This is the sort of ‘comfort cuisine’ that I like, with a hint of Mediterranean flavor. It is one of those foods that freeze well and tastes just as wonderful, if not better, the second day! This was delicious when paired with warm French bread.
| Prep Time: | 30 mins |
| Cook Time: | 3 hrs 30 mins |
| Total Time: | 4 hrs |
| Servings: | 8 |
| Yield: | 8 servings |
Ingredients
- 1 (8 ounce) package dry black beans
- 1 (8 ounce) package dry kidney beans
- 1 tablespoon chili powder
- ½ teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes
- salt and pepper to taste
- 1 jalapeno pepper, seeded and minced
- 2 tablespoons vegetable oil
- 1 large sweet onion, chopped
- 2 green bell peppers, chopped
- 2 zucchini, diced
- 3 (10 ounce) cans diced tomatoes with green chile peppers
- 1 (10 ounce) can tomato sauce
- ½ (16 ounce) jar hot chunky salsa
- 2 tablespoons chili sauce
- 2 pounds ground buffalo
Instructions
- Soak beans in water overnight. Drain and rinse.
- In a large pot, combine beans with water to cover. Bring to a boil, reduce heat, and simmer 1 to 2 hours, until tender. Once the beans have absorbed most of the water, and are starting to soften, season with chile powder, red pepper flakes, jalapeno, salt and pepper. Reserve the seeds.
- Heat oil in a large heavy skillet over medium low heat. Saute the onion and bell peppers for 3 minutes. Stir in diced zucchini, diced tomatoes, tomato sauce and salsa. Season with jalapeno seeds and chili sauce, stir well, and leave on medium-low heat.
- Place ground buffalo meat in a large, deep skillet. Cook over medium high heat until evenly brown. Drain excess fat. Stir buffalo and vegetable mixture into beans. Continue to simmer for 1 hour.
Nutrition Facts
| Calories | 536 kcal |
| Carbohydrate | 49 g |
| Cholesterol | 79 mg |
| Dietary Fiber | 12 g |
| Protein | 37 g |
| Saturated Fat | 9 g |
| Sodium | 923 mg |
| Sugars | 7 g |
| Fat | 23 g |
| Unsaturated Fat | 0 g |
Reviews
The chili is good but Texas style chili does not have beans of any kind.
This is a fabulous recipe. I used Buffalo steak as well as ground buffalo, and also added a pound of ground venison. I added a habenero pepper that I had cut into tiny bits and took out the seeds. I also used canned beans. It tasted absolutely amazing. Even my mother liked it and could not tell the venison apart from the bison. This is a great recipe!
This was very good. However, we prefer the Colorado buffalo chili recipe from this site (with our modifications). The only thing I did differently was that I used canned beans. We liked the addition of zucchini. It seems like the meat could use a bit of seasoning while it’s cooking. This dirtied a lot of pots, but it was tasty. I’m curious if it would taste as good in the slow cooker.
Great meal, will have it again!
Making half a recipe – used one can black and one can kidney beans, Left out chili sauce. Cooked meat, onions and peppers on stove top.. then everything in crockpot for 6 hours. Superb
This was a big big hit at my house! Had just the right amount of spiciness and I really enjoyed the zucchini. Will definitely make it again!
I just made this last night, however I substituted dry beans for canned beans, and wow, what a chili this is. I am very impressed. Will def. make it again, and again and again 🙂
This is our goto chili recipe, I’ve been making it for years, but have never reviewed it. I’ve made it both with buffalo and ground beef instead. I too use canned beans most often (I can never remember to soak the beans the night before). The only reason I’m giving this four stars is that without four or so garlic cloves and some cumin, it is definitely missing some layers of flavor. BTW I have sauteed the ground beef and put everything in the crock pot with great results.
The buffalo tastes excellent. This recipe could use a little more spice though.
This is a flavorful recipe. I added 1/2 t. of ground cumin and extra crushed red peppers. My husband loved the zucchini in the recipe. I used one can each of red kidney, black and white northern beans. It made the chili very colorful. I will share this recipe with friends.
Made this on the stove top rather than the crock pot due to time restraints. Let it simmer about 3 hours and it was great. My husband called it a “hearty chili” because it was so thick. I will make it again!
I have made this a few times now and everyone loves it. I follow the recipe exactly and wouldn;t change a thing – I do add a tiny bit of sour cream in my own bowl but it is great without it. It is too spicy for my mom and a few others but this is my dad’s favorite too so thanks for sharing.
Love, love, love this recipe. I use canned beans vs. dried beans, leave out the zucchini, add 1 can of green chilis, and use the entire jar of salsa. I also put it in the crock pot in the AM on low and it is perfect at dinner time!
Mmm, good chili! The zucchini goes wonderfully with the other flavors, I would never had thought of adding it to chili. I used canned beans, and added water to a small can of tomato paste in place of the tomato sauce. I added about a tsp. of garlic powder,(out of habit), and had to skip the jalepeno pepper,(we are spice wimps). I will be using this recipe for chili from here on out.
Very good recipe. I also used canned beans instead of dry to save time. I’m not sure what chili sauce is and couldn’t find it, so I omitted that ingredient. I served it with shredded cheese on top and corn chips. Very yummy. I wonder if the flavor would be any different with another type of ground meat (turkey, beef, venison, pork, etc); I’ll probably be trying this recipe with other types of meat to see.
This was really good – i especially liked the black beans with the recipe. I don’t know if it was because the pieces of zucchini were too big, but they stayed too firm and I’ll probably leave them out entirely next time I make this. A great use for buffalo meat!
We made a double batch, added two habenero peppers, and mixed in some venison. We served it to our Southern CA church people. They LOVED it! We didn’t tell them until afterward that it had both buffalo and deer in it. They were shocked that game could taste this good! We didn’t even get to take any home with us, because they ate it ALL! We’re making it again for Monday Night Football. 🙂
Impressive!!!Our neighborhood community had a chili cook off and I won 1st place ($75 prize) using this receipe.I did use canned black beans/kidney beans to save time. Whole Foods does sell buffalo meat but a $1.+ & I was able to find the meat @ a reg.grocery store. My chili was completely gone at the end of our community chili cook off.
I made this for a Sunday afternoon football watching gathering, and everyone LOVED it! We decided to double the recipe to feed the masses, in doing so we doubled all ingredients except: both types of beans (I used 1 can of each instead of dry), zucchini, and I omitted the bell peppers entirely. Great flavor, my husband said to never make another kind of chili again.
So how’s about that changing around recipes? I used half beef and half buffalo meat, one can each of northern, red and black beans, an onion, a large can of tomato sauce, a thing of spicy salsa, and then seasoned the heck out of it with crushed red pepper, chile powder, cumin, etc. The cumin gives it much more of a Southwestern Mexican flavor than just the spices. I didn’t have any jalapenos on me, so instead I used a few Thai chile peppers. I tend to not like my chili overwhelminly tomato-y, so this version came out great! I’ll probably add more meat next time, though. And however insecure East Texans are, West Texans are certainly not immasculated by adding a few beans into their dishes.
A great chili! I also used canned beans to reduce cooking time. Came out great. I also added some garlic and lime juice. Delicious!