.

Two Pepper Chicken Chili

Makes 10 servings

1 jar (48 ounces) Great Northern beans, undrained

2 tablespoons canola oil, divided

2 pounds boneless, skinless chicken breasts

1 large clove garlic, peeled, chopped

1 large white onion, peeled, chopped

2 cups chopped celery

1 jalapeño pepper, seeded , chopped

1 poblano pepper, washed, seeded, chopped

1 1/2 teaspoons oregano

1 heaping tablespoon hot New Mexico-style chili powder

3 tablespoons ancho chili powder or favorite chili powder

1 teaspoon cumin

1/2 teaspoon black pepper

6 cups fat-free, less-sodium chicken broth

Garnish (Optional)

Sour cream

Shredded cheese

Sliced green onion

1. Drain the beans, reserving the liquid. Set aside.

2. In a larger stock pot, heat 1 tablespoon canola oil. Cut the chicken breast into 1/4- to 1/2-inch chunks and add to the pot and brown. Remove the chicken from the pot and set on plate. Pour off any liquid from the pot and return to the heat. Add the remaining 1 tablespoon oil to the pot. Add the garlic and saute 1 minute. Add the onion, celery, jalapeño and poblano peppers and saute until softened.

3. Sprinkle in the oregano, chili powders, cumin and black pepper. Saute about 1 minute, just until the chili powders are fragrant. Return the chicken to the pot and add all but 1 cup of the beans. Stir to combine.

4. Pour in the chicken broth and bring the chili to a boil, reduce the heat, cover and simmer 1 1/2-2 hours.

5. Place the reserved beans in a bowl and mash them with about 1/4 cup of the bean liquid. Add to the chili to thicken it. If it is still too thin, stir in more of the reserved bean liquid.

6. Serve garnished with sour cream, cheese and green onion if desired.

Note: Puréed beans and reserved bean liquid help thicken this chili. Adjust the chili powder to your own taste.

From and tested by Susan M. Selasky for the Free Press Test Kitchen.

337 calories (19 percent from fat), 7 grams fat (1 gram sat. fat), 36 grams carbohydrates, 34 grams protein, 426 mg sodium, 58 mg cholesterol, 9 grams fiber.