Leftover Smoked Brisket Tex-Mex Chili

My husband loves his Traeger grill/smoker.  I have to be honest, I love it too.  I didn't love the price when he brought it home but I have loved everything that has come off of it since.  We're now on our second one and he also has a portable one for when we go camping.  We're not spoiled at all (insert sarcasm here).

So the other day, he smoked a brisket and it came out wonderful but just a bit tough for my liking. Temp and cooking time probably just need to be tweaked.  Slow and low is the key to tenderness. With only four of us, all accustomed to eating small portions, we had quite a bit of leftover brisket in the end.  Wasting food is one of my biggest pet peeves, so today I decided to play around with a new recipe to make use of it.

Plato said necessity is the mother of invention, so when I discovered I only had black beans in the pantry and no chili beans, I said Tex-Mex it is!  I was in kind of a rush so I didn't grab any photos of the process and the measurements are estimated of course, as always.  The slow, low simmer I did helped with the toughness of the brisket and also reduced the chili slowly so that the flavors were really intensified.  I hope you and your family enjoy this meal.  Mine sure did!  And it's low carb too!

Ingredients:

Approx 2 cups leftover brisket, sliced thin against the grain and cut into small pieces
1 Tbs Extra Virgin Olive Oil
1/4 white onion, diced
1 sweet mini pepper, diced
1 garlic clove, minced (I use a grater)
1/2 to 1 chipotle pepper in adobo sauce, diced (they are pretty spicy, so I used 1/2 a pepper)
*TIP: Line a sheet pan with parchment paper and spoon the leftover peppers individually and flash freeze.  Put into a zip-top bag and keep in the freezer for 4-6 months.
1-14.5 oz can diced tomatoes
1-8 oz can tomato sauce
1-15.25 oz can black beans, with liquid
1 Tbs chili powder
3 tsp cumin
1 tsp ancho chili powder (optional)
2 cups of low sodium chicken broth

Heat oil in a dutch oven over med-hi heat.  Add onions and peppers and saute until soft and translucent.  Add chipotle and garlic and stir until fragrant.  Add tomatoes and tomato sauce and simmer for 3-4 minutes and then use a potato masher to break up the tomatoes a bit more.  Add black beans, spices, broth and brisket meat.  Remember to season with salt and pepper at each level and taste, taste, taste!  Cover and simmer on low heat for about an hour, stirring occasionally.

Serve hot and top with your choice of chopped green onions, shredded cheese, and/or sour cream.  Or if you're like my husband, extra chipotle pepper!