White Bean and Bacon Chili – Real and Nourishing

This delicious bowl of chili is perfect for those chilly fall and winter months, with a game of football or a bonfire with friends! It's made with all real ingredients and is grain and dairy free!

White Bean and Bacon Chili - Real, Nourishing and Grain Free!Who doesn't love a bowl of hearty chili on a cold afternoon? It always makes me think of when my mom would make it growing up. I remember many Sunday afternoons all of my family eating it after church, and how my parents would turn on the Falcons football game and we'd all laze around on the couches, napping and spending time together. It just makes a house feel cozy to smell the scent of chili wafting through the house!

So, now that we eat pretty much only real food and a mostly grain-free diet (see why here), I make chili a lot differently than I used to. I used to buy the flavoring packages of chili from the grocery store that are laden with preservatives and fillers that contributed to my health problems, including eczema. So, now I make it from scratch, using homemade bone broth (which is extremely nourishing and boosts the immune system), grass-fed, organic, nitrate-free meat, organic veggies and lots of love.

How to and Why to Make Your Own Bone Broth

Store-bought soup broths are really not healthy, in fact, many are loaded with MSG which is considered a neurotoxin (source). They also contain anti nutrients such as the preservatives and fillers that can aggravate the intestines, leading to all manner of disease. According to the Weston Price Foundation, “Homemade stock used frequently in the diet offers protection from gastrointestinal illness, as the natural gelatin acts a neutralizer of intestinal poisons helping to relieve diarrhea and even dysentery.”

Thankfully, making your own at home isn't difficult, but it does require patience as it takes about 24-48 hours to properly prepare it. And if I can make it while running a blog, being a mom to three ages 5 and under and homeschooling at the same time, anyone can!! You just have to make healthy eating a priority first. The way I see it is – I can't NOT afford to eat real food because it destroys my health when I eat processed food. See this post to make your own bone broth.

Prepare Your Beans the Traditional Method

Even though things like beans, nuts and grains are healthy, they can be very irritating to the gut as they are hard for our bodies to break down and digest. You can make it easier on your intestines by soaking all your legumes and grains before cooking. Read all about how to do that here!

I buy all my organic apple cider vinegar, diced tomatoes, and sometimes organic spices and meat from Tropical Traditions. To learn more about traditional cooking without having to scour the whole internet, check out this awesome cookbook, Nourishing Traditions. I highly recommend it! It is a staple in my kitchen. Plus you can see all my real-food recipes here!

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White Bean and Bacon Chili – Real and Nourishing

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This hearty, delicious chili is perfect for the whole family and is grain and dairy free! It can easily be cooked in the slow cooker as well.

  • Author: Sara - My Merry Messy Life
  • Prep Time: 20 mins
  • Cook Time: 1 hour
  • Total Time: 1 hour 20 mins
  • Yield: 6-8 1x
  • Category: Dinner
  • Cuisine: American

Ingredients

Scale
  • 2 cups homemade bone broth
  • 2 cups dried white beans
  • 1 lb. organic, grass-fed ground beef or 1 lb. nitrate free humanely raised bacon
  • 1 onion, diced
  • 1 bell pepper (I use green for the color), diced
  • 12 large tomatoes, diced, OR 32 oz. diced organic tomatoes in a glass jar or BPA-free can
  • 2 cloves garlic, minced
  • 2 large carrots, diced or shredded with a grater
  • Any other veggies you want to add like cauliflower or green peas would add even more nutrition
  • [Spices]
  • 1 tablespoon cumin
  • 12 tablespoons chili powder
  • 1 tablespoon coriander
  • 1 tsp. pepper
  • 2 tsp. sea salt or Pink Himalayan Salt
  • 5 drops lemon or lime essential oil

Instructions

  1. Prepare beans in the traditional manner (Soak for 7-8 hours in a bowl of water with 1 tablespoon apple cider vinegar. Then, cook on the stove for 1-2 hours on medium heat.)
  2. Prepare 2 cups of bone broth using the instructions in the post.
  3. In a saucepan, cook the bacon or ground beef.
  4. In a large pot or a slow cooker, add all the tomatoes, bone broth, spices, onions, bell pepper, and beans and simmer on low for 30 mins to 1 hour. Or cook on low in a slow cooker for 4 hours.
  5. Add the garlic and lemon essential oil at the end (heat will destroy their nutritional properties), 30 minutes or so before serving.

Hearty White Bean and Bacon Chili - Real, Delicious and Nourishing Cooked the Traditional Way!

White Bean and Bacon Chili Recipe - Delicious, Nutritious and Made with All Real Food

 

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