You really can’t beat chili for taking the chill off a cold autumn or winter day. I thought I had better post this recipe before football season is over, since it could be considered perfect Super Bowl Sunday fare. My Mount Rainier Chili recipe comes from the Seattle Junior League Simply Classic Cookbook. Calling it Mount Rainier Chili may be a bit of a misnomer as it has a southwest twist to it with green chiles, cumin, monterey jack cheese, sour cream and salsa. But, whatever it is called, it is darn good. My friend Molly recommends serving Mount Rainier Chili with Northwest Autumn Salad, another wonderful Seattle Junior League recipe.
Mount Rainier Chicken Chili
Adapted from The Junior League of Seattle Simply Classic Cookbook
Ingredients:
- 1 pound Great Northern white beans, rinsed and picked over
- 2 pounds boneless chicken breasts
- 1 T. vegetable oil
- 2 cups onions, chopped
- 4 medium garlic cloves, minced
- 2 – 4 oz. cans chopped mild green chiles
- 2 t. ground cumin
- 1 1/2 t. dried oregano, crumbled
- 1/4 t. ground cloves
- 1/4 t. cayenne
- 8 cups chicken stock
- 1 – 12 oz. beer
- 3 cups monterey jack cheese, shredded
- sour cream
- salsa
- fresh cilantro, chopped
Cooking Directions:
- Soak the beans overnight in cold water in a covered heavy pot.
- Boil the chicken until just tender. Better yet, for tastier chicken, roast 4 chicken breasts (with bones and skin) rubbed with oil, salted and peppered for about an hour at 350 degrees. Cool. Cut the chicken into cubes. Refrigerate until ready to use.
- Drain beans. In a heavy pot saute the onions in the oil until translucent, about 10 minutes. Add garlic, chiles, cumin, oregano, cloves and cayenne and saute 2 more minutes. Add beans and stock and bring to a boil. Simmer 3 to 4 hours until the beans are tender, stirring occasionally and adding water when necessary. At this point you can continue on or refrigerate for a day, bringing back to a simmer before doing the next step.
- Add chicken, beer and 1 cup of cheese. Stir until cheese melts.
- Serve chili with remaining cheese, sour cream, salsa and chopped cilantro.