Mystery basket challenge...

If you've ever seen 'Iron Chef' or 'Chopped', then you're familiar with the mystery basket challenge. Frequently, that's a bit what it's like in my kitchen. A whole bunch of ingredients that one wouldn't normally combine to make something with, and about 20min to come up with something edible. Such was the genesis of 'meatball chili'.

I had just moved into a new apartment and wasn't completely settled yet. There was technically food in the house, but nothing that really went together. Just ingredients really. Some things in cans or packages, and enough spices to make the Silk Road traders jealous.

So, I opened the fridge and poked around then did the same with the freezer. There were cans of tomatoes with green chilies. There were cans of beans. And in the freezer, there were meatballs.
Hungry carnivores were on their way so I had to come up with something fast.

I grabbed my phone and made sure no one was adverse to chili. There was some confusion since the normal things that go into chili weren't around. I said not to worry, and no one objected. I present the results of that day, meatball chili...

Meatball Chili

1 package of meatballs
1 can tomatoes and green chilies
Cumin
Garlic powder
Onion powder
One or two cups of Broth or bullion (Washington's brown broth is great!)
1 onion
Sesame oil
Butter, oil, or something like that

Sauté the meatballs in the butter or whatever. While they're doing their thing, dice the onions. When the meatballs are evenly browned, take them out and put the onions in. Chop up the meatballs and add back to the pot when the onions are clear. Sauté them together for a few minutes, then add the can of tomatoes, beans, and broth. Start with one cup, add the second if needed. Simmer everything together and add the spices and a drizzle of the sesame oil. After a few minutes, taste it. If it tastes more Italian then like chili, add more of the cumin and a teaspoon of white vinegar to balance out the flavour. It's done once the taste is balanced out.

This can be made veggie/vegan by substituting the meatballs and butter for the equivalent