Squad-Sized Camp Chili

When you've got a big group and a cold evening, nothing pulls its weight like a pot of chili. It's forgiving, it feeds a crowd, and it only gets better as it sits. Cook it in one heavy pot over the coals and you've got dinner tonight and breakfast fuel tomorrow.

Brown deep, build layers

Set a cast-iron Dutch oven or a big camp pot over a solid bed of coals and brown your ground beef (or beef and sausage) hard — you want real color, because that's flavor. Pull the meat, then soften onions, peppers, and garlic in the drippings. Cooking in layers like this, one step at a time, is what separates a rich chili from a bland one.

Bloom your spices

Before any liquid goes in, stir your chili powder, cumin, and paprika into the hot vegetables for a minute until they smell toasty. "Blooming" the spices in fat wakes them up and is the single biggest upgrade most camp chili needs. Then add the meat back, crushed tomatoes, and a little broth or beer to loosen it.

Beans, or no beans? Make it yours

We're not going to settle the great bean debate here — that's a fireside argument that's been running for years. Add kidney or pinto beans if that's your church, leave them out if it isn't. Either way, get it to a gentle simmer, rake most of the coals away so it's barely bubbling, put the lid on, and let it ride for at least an hour, stirring now and then so nothing catches on the bottom.

Serve it big

Chili is a base camp for other good things. Ladle it over camp fries for chili fries, spoon it next to a wedge of Dutch-oven cornbread, or just serve it in bowls with cheese, onions, and hot sauce set out for everyone to build their own. Make more than you think you need — a cold morning is a lot better with a bowl of last night's chili warmed over the coals while the coffee comes up.