Simple comme une tartiflette familiale

Crockpot (or stovetop) Recipe for Black Bean Chili with Lime and Cilantro (Gluten-Free)

I love this favorite slow cooker black bean chili, thickened with refried beans and flavored with lime and cilantro. You can also make this tasty chili on the stove if you can't wait to eat it!

(This Black Bean Chili with Lime and Cilantro that can be made in a slow cooker or on the stove is today's pick for the month of  Daily Phase One Recipes.  I've have a very hard time choosing just one favorite chili recipe, but this is definitely on my list of faves.  You can see all the recipes from the month by clicking Daily Phase One Recipes.) 

One thing that's frustrating about food blogging is that the greatest recipe in the world won't get much attention if the photo is bad, so I was happy to finally take new photos for this favorite slow cooker chili with lime and cilantro.  The ultra flavorful chili includes a can of refried pinto beans as part of the base, which makes it extra thick, and I've been enjoying this the last few days with a dollop of low-fat sour cream on top.

Lime and cilantro are two of my favorite ingredients, but if you're not a cilantro fan I'd replace it with thinly sliced green onions, and if you don't have a crockpot, just skip the step of reducing the beef stock, and you can make this in a regular pot on top of the stove.  I hope lots of you will try this; it just might become your favorite easy chili recipe!

Start with two finely chopped onions which get sauteed in olive oil until they are nicely browned.  (This adds flavor, but if you're short on time you could skip browning the onions.)  Put onions in the slow cooker.  (While the onions and ground beef are cooking, simmer the beef stock on the stove until it's reduced to 2 cups.)

Add a tiny bit more olive oil and cook the ground beef until it's well done, breaking apart with the turner as it cooks.

Put ground beef into the slow cooker with the onions.

When the beef stock has reduced by half, mix it with the can of refried beans.

Put the black beans into a colander in the sink and rinse well with cold water.

Add the stock-refried beans mixture, beans, tomatoes, dried cilantro, chile powder, Ancho chile powder, and ground cumin to the slow cooker and start to cook.

The cooking time is pretty flexible for this recipe, but after 3-4 hours on high or 6-8 hours on high it should be getting done.

Stir in the chopped cilantro (or sliced green onion if you're not a cilantro fan, and serve (with more lime to squeeze in when you eat the chili and a dollop of low-fat sour cream if desired.)

And just for fun, here's the original photo of this recipe from 2009, which I thought was really due for an update!

Crockpot Black Bean Chili with Lime and Cilantro
(Makes about 6 generous servings, recipe created by Kalyn)

Equipment:

(I used my 5-Quart Smart-Pot Crock-Pot to make this chili, but I think any size that's close to that will work. Be sure the crockpot is at least half full when you use it to make soup or chili.)

Ingredients:
2 large onions, finely chopped
2 tsp. olive oil + 2 tsp. more for browning meat if needed
1 lb. extra lean ground beef
1 quart beef stock, simmer to reduce to 2 cups (I used my homemade beef stock, but you can use two cans beef broth. Don't reduce for stovetop cooking.)
3 cans (15 oz.) black beans, rinsed and drained
1 can (15 oz.) refried pinto beans
2 cans (14.5 oz.) petite dice tomatoes
2 T dried cilantro
2 T chile powder (preferably New Mexico chile powder)
2 T Ancho chile powder (or 2 T more regular chile powder)
1 T ground cumin
1/4 cup fresh squeezed lime juice, plus sliced limes to squeeze into chili if desired
1/2 cup chopped fresh cilantro, plus more for garnish if desired
low-fat sour cream for serving if desired (optional)

Instructions:

Heat olive oil in heavy frying pan, add chopped onions and saute 4-5 minutes, until softened and barely starting to brown. Add onions to crockpot. Add ground beef to same pan, adding more oil if needed, then brown beef well, breaking up with metal turner as it cooks. Add beef to crockpot.

While onions and beef are being cooked, put beef stock into saucepan and simmer until reduced to 2 cups. (Skip this step if cooking the chili on stovetop.) When stock is reduced, add refried beans and whisk to blend into stock, then add to crockpot.

While stock is reducing, place a colander in the sink and add canned black beans. Rinse beans well with cold water until no more foam appears. (This removes some of the salt from canned beans and makes them much more digestible.) Then add beans, stock-refried beans mixture, tomatoes, dried cilantro, chile powder, ancho chile powder, and ground cumin to crockpot. Cook on low 6-8 hours or on high 3-4 hours, or until beans are soft and flavors are well blended. When chili is done, stir in lime juice and chopped fresh cilantro and let cook 15 minutes. Serve hot, with slices of lime and additional chopped cilantro to add as garnish if desired.  I like this with a dollop of low-fat sour cream.

Cooking on the Stove:
For stove-top cooking, skip the step of reducing the beef broth, but follow all other directions, adding ingredients to large soup pot and simmering at low heat about an hour.