Chilli con carne

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Good Food

193 ratings

Recipe by Good Food

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1. Video tutorial: Chopping an onion

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.

Other ways to enjoy chilli

Serve it on a bed of plain, boiled rice, with a spoonful of soured cream on top. Pile it on tortilla chips and sprinkle it with grated cheddar. Wrap it up in a tortilla with shredded lettuce, chopped tomatoes and guacamole for a great burrito.

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."

Latest comments and suggestions

Results 81-100

• john1976

  16 September 2008

  john1976 rated and commented on this recipe

  

  Loved it will make its again and again.

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• Robinson Towers

  18 September 2008

  Robinson Towers rated and commented on this recipe

  

  Will certainly make this again, best chilli I've made....made double recipe to stock my freezer up!

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• John C Sweet

  24 September 2008

  John C Sweet rated and commented on this recipe

  

  I made this for my wife and she really liked it as did i. We had some left over which we froze and had in pepers the following week. I used the chocolate and used pinto beans instead of kidney. Will be making this again for sure!

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• Donna

  24 September 2008

  Donna commented on this recipe

  A very nice, simple and satisfying dish that has a pleasant depth of flavour.

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• Emz

  26 September 2008

  Emz rated and commented on this recipe

  

  Lovely recipe and so easy to make. Would definitely make again! No more Uncle Ben's or Homepride for me!

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• Sue Mothershaw

  26 September 2008

  Sue Mothershaw rated and commented on this recipe

  

  This chilli is superb, easy to make and very very tasty. Serve with some sour cream to top it off.

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• Peter747

  30 September 2008

  Peter747 rated and commented on this recipe

  

  Superb. Added a few sun dried tomatoes and loved it. Will definitely make again

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• Martin

  04 October 2008

  Martin rated and commented on this recipe

  

  this is great every time!

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• Munkit's Mom

  07 October 2008

  Munkit's Mom rated and commented on this recipe

  

  I'd been searching for a recipe for chilli and this is easily the best one I have tried. My chilli fanatic husband loves it and so do the kids. Haven't put the chocolate in yet mainly because I never have any in the house when I want to make it!

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• emma

  07 October 2008

  emma rated and commented on this recipe

  

  Delisious!

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• RobNia

  08 October 2008

  RobNia commented on this recipe

  Very good! I was hesitant as to how good this would be. Letting it rest for the last ten mins is so important! Was surprised that this was down to feed 4! I’d say more like 6!

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• RobNia

  08 October 2008

  RobNia rated and commented on this recipe

  

  Oops, 5 stars!!!!!!!

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• Katie

  10 October 2008

  Katie rated and commented on this recipe

  

  A great recipe. Really easy and very tasty!

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• Chrissy

  16 October 2008

  Chrissy rated and commented on this recipe

  

  I use a different recipe each time looking for the ultimate chilli . I have now found it, I read all the comments and opted to put in fresh chilli as well as powder and cooked it slowly for 3 hours. I have now given the recipe to all my friends with glowing reports and recommended using the chocolate, I did a double quantity and used 3 cubes which worked.

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• Jane

  18 October 2008

  Jane rated and commented on this recipe

  

  Made double to freeze some. Used a jar of passata instead of tinned tomatoes and my husband added extra smoked paprika and some Bovril! Will definitely make again as we both loved it.

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• nmjw

  27 October 2008

  nmjw rated and commented on this recipe

  

  Very good...liked the green pepper and the chocolate but needs a lot more spice than this recipe --- I add more spice TWICE

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• Clare cooks

  30 October 2008

  Clare cooks commented on this recipe

  Great recipe for Chilli Con Carne - up until now I have been making it up as I go along when I make chilli - so thought I would try a recipe instead - Really tasty and everyone loved it!

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• raddersandsimo

  30 October 2008

  raddersandsimo commented on this recipe

  good job they told me to open the tin of tomatoes before adding them to the pan..........x

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• shovelnose

  30 October 2008

  shovelnose rated and commented on this recipe

  

  Did not work for me. Had to add gravy granules to thicken up the sauce which was runny. Double checked the recipe and instructions and I have followed them to the 't' - don't rate this much at all!

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• MsPia

  01 November 2008

  MsPia rated and commented on this recipe

  

  Very good. Nice amount of spice to make it flavourful by not HOT.

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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

Preparation 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

Per serving

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

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