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One of my favorite Super Bowl parties was one I called, “The Chili Championship.”

Here’s how it works:

You set up a chili buffet with all the fixins. This works really well because people can get up from the TV viewing area and do self-service on the chili. At my previous Super Bowl parties, I served appetizers during the first half of the game and then served an entrée during half-time, with dessert at the end. That had me in a time crunch during the game. I didn’t get to watch football and I missed the Super Bowl commercials. With a chili buffet, I have a lot less work to do. Plus, everyone loves chili.

Chili tastes better the day after you make it, so you can prepare it ahead of time and reheat on game day. When you set up the buffet, the chili can be kept warm in crock pots, on the stove on a low simmer, or even in pans kept on warm in the oven. They’ll all work. Now, for the real bonus: Get others to bring chili.

Remember, if you are following CDC guidelines your party will max out at 10 people. So two or three chili options is plenty!

Choose a couple of friends or family members and have each one make a batch of chili. A batch that serves 10 is enough because people will sample more than one kind during the game. You might even have leftovers you can freeze or have folks take home. You can assign chili types so your guests don’t all show up with the same kind, or you can leave it to chance and let them bring whatever they want.

Think about it — there are SO many different kinds of chili. The chili base can be made from beef brisket or ground beef. Pork chili is popular in the south. Chicken chili is popular at my house. There are ‘white’ chilies made with chicken broth and cream. Many folks add beans to their chili. Some add macaroni, and others add corn. I don’t add these things anymore because they give the chili higher carbohydrate counts, but if someone brought it to a party, I’d have a bite or two. There are veggie chilies and of course, there are more levels of heat than you can count! That being said, not all chili has to be spicy. My favorite chili is really mild and tastes like comfort food.

I have a collection of small, pretty bowls that only hold about a cup. These are great for chili sampling. If you don’t have pottery bowls you can go to the party store and pick up some paper bowls. They have small and large ones that work perfectly. You can then recycle them and have less clean up. Super Bowl parties don’t have to be fancy affairs. On the side, have bowls of chopped white, yellow, or green onions, chopped tomato, sour cream, jalapenos, grated cheeses, Fritos, minced cilantro…you get the idea. You can even have bacon bits for those who think everything is better with bacon. Garnishes make the chili a custom affair for each individual.

Another fun thing is to have an assortment of hot sauces. My husband has a really funny story of the first time he tried Scorned Woman Hot Sauce. He hiccuped for about 30 minutes after he dipped into that one; it fried his taste buds. Not really so funny but when he tells the story, it is. He boasts about how he loves hot sauce and spicy food, but he’s never eaten that particular hot sauce a second time.

Of course, you can always have your guests vote for their favorite chili. You can give out prizes or have a grand prize ribbon. Let your chili imagination have as much fun as your guests. To get started with your Chili Championship inspirations I’m giving you two chili recipes. The poblano chili is very popular with Plan Z Dieters. This chili is flavorful, but not spicy. On the other hand, the Caribbean Chicken Chili is a SPICY one. You can adjust the recipe for a milder palate if you need to. That’s a Plan Z chili, too.

Beefy Chili with Roasted Poblano

Caribbean Chicken Chili

Who says a diet has to taste bad?

Enjoy the game. Enjoy the commercials.

Cheers,