Once you are comfortable with making chili from scratch, you'll most likely save canned chili for only those nights when you truly have no time whatsoever to cook. With homemade chili, you can control the level of heat your family likes and the ratio of beans to meat, including no meat at all.

This chili recipe calls for a tablespoon of smoky and spicy chipotle chiles in adobo sauce. Add more or less depending on how fond your family is of mild, hot and very hot chiles on the Scoville heat heat unit listing.

Total Time: 40 minutes | Prep Time: 10 minutes | Serves: 4

Ingredients:

• 1 pound ground turkey or beef
  
• 1 tablespoon vegetable oil
• 1 cup onions, chopped  
  
• 3 cloves garlic, minced or finely chopped
• 2 tablespoons ground cumin 
• 2 15-ounce cans black beans, rinsed and drained

• 1 15-ounce can pinto beans, 

  rinsed and drained

• 1 15-ounce can diced tomatoes

• 1 tablespoon chipotle chiles in adobo sauce, pureed
• 1 tablespoon rice vinegar

Directions:

1. In the pot you plan to use for the chili, brown the meat, breaking it into chunks until all the pink is gone. Drain any accumulated fat, remove the meat to a bowl and set it aside.
2. In the same pot, saute the onions and cumin in the oil on medium high heat until the onions are soft, about 7 minutes. Add the garlic to the pot and cook for another 20 seconds.
3. Add the meat, beans, tomatoes and 1/2 cup of water to the pot. Bring the mixture to a boil, reduce the heat to low once the mixture boils and simmer the chili for 20 to 30 minutes until the ingredients blend their flavors. Add more water if the chili begins to dry out.
4. Stir in the chipotle chiles and rice vinegar and simmer for another 3 minutes.