Skip to main content

California Three Bean Chili ($0.53 per Serving)

California Three Bean Chili ($0.53 per Serving)
My family loves this bean heavy chili in the cold months and all though the
Lenten Season.  This recipe was modified to satisfy my families preferred taste
from the 

McCormick California Three Bean Chili Recipe: 
Ingredients:
1 Tablespoon Oil
1 Small-Medium Chopped Onion
1 Large Clove of Garlic
1 Green Bell Pepper, Coarsely Chopped
1 Can (15 oz) or 1 cup of Black Beans, drained and rinsed
1 Can (15 oz) or 1 cup of Kidney Beans, drained and rinsed
1 Can (15 oz) or 1 cup of Northern or Pinto  Beans, drained and rinsed
1 Can (14 ½ oz) Crushed Tomatoes
½ Cup Water
2 teaspoons Chili Powder
1 Teaspoon Cumin, Ground
1 Teaspoon Basil Leaves
1 Teaspoon Garlic Powder 
1 Teaspoon Oregano Leaves
½ Teaspoon Salt
¼ Teaspoon Black Pepper, Ground
INSTRUCTIONS
  1. Chop up Onion, Pepper and Garlic
  1. Heat oil in a large saucepan on medium-high heat.  Add onion, garlic and green bell pepper. Cook for 5 minutes. (If the mixture starts to burn before finishing sauteing, then just add a tablespoon of water.) 
  1. Stir in beans, tomatoes and remaining ingredients.  Bring to a boil 
  1. Reduce heat to low; simmer 20 minutes, stirring occasionally. 
  1. Enjoy your chili with all of the fixings (cheese, sour cream and maybe a little cornbread)
Tip 1- Are you a meat lover? No worries- just add 1 lb. of pre-cooked ground
beef or turkey.   I like to pre-cook several pounds and keep it in the freezer in 1
lb bags.   
Tip 2- I also pre-cook beans by the bag and keep them in 1 cup bags in my
freezer.  
Tip 3- Do you have a long day ahead of you and little to no time to make
dinner.  This meal can also be cooked in the slow cooker on low for 6 hours.  
~ Savings ~
Cost Breakdown: 
INGREDIENTS: 
1 Tablespoon Oil= $0.02
1 Small-Medium Chopped Onion= $0.10
1 Large Clove of Garlic= $0.08
1 Green Bell Pepper, Coarsely Chopped=$0.79
1 Can (15 oz) or 1 cup of Black Beans, drained and rinsed= $0.55
1 Can (15 oz) or 1 cup of Kidney Beans, drained and rinsed= $0.55
1 Can (15 oz) or 1 cup of Northern or Pinto  Beans, drained and rinsed= $0.55
1 Can (14 ½ oz) Crushed Tomatoes= $0.40
½ Cup Water= FREE
2 teaspoons Chili Powder
1 Teaspoon Cumin, Ground
1 Teaspoon Basil Leaves
1 Teaspoon Garlic Powder 
1 Teaspoon Oregano Leaves
½ Teaspoon Salt
¼ Teaspoon Black Pepper, Ground
** Estimated spices= $0.14
Total Cost: $3.18
Per Serving: $0.53
Meat Lovers: 
1 lb. Ground Turkey= $1.00
Per Serving: $0.70
The Contender: 
Panera’s Turkey Chili
Per Serving: $7.49
Savings:
I used the meat chili prices because at the time of this post, I was unable to
find a vegetarian chili readily available. 
Savings= 90%
“Over the Year Scenario”
Homemade California Chili: 12 x $3.18 = $38.16
Homemade California Chili w/ Meat: 12 x $4.18= $50.16
Panera Turkey Chili:  
  • Pot equivalent= 6 x $7.49 = $44.94
  • 12 x 44.94= $539.28

* Money Saved= $489.12
Labels:

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Menu Planning #132

Our meals need to be nutritious, clean, flexible, quick and cost effective. Between our work schedules and after school activities, we need to carefully plan our meals so that we do not end up ordering out.   The news is very scary at this time because of all the news of meat plants shutting down, grocery stories limiting the amount of meat a family can purchase and all of the talk about a depression on the horizon.    We have decided to keep our grocery budget the same, but to economize any way we can.     This week we tried to pick up some shrimp that was on sale, but the store was out of shrimp and not expecting to get any more in.    We were grateful to find wild caught salmon for the same price, so we picked that up instead for our Mother’s Day Dinner.    What did we spend?  Week 1: $96.44 Kroger: $96.44 Rebates: $3.55 IBOTTA: $1.35 Kroger Cash: $0.45 Checkout 51: $1.75 ...
Post a Comment
Read more

Menu Plan #322

  NOTE-  1- Click on the picture and get a link to a post sharing the recipe.  2- Although all prices were correct at the time of the blog postings, the current cost of these dishes may be higher due to inflation and/or location.      Published September 2025:  USDA Thrifty Food Plan According to this plan, our family has a weekly budget of $190.50. Since  October has 5 weeks, our monthly budget is $952.50.   We elevate our dining experiences by including fresh fruits, vegetables, and higher-quality meats.  Since our family has specific dietary needs, we limit our consumption of highly processed food.   Grocery Shopping Tip:     Rethink lunchmeat.     The deli will provide you with thin-sliced meat or presliced deli meat, but you will pay a premium per pound.     ($6.49 to $15.00 per pound) However, if you buy a ½ boneless ham (unsliced or presliced), the price point will drop to between ...
Post a Comment
Read more

Fruit by the serving: Pineapple ($.06-$.19)

Fruit by the serving: Pineapple ($.06-$.19) Fruit by the serving is a concept that I first read about on Pennies & Pancakes several years ago. The concept is basically how much does each serving of fruit cost you. Apples or bananas may be ch eaper that a larger fruit such as cantaloupe or pineapples, but if you pick one up when it is on sale and cut it yourself, it may actually be cheaper per serving that the apple or banana.   In addition, it will give you a wider variety of food. Furthermore, if you have children who would not eat an entire banana or apple, it may be beneficial to purchase the smaller sized fruit. Pineapple Selection: A lot of pineapples we see in the states are mainly green.  When you find a pineapple with a golden color to the majority of it, there is a good sign that the pineapple will be sweet and delicious.  As with all fruit, check for busing. If a piece of fruit is bruised in the transportation process then ...
Post a Comment
Read more