Chilli con carne

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Good Food

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Recipe by Good Food

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1. Prepare your vegetables. Chop your onion into small dice, about 5mm square. The easiest way to do this is to cut the onion in half from root to tip, peel it and slice each half into thick matchsticks lengthways, not quite cutting all the way to the root end so they are still held together. Slice across the matchsticks into neat dice. Cut your pepper in half lengthways, remove stalk and wash the seeds away, then chop.
2. Start cooking. Put your pan on the hob over a medium heat. Add the oil and leave it for 1-2 minutes until hot (a little longer for an electric hob). Add the onions and cook, stirring fairly frequently, for about 5 minutes, or until the onions are soft, squidgy and slightly translucent.Tip in the garlic, red pepper, chilli, paprika and cumin. Give it a good stir, then leave it to cook for another 5 minutes, stirring occasionally.
3. Brown the mince. Turn the heat up a bit, add the meat to the pan and break it up with your spoon or spatula. The mix should sizzle a bit when you add the mince. Keep stirring and prodding for at least 5 minutes, until all the mince is in uniform, mince-sized lumps and there are no more pink bits. Make sure you keep the heat hot enough for the meat to fry and become brown, rather than just stew.
4. Making the sauce. Crumble your stock cube into 300ml/1⁄2 pint of hot water. Pour this into the pan with the mince mixture. Open the can of chopped tomatoes and add these as well. Tip in the marjoram and the sugar, if using (see tip left), and add a good shake of salt and pepper. Squirt in about 2 tbsp of tomato purée and stir the sauce well.
5. Simmer it gently. Bring the whole thing to the boil, give it a good stir and put a lid on the pan. Turn down the heat until it is gently bubbling and leave it for 20 minutes. You should check on the pan occasionally to stir it and make sure the sauce doesn't catch on the bottom of the pan or isn't drying out. If it is, add a couple of tablespoons of water and make sure that the heat really is low enough. After simmering gently, the saucy mince mixture should look thick, moist and juicy.
6. Bring on the beans. Drain and rinse the beans in a sieve and stir them into the chilli pot. Bring to the boil again, and gently bubble without the lid for another 10 minutes, adding a little more water if it looks too dry. Taste a bit of the chilli and season. It will probably take a lot more seasoning than you think. Now replace the lid, turn off the heat and leave your chilli to stand for 10 minutes before serving, and relax. Leaving your chilli to stand is really important as it allows the flavours to mingle and the meat.

A Mexican twist

Rather than add the teaspoon of sugar, you can stir in a small piece of chocolate (about the size of your thumbnail) when you add the beans. Any plain dark chocolate will do. Be careful not to add too much - you don't want to be able to identify the flavour of the chocolate.

Per serving

387 kcalories, protein 36g, carbohydrate 25g, fat 17 g, saturated fat 6g, fibre 6g, salt 2.32 g

"The chilli was dead simple. I don't get on with very spicy food, but this was just right for me - a nice, spicy flavour without being overhot. The cumin was a revelation - I've never used it before and the smell was fantastic."

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Results 1-20

• Hell'sBinder

  01 November 2007

  Hell'sBinder rated and commented on this recipe

  

  The chocolate is a nice addition. Perfect recipe for freezing if you make large quantities as well.

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• paulderdash

  03 November 2007

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• SamGKenny

  06 November 2007

  SamGKenny rated and commented on this recipe

  

  Quick and easy and very tasty ... :)

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• kyoko

  06 November 2007

  kyoko rated and commented on this recipe

  

  Very easy and tasty!

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• Joyce A

  07 November 2007

  Joyce A rated this recipe

  

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• marydrum

  10 November 2007

  marydrum rated and commented on this recipe

  

  Really loved this version of chilli con carne. It was a cinch to make and just the right level of spiciness. The chocolate gave it real depth of flavour. This will be my definitive receipe for Chilli con Carne from now on!

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• Abu Amin

  13 November 2007

  Abu Amin rated this recipe

  

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• Siri

  16 November 2007

  Siri rated and commented on this recipe

  

  Easy & delicious - will definitively make again!

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• astroboy

  22 November 2007

  astroboy rated and commented on this recipe

  

  keeping this one in my favourites!

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• Recipes

  04 December 2007

  Recipes rated and commented on this recipe

  

  A great chilli recipe that's easy to make in batches for freezing, and is way nicer than sauce-from-a-jar chillis.

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• Tracy

  09 December 2007

  Tracy rated and commented on this recipe

  

  This is a favourite for my husband and I, he would have me make it every week!! The chocolate works best in my opinion.

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• anne marie

  19 December 2007

  anne marie rated and commented on this recipe

  

  tasty easy dish, if your not the best cook in the world then this is the one too make you cant go wrong

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• HappyBunny

  01 January 2008

  HappyBunny rated and commented on this recipe

  

  I've been making this recipe since it first came out in the Good Food about 5 years ago. Fabulous flavour and so quick and easy. I make it and then pop it in my slow cooker to cook for a few hours. It tastes divine at the end of the day!

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• Paula Monks

  02 January 2008

  Paula Monks commented on this recipe

  This is a great Chilli recipe....I love mushrooms - so added them and it was delicious!

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• White Jeans

  04 January 2008

  White Jeans rated and commented on this recipe

  

  Very good indeed.

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• Nicola

  10 January 2008

  Nicola rated and commented on this recipe

  

  lovely, would definitely make again

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• lipstick

  15 January 2008

  lipstick commented on this recipe

  Easy and delicious, maybe even better the next day! I always grate cheese on top and add a few dollops of good guacamole... lush!

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• megsnz

  18 January 2008

  megsnz rated and commented on this recipe

  

  fabulous !!

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• Katie Lou

  20 January 2008

  Katie Lou commented on this recipe

  Loved it, best chilli i've made! This will be the recipe i use from now on! And it was easy...

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• Katie Lou

  20 January 2008

  Katie Lou rated this recipe

  

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Ingredients

• 1 tbsp oil
• 1 large onion
• 1 red pepper
• 2 garlic cloves , peeled
• 1 heaped tsp hot chilli powder (or 1 level tbsp if you only have mild)
• 1 tsp paprika
• 1 tsp ground cumin
• 500g lean minced beef
• 1 beef stock cube
• 400g can chopped tomatoes
• ½ tsp dried marjoram
• 1 tsp sugar
• 2 tbsp tomato purée
• 410g can red kidney beans
• soured cream and plain boiled long grain rice , to serve

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Difficulty and servings

Serves 4

Preperation and cooking times

Prep 50 mins 1 hr 10 mins

Can be frozen

Ingredients

• 1 tbsp oil
• 1 large onion
• 1 red pepper
• 2 garlic cloves , peeled
• 1 heaped tsp hot chilli powder (or 1 level tbsp if you only have mild)
• 1 tsp paprika
• 1 tsp ground cumin
• 500g lean minced beef
• 1 beef stock cube
• 400g can chopped tomatoes
• ½ tsp dried marjoram
• 1 tsp sugar
• 2 tbsp tomato purée
• 410g can red kidney beans
• soured cream and plain boiled long grain rice , to serve