CHILI CHEESEBURGERS

Chili Cheeseburgers image

Provided by Ree Drummond : Food Network

Time 45m

Yield 6 servings

Number Of Ingredients 15

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Ingredients

5 pounds ground beef
Salt and freshly ground black pepper
3 cloves garlic, minced
1/2 onion, finely diced
One 14.5-ounce can diced tomatoes
One 14.5-ounce can kidney beans, drained
One 6-ounce can tomato paste
2 tablespoons chili powder
2 teaspoons cumin
3 good-quality hamburger buns
1 cup grated sharp Cheddar
Thin Fries, recipe follows, for serving, optional
10 large russet potatoes
Vegetable or peanut oil, for frying
Sea salt

Steps:

Divide the ground beef in half and form 6 somewhat-thin patties out of one of the halves. Sprinkle with salt and pepper. Fry the patties over medium to medium-low heat in a large skillet, 3 to 4 minutes per side. Set aside.
In the same skillet over medium-high heat, add the rest of the ground beef, the garlic, onions and some salt and pepper and cook until browned. Drain off the grease and mix in the diced tomatoes, kidney beans, tomato paste, chili powder and cumin. Cook until nice and bubbly, about 20 minutes. Taste and adjust the seasoning.
Lay half of each bun on 6 plates (so each plate gets half a bun.). Lay 1 patty on each bun piece, then divide the cheese among the patties. Ladle the hot chili all over the patties. Serve with Thin Fries if desired.
Peel and rinse the potatoes, then cut them into sticks by cutting each potato into 4 or 5 vertical pieces, then cutting each piece into sticks. Put the potato sticks in a large bowl, cover with cold water and swish them around to get off the extra starch. Pour off the starchy water and add fresh water. Continue washing the potatoes until the water runs clear. Cover with water again and allow them to soak for 2 or 3 hours. (You can also stick them in the fridge and let them soak for up to 3 days.)
When you're ready to make the fries, drain off the water and lay the potatoes sticks on baking sheets lined with paper towels. Blot them with more paper towels to dry them.
Heat a few inches of oil in a heavy pot until a deep-fry thermometer registers 300 degrees F. In 3 or 4 batches, cook the potatoes until soft, about 1 minute per batch. They should not be brown at all at this point! You just want to start the cooking process. Remove each batch and drain them on new/dry paper towels.
When all the potatoes have been fried once, turn up the heat until the oil reaches 400 degrees F. Start frying the potatoes in batches again, cooking until the fries are golden and crisp, 1 to 2 minutes. Remove from the oil and drain on paper towels.
Sprinkle the fries with sea salt and dive in!