Crockpot Chili

Chili is yummy, filling comfort food. And it’s surprisingly good for you with the high protein and fiber content, plus all the lycopene from long-simmering tomatoes. Watch out for canned chili: it’s extremely high in sodium. Try making your own in the crockpot. It tastes wonderful and smells great cooking all day. Plus it’s much lower in fat and sodium than the canned versions. This low-sodium, low-fat recipe makes about 6 servings.

Chili
1 pound round steak
2 15-ounce cans pinto beans, rinsed and drained
2 14.5-ounce cans no salt added diced tomatoes (we use Del Monte)
1 medium yellow or white onion
1 tablespoon chili powder

Canned pinto beans are always high sodium, so rinse them thoroughly in a colander and let drain while you’re preparing the meat. You should be able to cut about 30% of the sodium in the beans by rinsing them. Remember that many commercial brands of chili powder typically contain sodium; McCormick’s contains 240mg per tablespoon. The generic brand we use does not contain any, so they’re out there and worth the search. Prepare the steak by freezing it slightly so it’s easier to slice. Then trim and slice into bite-size pieces. In a non-stick frying pan, add 1 tablespoon olive oil and saute the meat until well done. Push to the side of the pan and saute the onion that’s been sliced fairly thinly. Spray the crockpot with olive oil and add the meat and onion mixture. Pour the drained pinto beans over the meat mixture, and then add the two cans of sodium-free tomatoes. Add chili powder and stir. Simmer all day and enjoy. The tomatoes count as a vegetable serving, and their lycopene is released by long simmering. Approximate nutritional content in this recipe per serving: 240 calores, 6g fat, 320mg sodium, 13g net carb, 8g fiber. If you used sodium-free chili powder: approximately 80mg sodium.