Chili Java, my old friend!
You might remember that I was introduced to this meal earlier this year when taking a page from Robin Robertson’s One-Dish Vegan playbook. Ever since then, I’ve been craving this chili again, but forced myself to try other Crock-Pot creations (with great results, I might add) from week to week. This week, however, I could wait no longer and instead fell prey to Chili Java’s siren song. And what a song it is!
Robin Robertson has a book to sell, so I won’t go into the whole recipe here on the blog, but let’s just say that a hot cup of coffee never blended so well with veggie beef, kidney beans, chili powder, diced onion, and lots of spices. Man, oh, man! What a wonderfully deep, rich flavor the coffee brings in concert with all of the other ingredients.
“You can’t really taste the coffee itself,” LeeLee mused as he chowed down on Bowl No. 2 tonight, and he’s correct. You don’t taste the black coffee the way you would if it were piping-hot in your coffee mug, but it manifests itself in a tinge of acidity (this chili has no tomatoes, so this acidity is a welcome addition) as well as an earthiness that lays the foundation for the rest of the meal’s flavors.
And what’s more, this Chili Java is so very easy to make. It took me all of 10 minutes to put the ingredients together in the slow cooker, and when I returned home from work nine hours later, everything was softened and cooked through, and the house was wonderfully fragrant. What an enjoyable Monday night meal! I won’t go four months in between tastings again, believe me.
:)