Yet another chili recipe

I made chili today and adapted my "Texas Smokin" Chili recipe. This one has a richer tomato flavor with just hint of smokiness. It also only makes 1/2 as much as my other recipe.

Ingredients

4 pounds ground meat, browned and drained
2 28-oz cans diced tomatoes
2 cups water
1 large onion, diced
8 cloves of garlic, minced
2 canned chipotle peppers in adobo sauce, chopped
2 Tbl tomato paste
2 Tbl hot smoked paprika
2 Tbl ancho chili powder
1 Tbl ground coriander
1 Tbl mexican oregano
1 Tbl thyme
½ Tbl ground cumin seed
½ Tbl salt
1 cup finely crushed tortilla chips (add during the last hour of cooking to thicken)

Directions

Throw everything into a large crockpot and cook for several hours. Top with grated cheese, sour cream, and, if desired, diced raw onion. For a real treat, put some frito's in the bowl first and pour the chili on top for Frito Pie. Tortilla chips can also be used.

Texas Smokin' Chili

Sarah is getting married on Saturday.  Wedding guests start arrviving tomorrow; so, I'm going to make my award winning(*) "Texas Smokin" chili

(*) awarded for being the best tasting chili at the 2008 Grapevine ward chili cookoff

Ingredients

8 pounds ground meat, browned and drained
3 28-oz cans diced tomatoes
1 onion, diced and sauteed until caramelized
2 cups water
1/2 cup masa harina (Or a cup of finely crushed tortilla chips, cut back on salt a bit)
4 Tbl smoked paprika
2 Tbl regular paprika
2 Tbl chili powder
1 Tbl thyme
1 Tbl salt
1 Tbl ground cumin seed
1 Tbl garlic powder
1 Tbl dried crushed cilantro leaves
2 tsp cayenne pepper
1 tsp oregano
2 chipolte chili peppers (smoked jalapeños), crushed up

Directions

Throw everything into a large crockpot and cook for several hours until you're ready to eat it. Top with grated cheese, sour cream, and, if desired, diced raw onion. For a real treat, put some frito's in the bowl first and pour the chili on top for Frito Pie.


Notes

1. The secret ingredients are the smoked paprika and chipolte (smoked jalapeños) which give the chili a slighty smoky flavor.
2. I used whatever ground meat I could find in my freezer, which was mostly hamburger, but also included some chicken sausage. It's a great way to use up meat in the freezer.
3. Regarding heat level, I thought it was mild, my wife thought it was spicy; so, we'll call it medium spicy
4. You could probably add some beans in place of some of the meat; although, traditionally, when serving Texas chili, the beans are cooked separately and served along side.