Beer Chili Potato Skins

 

Do you ever get tired of the same old thing every week? I plan a weekly menu, and I am constantly trying new recipes. But it seems like we eat the same food every month.

That's how this idea for dinner came up. It has been unseasonably cold in Maryland recently, and I was craving comfort food. I had all the ingredients for chili, but I was sick of rice and had no desire to make cornbread. A bag of potatoes was staring me in the face, so I thought why not?

Beer Chili Potato Skins is amazing!!!!!! A potato skin makes a terrific bowl for the chili. Finger food is so much fun. And, you get cheese in every bite—oh yeah!!! This recipe turned out better than I was expecting!

Try it out today with a cold beer in your hand. It makes the perfect companion.

Ingredients:

½ pound ground beef or Turkey

1 beer (I used lager but whatever you have on hand would work. I would stay away from any fruit infused beers)

15.5 oz can of kidney beans (you can omit if you would like)

14.5 oz can of diced tomatoes

15 oz can of tomato sauce

Chili Seasoning (here is the homemade version or you can use a packet)

1 tablespoon of chili powder

1 teaspoon of ground pepper

½ teaspoon salt

½ teaspoon oregano leaves

1 ½ teaspoons onion powder

1 teaspoon of garlic powder

2 teaspoons of ground cumin

¼ teaspoon of cayenne pepper (optional)

pinch of cinnamon

3-4 large potatoes or 5-6 medium to smaller potatoes

2 tablespoons of melted butter

salt

½ cup of cheese ((I had sharp yellow and white cheddar on hand, so that is what I used. Any cheese you like would be fine.)

sour cream for garnish

1. Brown the ground beef.
2. While the beef is browning, mix together the chili seasonings in a small bowl.
3. Drain. (leave about a tablespoon of the grease in the pan)
4. Add in the chili seasonings. Brown the seasonings in the pan for 1-2 minutes.
5. Pour in the beer. (At this point, you are deglazing the pan.) Scrap any browned bits at the bottom of the pan. Bring to a simmer and cook until the beer is halfway reduced—about 3-4 minutes.
6. Pour in the tomato sauce, diced tomatoes, and kidney beans.
7. Simmer for about 30-35 minutes. Since the chili is going into potato skins, you don't want it to have too much liquid. You want a thick chili.
8. While the chili is simmering, make some baked potatoes. You can make them in the oven but I prefer the microwave since it takes less time.  When making a baked potato, don't forget to poke holes in the potato.  In the microwave, for small potatoes it takes about 6-8 minutes to cook, for medium potatoes its around 8-10, and bigger potatoes about 10-12 minutes.  Always start with a few minutes and work your way up. You don't want to have a potato explosion. (BTW, I made a potato explode and my house smelled awful. Don't do it.)
9. Preheat the oven to broiler to 500 degrees.
10. Once the potatoes are cooled, split it open and scoop out the filling. Leave ½ centimeter wall within the potato.
11. Lightly coat a baking sheet with butter. Place each potato half on the sheet.
12. Lightly coat with butter and a sprinkle of salt. Place into the oven to lightly brown and get crispy. 1-2 minutes on one side. Flip. Another 1-2 minutes on the other side.  (Check the potatoes after 1 minute.)
13. Once the potatoes are lightly brown, fill each one with chili. Top with cheese.
14. Place back into the oven for 1-2 minutes or until the cheese is bubbly.
15. Enjoy!