Chili and Vegetarian Chili

A few years ago they had a chili cook off at the local bar during a football game. I wasn't aware this was happening before I got there or I would have brought a crock pot full. While I was sampling the chili I pondered this question "Which chili would the local, mostly farmer, crowd find least offensive? My chili with TVP (Textured Vegetable Protein), my sister's chili with Bulgar wheat, or my *no rules* sister's chili with green peas." I still sometimes ponder this years later. Now I make my vegetarian chili with Bulgar wheat in place of the hamburger. I ran out of TVP and didn't want to buy more just for chili. The vegetarian chili also omits the Worcestershire sauce. Worcestershire contains a small amount of anchovies. It's a stealthy non vegetarian ingredient.
I recommend using the Penzy's medium hot chili powder. I recently switched to Penzy's chili powder. It changed the chili I've been making for maybe 20 years from good to fantastic. If you order online, I suggest you get the spices in bags rather then the glass jars. It's a better value.
Try this with my cornmeal muffins and a sprinkling of cheddar cheese. This recipe is adapted from "The Frugal Gourmet Cooks American".

Chili (pictured)
INGREDIENTS
1 lb lean hamburger
2 T oil
1 large yellow onion, peeled and chopped
3 cloves garlic, peeled and crushed
3 T chili powder or to taste (I prefer Penzy's medium hot chili powder)
1 T cumin
1 T Worcestershire sauce
1 28 oz (or two 15 oz) cans of diced tomatoes
1 green pepper, chopped
2 15 oz cans kidney beans
salt to taste

Brown hamburger in the oil along with onion, garlic, and chili powder. Drain any excess fat. Add remaining ingredients and simmer, stirring 1 1/2 hours. The chili is much better the second day.


Vegetarian Chili
INGREDIENTS
2 T oil
1 large yellow onion, peeled and chopped
3 cloves garlic, peeled and crushed
3 T chili powder or to taste (I prefer penzy's medium chili powder)
1 T cumin
1 28 oz (or two 14.5 oz) cans of diced tomatoes
1 green pepper, chopped
2 15 oz cans kidney beans
1 15 oz can water
1/2 c Bulgar wheat
salt to taste

Saute the onion, garlic and chili powder in the oil. Add remaining ingredients and simmer, stirring 1 1/2 hours. The chili is much better the second day.