Bulgur Chili — The Soup That Waited in the Freezer

Miss Corrine is home. She's bruised and walking with a walker, but she's home, and I brought the soup that's been waiting in my freezer. I left it on her porch and rang the bell and stepped back, and she opened the door and she looked at me and she said, "Dot Henderson, you fed my cat." I said, "Of course I did." She said, "That cat doesn't like anybody." I said, "Biscuit and I have an understanding." She laughed. It was the first laugh I'd heard from her in a month, and it sounded like a window opening.

The garden is exploding. Tomatoes everywhere, peppers coming in, the okra reaching for the sky like green fingers pointing at God. I've been canning tomato sauce — twelve jars this week, filling the kitchen with the steam and the smell of summer preserved. Normally I'd take the excess to the farmers' market or to church. Neither is open. So I'm leaving bags of tomatoes on porches along with the meals. Porch tomatoes. Pandemic tomatoes. Tomatoes that didn't know they'd be traveling by doorbell.

Kayla had a day off — her first in twelve days — and she came to my house and she sat on the porch and I sat on the porch and we were six feet apart and it was ridiculous and it was wonderful. She ate the soup I made her and she told me about the hospital — the fear, the exhaustion, the small victories. A man, seventy-two, came off the ventilator on Tuesday. The whole unit cheered. She said, "It felt like winning, Granny." I said, "That's because it was winning, baby."

We sat there for two hours, six feet apart, talking about nothing and everything. She told me she and Devon are getting serious. I said, "I know." She said, "How do you know?" I said, "Baby, I have been watching people fall in love since before you were born. I know what it looks like on the outside. It looks like three helpings of greens and flowers for no reason." She laughed. Devon's three helpings of greens have been noted since day one.

Now go on and feed somebody.

This is the chili that was waiting in my freezer for Miss Corrine — the one I’d made two weeks before she came home, because I knew she’d need something warm and I knew I’d need something to do with all that tomato sauce I’d been putting up. Bulgur chili is my porch-delivery workhorse: it freezes beautifully, reheats without a fuss, and it’s hearty enough to feel like a real meal when someone opens it up alone. I make it in the biggest pot I own, jar half of it alongside the tomatoes, and let the rest travel by doorbell. If you’ve got someone on your street who needs feeding, this is the pot to make.

Bulgur Chili

Prep Time: 15 minutes | Cook Time: 45 minutes | Total Time: 1 hour | Servings: 8

Ingredients

• 1 tablespoon olive oil
• 1 large yellow onion, diced
• 1 green bell pepper, diced
• 1 red bell pepper, diced
• 4 cloves garlic, minced
• 1 cup dry bulgur wheat
• 2 cans (15 oz each) diced tomatoes
• 1 can (15 oz) crushed tomatoes or homemade canned tomato sauce
• 1 can (15 oz) kidney beans, drained and rinsed
• 1 can (15 oz) black beans, drained and rinsed
• 2 cups vegetable broth
• 2 tablespoons chili powder
• 1 teaspoon ground cumin
• 1 teaspoon smoked paprika
• 1/2 teaspoon dried oregano
• 1/4 teaspoon cayenne pepper (or to taste)
• Salt and black pepper to taste
• Sour cream, shredded cheddar, and sliced green onions for serving (optional)

Instructions

1. Sauté the aromatics. Heat olive oil in a large heavy-bottomed pot over medium heat. Add the onion and bell peppers and cook, stirring occasionally, until softened, about 7–8 minutes. Add the garlic and cook 1 minute more.
2. Bloom the spices. Stir in the chili powder, cumin, smoked paprika, oregano, and cayenne. Cook for 1 minute, stirring constantly, until fragrant.
3. Add the liquids and bulgur. Pour in the diced tomatoes, crushed tomatoes or tomato sauce, and vegetable broth. Stir well to combine. Add the dry bulgur and stir again.
4. Add the beans. Stir in the kidney beans and black beans. Bring the pot to a boil over medium-high heat.
5. Simmer until thick. Reduce heat to low, cover, and simmer for 25–30 minutes, stirring occasionally, until the bulgur is fully cooked and the chili has thickened. If it gets too thick, add a splash of broth or water.
6. Season and serve. Taste and adjust salt, pepper, and cayenne. Ladle into bowls and top with sour cream, cheddar, and green onions if desired. To freeze, cool completely, portion into quart containers, and freeze for up to 3 months.

Nutrition (per serving)

Calories: 265 | Protein: 12g | Fat: 4g | Carbs: 48g | Fiber: 12g | Sodium: 540mg