I like my 3-bean chili so much I don't even miss the meat!

Don't let the recipes fool you, I like meat. But this chili is, in my opinion, better than meat. Because beans are cheap and meat is not, I have a lot of beans in my apartment right now. The day I craved chili a few weeks ago, I happened to have no meat and three types of beans, so I gave this a shot!

I have a very specific recipe for chili: Whatever happens to be in my pantry and refrigerator that seems chili appropriate! Therefore, I have come up with several very different versions of the same dish, all of which I love and will likely post at some point.

Ingredients:

-Three beans. My choices were black, great northern (white) and red, but whatever fits your texture profile will work. (I also had chick peas and lentils, but chose to leave them out.)
I use dried beans, which I boil for about 45-60 minutes. Another option is canned beans, but make sure to rinse so you don't get the flavor of the can residue in your cooking. For quantity, it depends how much you want. I use about 1/2 cup of each type dried for about 4 hearty servings. I would say this is 1-2 cans of each bean, because they get significantly larger when you boil them. Another note for the slower, cheaper dried bean option is that I boil them in 3 different pots because different sized beans cook at different rates. So, if easy is your desire, canned is the best bet.
-Tomatoes. For this sized batch, about 2 cans of tomatoes is good. I buy the store brand diced tomatoes with jalapenos. This adds a slight kick to a lot of my cooking. (Since I read that canned tomatoes have more lycopene, I have used them more than fresh.) Since I was also preparing some curries, I was short on canned tomatoes this time and threw in some fresh diced tomatoes as well. (About 3 romas with 1 can.)
-Other vegetables, diced. In this week's batch, I threw in red bell peppers, mushrooms, eggplant, zucchini, asparagus and olives. I will generally use whatever is handy. You can't go wrong with diced veggies!
-Minced garlic. I hate onions. I never use them for any reason. I don't even like them to touch my food. Where recipes normally use onions, I use minced garlic. If you like onions, I suggest both, but don't use so many onions it overpowers the other ingredients. This is a flavorful recipe without them. 1 to 2 tsp of the minced garlic is usually good.
-Chili powder. I use a lot of this, but do it entirely by taste, so I can offer no guidelines as to how much you use. Personal preference.
-Hot peppers. I use pickled jalapenos and banana peppers, diced. I also pour in some of the juice from each jar. I am a particular fan of banana pepper juice and use it in my cooking quite a bit as a "secret" extra ingredient that adds a mild kick. When I have chilis in the apartment, I use them too.
-Whatever else I have that is spicy and delicious. Sometimes I use salsa, taco sauce, etc. Any kind of hot sauce you like will do. This particular batch did not contain salsa or taco sauce. I did use Louisiana hot sauce. If the batch is too mild for your taste, add more chili powder. If you are a glutton for punishment, ground cayenne...Paprika and fiesta seasoning are other spices I have used, and I often add garlic powder on top of the minced garlic because I think it has a slightly different flavor. As I will often note, I season by taste. If I think it needs something, I add it. This is completely subjective.
-My favorite extra ingredient when all is said and done: Wing sauce! I use a spicy garlic wing sauce from Kroger (store brand) that I just LOVE the flavor of. I will typically use anywhere from 2-6 tablespoons of this, depending on my mood. (IMPORTANT NOTE: Read the ingredients on sauces! My favorite wing sauce has anchovies in it, so it is neither vegetarian nor vegan friendly.)

How to make it:

Prepare everything as above and mix it in a big pot. Leave on medium heat on your stove for 1-3 hours. Stir in seasonings and sauces gradually, so you can make it to your own specifications. Stir and taste frequently. Add more chili powder. Add more sauce. Add more tomatoes if something else is overpowering.

How to serve it:

If you have used all spiciness options mentioned above, as I often do, it is often not edible without sour cream...Reduced fat is better than fat free, for you health nuts. I also put some avocado on top, both for its monounsaturated fatty acids (translation: healthy goodness) and for its general deliciousness. Another cooling option I learned from my buddy Cole in law school is ranch dressing...

Note: Keep the Tums handy if you make it as spicy as you can...