Smoky Mountain Chili Recipe _ A Favorite Secret Recipe

It’s National Chili Day and we’re having chili tonight from my Smoky Mountain Chili Recipe – how about YOU?   I guess I’ll be delivering chili either late this afternoon – or leftover chili tomorrow – because when we have something good and I have time – I LOVE to deliver and share.  And this is an absolutely delicious chili recipe – with a very unique bite.

So tonight – I’m thinking it’s the Smoky Mountain Chili! But first – let me share my story of how we found – this absolutely delicious chili.

We had our first bowl of Smoky Mountain Chili in Gatlinburg a few years ago and OH MY GOODNESS GRACIOUS – I was hooked from the first bite.

There was a problem with me MAKING this Smoky Mountain Chili at home though – because I knew the secret for this chili had to lie in those chili beans this place was selling so you could make the Smokey Mountain Chili at home and that jar of beans was $7.  YES IT WAS!!!

SO I said to Geezer “Now I’m just giving you a heads up because I’m about to buy one can of those chili beans so I can taste test them at home and figure out this secret RECIPE!”  He said “Well why is that a problem, how much ARE they??  I said “One can is $7 – but I’m taking that $7 out of my wardrobe fund.”

That always gives him a chuckle when I say that and he said “Ok but you’re going to have to figure it out with one can – because I’m not about to buy more than one at $7 a can.”

I got my can of Smoky Mountain Chili Beans – gave the girl $7 and the deed to our home and we were on our way to explore another trail in the mountains.

It took some time to figure out this recipe back at the canyon – But I eventually got it.

I started with a basic chili recipe and then I’d taste MY chili and then taste the Smoky Mountain Chili Beans and add something else that I just KNEW was in that can.  How sneaky when they say on the can “and other spices and natural flavors.”  But FINALLY – BINGO – I had found the secret recipe from that can of Smoky Mountain Chili beans.  NOW I’m sharing that recipe with YOU.

SMOKY MOUNTAIN CHILI

Ground Beef
Hormel Chili with beans

crushed tomatoes
Diced tomatoes
chili powder
sweet onion
tomato sauce
pepper sauce – out of jalapeno pepper jar
diced jalapeno peppers

creamed horseradish
parsley
shredded cheddar cheese
Parmesan cheese

small amount of sugar – about 1 tsp
water

I brown the ground beef and sprinkle a tbsp or two of the chili powder on the beef while it’s cooking.

Toward the end of browning I add diced onion and put all of that in crock pot.

I heat in that same skillet the chili with beans and tomatoes and add to crock pot.

I add the pepper sauce and diced peppers, the parsley, more chili powder and cheddar cheese to the crock pot.

I add the Parmesan just before I take up the chili into bowls and just stir it in well.

Now this makes a HUGE batch of chili.  I don’t measure ingredients and I can’t say exactly how much this makes but this makes 2 crock pots almost full for me and I do that on purpose – because I always deliver chili to this one or that one when I make a pot – IF it’s where I can.