- Chili is a great cold-weather dish full of nutrients, like fiber, protein and antioxidants.
- We tracked down Robert Redford’s chili recipe from the Newman’s Own Cookbook.
- Redford’s recipe uses lamb instead of ground beef and black beans instead of kidney beans.
Football season is here, and we believe every fall tailgate needs at least one go-to chili recipe—so we’ve collected 20 of them for you to choose from. Actually, make that 21. With the recent passing of Robert Redford, we dug into the archives and found his Lamb Chili with Black Beans (which serves six) from the 1998 Newman’s Own Cookbook.
Let’s just say that this isn’t your run-of-the-mill chili recipe. For starters, instead of ground beef, it uses lamb stew meat, cut into about 1-inch cubes. (Though the recipe notes that you could use beef or even chicken, if you prefer.) Redford also suggests blackening the tomatoes under the broiler, which adds an amazing natural smokiness and depth of flavor to the chili. You can even blacken them (carefully, of course) over an open gas burner or in the pot you’ll use for your chili, if you’d like to make it all in one pot.
And while the beans-or-no-beans debate continues, Redford adds black beans to his chili, though you can swap in any of your favorites. Other than that, the ingredients are pretty typical chili fare, including lots of garlic, onions, chicken stock, crushed tomatoes and tomato paste. Redford seasons his chili with chili powder and coriander, plus a pinch of dried mint (perhaps a nod to that classic lamb flavor). Redford also suggests topping your bowl of chili with onion, scallions, sour cream and toasted pine nuts, which would add a wonderful crunch.
The chili-making process is fairly hands-off once you’ve blackened your tomatoes. Simply cook the cubed lamb with the seasoning blend in some cooking oil over high heat. After five minutes, toss in all those other ingredients—chicken stock, blackened tomatoes, crushed tomatoes, a little ketchup, tomato paste and Worcestershire sauce. Stir and cook for around 35 minutes before adding the drained canned black beans, pinch of dried mint and some salt and pepper. After 10 more minutes on the stove, you’re ready to serve. We’re sure these bowls would pair well with anything, from cornbread and The Way We Were to crumbled tortilla chips and The Sting.
Plus, tomatoes are loaded with numerous health benefits and nutrients. Vitamins C and A in tomatoes are great for your immune system—which is especially helpful with cold and flu season right around the corner. Tomatoes are also rich in anti-inflammatory antioxidants, which can help promote skin and heart health. Eating tomatoes regularly has also been linked with a reduced risk of cancer.
If you tend to skip over the lamb in the meat section, you might want to rethink this decision. According to the USDA, to be considered lean meat, a 100-gram serving should have less than 10 grams of fat, 4.5 grams or less of saturated fat and less than 95 milligrams of cholesterol. Turns out, lamb makes the cut. And while its fat content depends on the cut, an interesting thing about lamb is that about half of its fat is monounsaturated, which is the heart-healthy type of fat also found in olive oil and avocados.
The USDA recommends cooking lamb steaks and roasts—which would cover lamb stew meat—to an internal temperature of at least 145°F. While this recipe suggests simmering the chili for a total of 45 minutes, going longer may produce more tender, melt-in-your-mouth lamb cubes.
Now, about those black beans. There are several nutritional and health-related reasons for including them. First of all, fiber. Black beans are loaded with it—a ½ cup of black beans comes in at 6 grams of fiber (the average adult needs about 30 grams/day, depending on age and sex). They’re also a great source of iron, which the vitamin C in the tomatoes will help your body absorb.
And while the lamb is an amazing source of protein, black beans bring their powerful plant protein to this chili. Eating more black beans has been associated with a healthier gut and heart and a lower risk of cancer and neurological diseases; plus, they’re great for your blood sugar.
While we often think of chili with red meat and red sauce, there are so many varieties out there to try—like our White Turkey Chili, Chicken Chili with Sweet Potatoes, and Four-Bean & Pumpkin Chili. Chili is one of those dishes that can be easily varied by adding different proteins, beans, vegetables and seasonings, so get creative and make your own version. Who knows? Maybe your recipe will end up in a cookbook someday, too—just like Sundance.
