Micah's 4 1/2-Alarm Chili

Prep time: 10 min
Cook time: 375 min
Servings: 20
Yield: 20 servings

Description

This crowd-pleasing beef and bacon chili made with 2 kinds of beans uses brown sugar to balance out the 4 1/2-alarm levels of spiciness.

Ingredients

1 pound ground beef, or more to taste
1 onion, chopped, or more to taste
1 pound bacon
2 (15 ounce) cans kidney beans, undrained, or more to taste
2 (15 ounce) cans baked beans, undrained, or more to taste
1 (28 ounce) can diced stewed tomatoes, or more to taste
1/2 cup brown sugar
2 tablespoons barbeque rub (such as Great American Spice Co.™ Pit Master)
2 tablespoons chili powder
1 tablespoon habanero-based hot sauce (such as Backdraft Fire Sauce®)
2 teaspoons garlic powder

Directions

1 Combine ground beef and onion in a large skillet over medium heat; cook and stir until browned, 5 to 8 minutes. Pour off excess grease.
2 Place bacon in a large skillet and cook over medium-high heat, turning occasionally, until evenly browned, about 10 minutes. Drain and cut into pieces.
3 Combine beef mixture, bacon, kidney beans, baked beans, tomatoes, brown sugar, barbeque rub, chili powder, hot sauce, and garlic powder in a large pot. Cook over medium-low heat, stirring every 30 minutes, until bubbling, 2 to 3 hours. Remove chili from heat and let cool, about 30 minutes.
4 Refrigerate chili, 8 hours to overnight.
5 Reheat chili over low heat, stirring every 30 minutes, for at least 4 hours before serving.