I'm cooking up a storm today - planning on making Red Beans 'n' Rice, perhaps some freshly baked bread... But now I'm putting the finishing touches on Turkey and White Bean Chili...
***SWOON!!!***
Dang, it's good!
This a recipe that I saw Emeril Legasse do on the Food Network last month, and it looked so awesomely good that I had to try it. This is the second time I've made it (yeah, it's that good). The first time, I pretty much kept to the recipe, but this time, I've made some adjustments.
First of all I used TWO POUNDS of dried navy beans, not just a half pound. I happen to like a lot of beans, and they're an inexpensive way to stretch your recipe. Secondly, I pretty much doubled or tripled all the spices and seasonings. With so many extra beans coming into the recipe, you need some way to keep a high level of flavor to infuse the natural blandness of the beans. I didn't think to buy more Ro*Tel or an additional can of the green chilis, but I did add about 5 cups of chicken stock instead of only three.
Basically, I used all the ingredients Emeril calls for (except the heavy cream - why does he add that??), but adjusted them to suit my tastes. After all, Emeril has to accommodate a broad range of preferences, whereas in my house, I only need to think about three people who really enjoy well-flavored food 
Now, a question for all of you cooks... Why does he use cornmeal as one of his ingredients? Is it a thickener? Does it add some background flavor? Both? Neither?
Inquiring minds want to know!!!
Here's a shot of my mise en scene - you can see that little glass bowl to the left of my chicken stock (and Swanson's is a good stock!) which has the cornmeal in it. Again, I added more cornmeal than the recipe calls for.
Over to the right, of course, are those two pounds of cooked navy beans, all ready to go in the pot and soak up all the spices and flavors!
And here, of course, is the finished product - enough to feed a small army, don't you think? And it smells delicious! The chili powder, the cilantro, the jalepeños.... Ahhhh, I'm a happy camper!
Last time, I served this over rice (I daresay that's still how the Beloved Husband will prefer it), but I sneaked a small bowlful even before the beans had had time to soak in the flavor, and it was totally yummy "plain." I'm going to let this cool and then pack it up into smaller portions, then shove it in the refrigerator; an over night meld of flavors can only improve it!
Oh, and before I forget, this freezes very well...
Oh, Nice one!
I'm going to have to try this. Somehow missed it - though when I actually bother to turn on the TV, like as not it's on Food Network (and if it's not, it's on History or Discovery Channel ... with occasionaly lapses to Spike for the original CSI reruns). Thanks for the 411, definitely going to try it.
Posted by: The Random Yak | December 06, 2007 at 05:21 PM