Another Crock Pot Question

I would brown the meat first, definitely. I'm not a big fan of putting raw meat into liquid to cook it, whether it's meatballs, wedding soup, chili or meat sauce. Just seems gross to me.

I cook my ground turkey before throwing it in the crockpot because then I can drain out the fat.

I use this recipe and my family loves it! It was passed on to me by a friend. It makes my home smell sooooo good all day as it is simmering in the crockpot.

Brown 1 lb. ground beef or turkey with one large onion,drain fat and put in a pot or crockpot.
Add:
2 8 oz cans of tomato sauce
1 small can of tomatoes
3 15 oz. cans of Kidney beans, drained and rinsed
1tsp. salt
1tsp. sugar
1 dash pepper adn garlic salt
1-3 Tbs chili powder, depending on how spicy you like it

Good luck and best wishes at enjoying a big bowl of warm chili really soon!

Definitely cook it first... at least brown it otherwise it comes out grey!

I brown my beef, and I use my mother's chili recipe which we all love. It's simple...large can of crushed tomatoes, two or three cans of beans (your choice), ketchup, hamburger, and chili powder. That's it, and it is REALLY good. :) Sorry I can't give more specific measurements...I've been making it so long I just dump in by sight.

I tend to brown hamburger and beef and pork before I put it in the crock pot, but it will cook properly without browning it first.

Whether you brown or not brown is up to you. I've had chili turn out very good both ways.

Here is the recipe I've used over and over again to win in chili cook offs:
B.'s Smoked Chicken Chili

1 28 ounce of enchilada sauce (I used hot, red sauce)
1 15 oz can of refried beans
4 15 oz cans of chili flavored beans
4 pounds of chicken leg 1/4's (leg 1/4's work better than breasts)
2 tablespoons of chili powder
1 heaping teaspoon of cayenne pepper
1/4 lb of fresh jalapenos. (canned won't work as well)

I used a 6 qt crock pot turned on high.
Smoke the chicken leg 1/4's. Place them in a pan, with 1/4" of water, on a BBQ grill with mesquite wood for smoke. Cook them over very low heat, until done. Put the chicken leg 1/4's and the water in a container in the frig over night. I put Canadian Chicken Seasoning on my chicken in the grill.

Put all the ingredients in the crock pot, including the water in the pan the chicken cooked in, except the jalapenos, and stir. 5 hours later, remove the leg 1/4's and place on a plate to cool. After the chicken is cool enough to handle, remove the bones and place the meat back in the crock pot, then stir. Stirring breaks up the chunks of meat and makes it go through out the chili.

Cut the tops off the jalapenos. Cut them in half length wise. Use the round end of a spoon to scoop out the seeds and white part that holds the seeds. (The seeds and white membrane makes Jalapenos HOT.) Do the scraping under the water or with a fan blowing the fumes away from you. Dice the pods and add them to the chili 15 to 30 minutes before serving. Enjoy!! (For thicker chili, remove 2 cups of sauce only from the pot when you remove the chicken to debone it.)

Good luck to you and yours.

I just made crock pot chili on Friday. Brown the ground beef.

For classic chili we just use ground beef, light and dark red kidney beans, corn, crushed tomatoes, a can of Rotel, a can of tomato paste and chili powder. Sometimes we add a chopped onion, sometimes we add a bell pepper.

i always cook it 1st

Look on the back of the Lipton box soups, they have great ones on there.
There are Herb & Garlic, Onion and a couple others.