Vegetarian Black Bean Chili

4 large poblano peppers
2 tbsp olive oil
1 jalepeno pepper, seeded and finely chopped
4 garlic cloves, finely chopped or grated
salt and pepper
1 bottle Mexican beer
2 (15 ounce) cans black beans (I would recommend 3, actually, but we LOVE black beans.)
2 tbsp chili powder
1 1/2 tsp smoked paprika
1 1/2 tsp ground cumin
1 (15 ounce) can fire roasted tomatoes (diced or crushed)
2 cups vegetable stock
1 lime, halved

Preheat the broiler to high.

Char the poblanos under the broiler to blacken their skins evenly all over, 12-15 minutes, turning as needed. Place the charred poblanos in a bowl, cover with plastic wrap, and let stand at least 10 minutes, until cool enough to handle. Peel and seed them, then coarsely chop and reserve.

Heat the olive oil in a medium pot over med-high heat. Add the jalepenos, onions, and garlic to the pan, season with salt and pepper, and cook until tender, 6-7 minutes. Stir the beer into the post, scraping up any brown bits from the bottom of the pan. Boil the beer until reduced by half, 1-2 minutes, then add 1 can of black beans. Mash them into the onions with a potato masher or wooden spoon, then stir in the second can of beans, leaving them whole. add the chopped poblanos to the chili and season with the chili powder, paprika, and cumin. Stir in the tomatoes and stock. Bring the chili up to a bubble, add salt to taste, then reduce the heat to a simmer and cook the chili for 8-10 minutes to thicken. Squeeze in the lime juice and remove the chili from the heat to serve.

Note-- I had to add a CRAZY amount of sour cream to this in order to eat it, it came out really spicy. On the other hand, my hubby said it was perfect. So, it just depends on your own particular taste buds, I guess.


Posted by: Erika