3-Meat Game Chili

The best part of this recipe is that it has bacon! It's not over-powering, but you can certainly hint that it is there. Brian purchased fresh, thick cut bacon from the deli rather than using pre-packaged. He also used one can of beer and beef broth instead of one or the other. And we cooked it in the crock pot for a couple hours. We topped with onions and cheese. 

Ingredients

• 1 lb. ground beef
  1 lb. ground sausage
  6 strips bacon, chopped
  1 yellow onion, chopped
  1 green pepper, chopped
  3-4 cloves garlic, minced
  2 cans diced fire roasted tomatoes
  2 cans chili beans
  1-2 cans beer (any kind will work)
  (OPTIONAL BEER SUBSTITUTE: 2 cans beef broth)
  1 tbsp. Old Bay Seasoning
  1 tsp. dry mustard
  1 tsp. crushed red pepper flakes
  1 tbsp. Chili powder
  1 tbsp. Hot Sauce (such as Hot Spot or Franks)
  2 bay leaves
  salt & pepper to taste

Instructions

• 1
  Set a large pot over medium-high heat. Add chopped bacon and fry until crispy. Remove from grease to a paper towel lined plate to drain.
• 2
  Add ground beef, ground sausage, chopped onion & garlic to bacon drippings in large pot. Cook, stirring frequently and breaking up meat until the meat is brown and the onions are translucent. Drain grease from meat mixture and return to pot.
• 3
  In a food processor, combine beans and tomatoes. Do not drain. (Depending on how large your processor is, you may have to do 2 cans at a time) Pulse until beans and tomatoes are pureed. Add to meat mixture. Add bacon back into meat mixture.
• 4
  Very slowly, pour 1-1/2 beers into your chili. Stir and set temperature to medium-high and bring to a simmer. Add seasonings, stir to combine.
• 5
  Simmer chili for about 20 minutes on low until some of the beer has cooked off.