Rachel's Weeknight Chili Colorado En Crock Pot Recipe

2-3 pound top round cut in to 1" pieces & patted dry
2 large fresh tomatoes peeled, seeded & diced or 1 can diced in juice
1 large onion diced
3 garlic cloves minced
1/2 cup good quality chili powder (I like Penzey's Brand)
1 tablespoon ground cumin
1 dried bay leaf - optional
6 cups chicken stock or (1 - 48 oz. can chicken broth)
2 tablespoons grape seed oil or vegetable oil
sea salt and fresh ground pepper to taste

*Be sure to pat the meat dry - top round gives off a lot of liquid and it will not brown properly if you do not dry it before adding it to the hot pan. Season the meat generously with salt and pepper. Brown the meat over medium high heat, in the oil. Make sure to brown it thoroughly on all sides. Once the meat is browned, remove from the pan and set aside. In to the same pan with the drippings, add the onion, garlic, chili powder and cumin. Stir the mixture making sure the onions and garlic do not burn while scraping up any browned bits at the bottom of the pan. When the onions are soft and translucent and just beginning to brown, add one cup of stock to the pan to deglaze it scraping any bits up. Add the entire contents of the pan (scraping well to get all of the goodies in there), the remainder of the stock, the meat, bay leaves, and tomatoes in to a crock pot. Taste and season with salt and pepper. Set on high for 8 hours. The meat will be gorgeous and falling apart. Serve with black beans, and or rice, tortillas, cheese, guacamole, etc... Serves 6 Generously with leftovers and is even better the next day. Also wanted to mention that top round is very lean, especially if you buy free range and grass fed, making this dish relatively low in calories with high-def flavor. Photos to follow.