Mystery Meat Chili 

The other day, my good neighbor, Randy, handed my husband an unmarked, frozen bag of meat.

Randy said, "Tell Jill to make a pot of chili with this!"
Naturally, Charlie comes in relaying the message.  When I asked him what type of meat it was,

Charlie said, "Randy didn't say."

Okay then.

My only clue was from the packaging.  It was wrapped in the familiar one-pound bag you get from the local meat processor. Do you know these bags?  On the front, there are printed boxes the processor checks to identify the meat; buffulo, elk, antelope and moose.  None of the boxes were checked.

After I defrosted the mystery meat, I couldn't tell from its dark, rich color, nor from the clean aroma, what type of meat I had to work with.  I wasn't worried too much about it, though.  It was obviously fresh and lean, with the darkest crimson color.  I knew right away, it was going to be good.  I proceeded to cook it as if it were fresh, ground beef.

HERE'S WHAT I DID

• 1 pound LEAN ground mystery meat
• 2 teaspoons Mexican oregano
• 1 teaspoon cumin
• 1 1/2 teaspoons salt
• 1/4 teaspoon fresh black pepper
• 1 medium yellow onion, chopped
• 1 green bell pepper, roughly chopped

• 2 teaspoons dried garlic powder
• 1 (28 oz) can plum tomatoes, blending into a chunky sauce with a hand blender
• 2 cups chicken broth or water

• 2 cups cooked pinto beans
• grated cheese for topping

Use a large pot or dutch oven to brown the mystery meat with the oregano, salt and pepper, over medium heat.  When the meat is cooked and there's no pink, add in the chopped onion, bell pepper.  Cook until vegetables have softened, 7 to 10 minutes.

Next, add in the garlic powder, blended chunky tomato sauce, and broth.  Bring to a boil, then REDUCE heat to a low simmer and cook for a good 40 minutes.  If the chili looks too thick for your liking, then add a little extra broth or water.  Top each bowl with grated cheese and serve with home baked cornbread or good ol'saltine crackers.

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BACK TO MY STORY

After letting my chili bowl cool down a little, I took a big spoonful into my mouth.  I was nervous all of a sudden.  Chewing, chewing, waiting for a gamey flavor, waiting for the texture to reveal itself.

Nothing.  Turns out, I'm not a meat connoisseur.  I did pick up that it had a minute grainy texture.  It wasn't distracting or weird, just mildly noticeable.

About that time, our good friends, Kim and Eli came over.  You know them right?  She's the one that's the Dietitian down at the hospital and my closest friend, and Eli is my son's bestest friend in the whole wide world.  If any body could solve the mystery meat riddle, Kim and Eli could surely do it.  They love exploring foods and will try ANYTHING, and I mean ANYTHING, at least once.

I watched their faces as they dove into their bowls.  Kim guessed it was venison.  Eli said it tasted like wild pig.

We devoured that chili after two meals, it was that good.  And I still don't know the source of the mystery meat.  I've been so incredibly busy, I haven't had the chance to walk over to Randy's to find out.
What do you guess we ate?