Monday, October 9, 2017

Green Tomato Garlic Chili in the Instant Pot® or Slow Cooker

Green Tomato Garlic Chili in the Instant Pot® or Slow Cooker

Green tomatoes, roasted garlic, and ground beef make a colorful and flavorful chili recipe perfect for fall. You can make this in the Instant Pot®, a slow cooker, or on the stovetop. 


photo of a bowl of green tomato garlic chili that was prepared in an Instant pot®


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As someone who cooks with what's in season, this time of year means green tomatoes. I decided to update an old post from my first year, really the first few weeks of starting this website. In addition to publishing new photos and adding an easier to read recipe card, I've also cooked this recipe in my newest appliance, the Instant Pot®. My husband bought me an early birthday/Christmas present, and I unboxed it--with the dogs' help--and shared the resulting video on my FB page. I'm quite happy to ditch the old, poor quality photos for some newer, still poor quality photos (it's been raining here), but I didn't want to delete how I was inspired to make this chili. For that, please feel free to read my original text below.
I recently started volunteering at a thrift shop.  I didn't realize that it would mean I'd be shopping at the thrift shop on a regular basis, which is an unfortunate happy side effect.  I mean, I did get a pair of new-to-me jeans for $3.  And they're not 'mom jeans' either. Last time I volunteered was after I'd made the Cabin Casserole.  I was chatting with Fran about it, and how the recipe called for green tomatoes, when she told me about her Green Tomato Garlic Chili.  I immediately requested the recipe! This recipe is from The Garlic Lover's Cookbook. I've adapted Fran's recipe by cutting the fat, adjusting the spices, swapping roasted for fresh garlic, pumping up the amount of veggies, and finely chopping everything so my kids will eat it. We liked it so much that I harvested the rest of the green tomatoes on my plants, cored them (the composting pigs like green tomatoes too!) pulsed them in my lovely food processor, and froze 2 2+ lb bags of green tomatoes for winter chili nights.  Make that chilly winter nights.  Oooh!




A few Notes about this recipe.
  1. I used ground beef, but feel free to substitute fresh ground pork. I already know ground pork and green tomatoes make a great chili--check out my Chorizo & Green Tomato Chili recipe here.
  2. Use the hot peppers of your choice. I'm able to get quarts of freshly roasted Hatch chiles each August from the local grocery store, and I pop them into the freezer to use throughout the year. I think using roasted chiles adds more flavor than fresh chiles, so I do recommend using roasted green chiles.
  3. No roasted garlic? No problem! You can substitute minced garlic, probably ⅓ of a cup. Like with the chiles, I think that using roasted garlic punches up the flavor in many dishes. When I harvest my garlic crop each summer, I roast and freeze a portion for use throughout the year. Here's a post about how I put up my garlic crop.
  4. That's a lot of chopping! Yes--I like to start my day at work chopping a bunch of onions, but if chopping isn't your thing, run the onions, bell peppers, and green tomatoes in turns through a food processor until they are finely chopped. [If you don't have a food processor and chopping's not your thing . . . add that to your birthday wish list and find room in the kitchen.]
  5. I've included instructions for cooking this chili in an Instant Pot® (mine is 6 quarts, plenty of room), in a slow cooker, and on the stove top. I am sure you could figure out a way to cook this on a grill--but I'm not going to do that. I grill pizza and vegetables mostly, and I'm good with that.






Watch the video to see how I made this recipe! I taught myself how to do split screen so I could show the Instant Pot® control panel as well as what the food looks like. All our phones are out of storage and the batteries are nearly empty--but I did manage to show what I was trying to share.



Now gather your ingredients and get started! Nothing fancy here--just meat and vegetables, with spices and broth, and that means that this chili is gluten and dairy free. My late grandmas would recognize much of these--but they lived in Canada and Wisconsin so the chiles would probably be something unusual for them. Good ingredients mean good flavor, and local is best in my opinion!


Ingredients used to make Green Tomato Garlic Chili in an Instant Pot® or slow cooker or on the stove


photo of a bowl of green tomato garlic chili


Yes, you can freeze chopped green tomatoes, or water bath can them, to make this chili throughout the year.

Store finely chopped green tomatoes for future use by freezing or water bath canning.


For more recipes using green tomatoes, please see my Green Tomato Recipes Collection. It's part of the Visual Recipe Index by Ingredient, a resource for folks like me eating from the farm share, the farmer's market, the garden, the neighbor's garden, and great deals on ugly produce at the grocery store.

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18 comments:

  1. hey now - i am a firm believer that mom jeans are going to make a come back. that being said, i think we'll all have to be a size baby-from-dirty-dancing to make 'em work.

    this recipe on the other hand, works just fine :)

    thank you for sharing with us at the Wednesday Fresh Foods Link Up! I hope to see you again with week with more seasonal & fresh/whole food posts :) xo, kristy

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Kristy,
      I could happily never wear mom jeans again. The only slightly mom-ish jeans I will wear are the ones from my pre-mom days, and that's only when I am gardening and my primary sturdy outdoor pants are in the wash. Thanks for stopping by!

      Delete
  2. I just want to say that I made this today and it's delicious! Thanks for the inspiration! :)

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. I'm so glad to hear it--thanks for taking time to let me know!

      Delete
  3. Love all the garlic and I never thought to use green tomatoes this way, Kirsten. Thanks for sharing at Foodie Friends Friday!

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    Replies
    1. Cindy,
      Who knew that green tomatoes were such an versatile ingredient?!
      Thanks!

      Delete
  4. It's easy to roast Poblano peppers. I put mine in a cast iron skillet, covered, on very low heat (2 on an electric stove, and as low as the gas will go on a gas stove), and leave them for a long time - sorry, I never time it. I just check on them now and then, and turn them as needed. They soften up nicely in the process. I leave them longer after I turn the heat off, and they steam under the lid, so by the time I take them out to peel them, they're just right. You have to check on them more frequently with gas stoves, as they'll burn faster. It's fine to have a bit of black on each side, as the skin will get peeled off.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Thanks for the tip! I bypassed poblanos in the 'take as many peppers as you want' bin while picking up my CSA farm share today (grabbed a couple jalapeños instead) but I'll try this next week. I think I missed the steaming part.

      Delete
  5. G'day! Interesting combination, true!
    Nothing like a good chili on a cold winter's day too!
    Cheers! Joanne
    Viewed as part of Food Friends Friday Chili Party

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Joanne,
      You're right--chili is terrific in cold weather. I never made it while we lived in Hawaii. Just didn't ever seem like chili weather. Thanks!

      Delete
  6. Do I have to put the tomatoes through the food processor or can I just chop them up? Should I de-seed them?

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Unknown,
      I'm sorry for the delay in responding to your comment. I'm having trouble with actual comments being flagged as spam. I'm working to correct that.
      You can easily just chop the tomatoes up on a cutting board. I wouldn't stress over de-seeding them, but I'd scrape all of the seeds left on the cutting board into the compost bucket and not add them to the recipe.
      Thanks!

      Delete
  7. Do I have to put the tomatoes through the food processor and de-seed or do I just chop them up and throw them in?

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Unknown,
      See above--and thanks for stopping by!

      Delete
  8. Great recipe, very yummy! Any suggestions for other ways to use the left over Miso paste? Marinade? Make into another type of sauce? Ideas??? It’s too good to not use up!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Miso paste is not used in this recipe.
      Have a good day!

      Delete
  9. I loved this the first time I made it using brown sugar but tonight I made it with Stevia not realizing that the ratios are so different. A word to the wise, if using a substitute use a LOT less. We had to throw the whole thing away!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Hannah,

      Oh no! I hate to waste food but THANK YOU for your advice about stevia.
      I appreciate it!

      Delete