Big Batch Moose Chili

Silver bowl of beaked bean and moose chili.

This chili has quickly become a family favourite recipe. You can use up any ground red meat you have in your freezer stash from hunting (or grab beef at the grocer, I won't tell!).

4.86 from 27 votes

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Prep Time 20

Cook Time 3

Total Time 3 20

Course Main Course, Soup

Cuisine American

Servings servings

Calories 805 kcal

Ingredients

3 onions diced
Bacon fat, lard, butter or olive oil
2 cups diced bell peppers
2 cups diced celery
8-10 garlic cloves chopped
4.5-5 lbs ground moose, venison, elk, bison or beef
12 cups crushed tomatoes you can also blend up diced tomatoes in their juice
3 cans cans baked beans with pork aka 6 cups or 3 pint jars (see notes for sub)
3 cans black beans or kidney beans aka 6 cups or 3 pint jars
3 tablespoons smoked paprika
3 tablespoons chili powder
3 tablespoons dried tarragon or oregano
3 tablespoons cumin seeds OR 2 tablespoon ground cumin
1 tablespoon salt

Instructions

In a 3+ gallon capacity heavy bottom pot, saute the onions in the fat/oil over medium heat until they start to brown a little. Add bell peppers, celery and garlic, saute another few minutes, then add the meat. Cook, stirring every few minutes, until the meat is starting to brown but not all the way cooked.
Add in the rest of the ingredients, bring to a simmer, and then turn down to medium/low heat and simmer just barely bubbling for 2-3 hours. If you simmer too hard or don't have a heavy bottom pot, chili loves to burn. If you think its too thin, add some tomato paste. Too thick? Add some water to thin it out. Taste for salt, and heat, adding some hot pepper flakes if you like spicy chili.
In our house, we serve chili with butter bread/buns or cheese broiled on bread…we’re not into toppings, but feel free to do it up however you’d like with sour cream, shredded cheese, etc.
Scoop leftovers into freezer safe containers, cool with lid cracked then seal, label and freeze.

Notes

If I didn’t have any baked beans on hand, I would add 3 cans/6 cups cooked navy/small white beans, and then based on a shortened version of my baked beans recipe I would add the following; 3 tablespoon maple syrup, 3 tablespoon apple cider vinegar, 3 tablespoon tomato, and 3 cups water.
You could also make my vegan baked beans recipe and use 6 cups of those.

Nutrition

Calories: 805kcalCarbohydrates: 83gProtein: 54gFat: 32gSaturated Fat: 13gCholesterol: 133mgSodium: 2294mgPotassium: 2428mgFiber: 26gSugar: 13gVitamin A: 2187IUVitamin C: 52mgCalcium: 307mgIron: 15mg

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