Easy Slow Cooker Chili (recipe)

As promised, here is my recipe for an easy slow cooker chili.  The great thing about this is that there is very little cutting/cleaning of vegetables involved.  Just 1 medium onion is needed.  The rest of the flavor adding ingredients come in a jar, can or bottle.  Instead of chopping up the jalapeno and green peppers I'd normally use, I grabbed a jar of chunky salsa at the grocery store.  The flavors and added texture are already there, ready to go into the pot.

Easy Slow Cooker Chili w/Rice

Easy Slow Cooker Chili, with rice

1 lb lean ground beef
1 medium onion, diced
1- 1 1/2 jar chunky salsa (heat level up to you)
1 T chili powder
1/4 t cinnamon
1 1/2 T Cajun seasoning
1 T garlic powder
1 T worcestershire sauce
1 can diced tomatoes, not drained
2-3 cans light red kidney beans
salt & pepper to taste

Brown beef and onion in skillet.  Add to slow cooker.  Add in the rest of the ingredients, stir.  Cover and cook on low for 6-8 hours or high for about 4 hours.
Serve over rice or with your favorite biscuits.  May also be garnished with a bit of shredded cheese and some sour cream.

The slow cooker may not be entirely necessary for this dish, but I like my chili best when the flavors have had a chance to mingle and get to know each other.  The cinnamon and worcestershire sauce were a new experiment to go with my regular recipe and I must say that they brought on a whole new level of flavor and were delicious!

What do you like to eat with your chili?  Do you have any recipes that you'd like to share?  I have another recipe that I haven't made in a while, but got some very good reviews and even won an award.  It's my own little concoction that I like to call "Holy Mole Moo-Steak Chili" and uses a different variety of seasonings and a bit of cocoa.