It took me a long time to understand that a chilli is simply a stew with lots of spices. It’s a bit confusing because in the UK, the most common version of this is the ubiquitous ‘chilli con carne’, which is often a bit too similar to a Bolognese sauce, but with the addition of a little bit of cumin and some kidney beans. Unfortunately, a delicious chilli this does not make, so I’ve had to turn to the US recipes and cookery authors for inspiration, but make substitutions for some more widely available UK ingredients.
My parents actually lived in the states – my Dad for a long time – and they had this friend called Mary Blue, whom I only met once when I was very little. They had been given her mysterious folder of ‘American’ recipes, which were all handwritten and had names like ‘Dead Dog Chilli’ and ‘Red or White Enchiladas’. I am so old that this was from way before the internet or the existence of recipes online, so it was the first place I had encountered the possibility of making a chilli with chicken, for example, or the delicious combination of cream cheese and spices.
This chilli uses beef, but not minced beef. It is much more delicious made with chuck, flank, shin or any slightly fatty cut of beef for stewing. I usually cook it in a slow cooker for convenience, since most of my cooking is done while or in between looking after children and working, but I have found that if you move the whole heatproof slow cooker pot into the oven for the last hour of cooking, the sauce becomes a lot thicker and more tasty once some of the liquid has reduced. It can, of course, be cooked completely in the slow cooker, oven or on the stove as well. It can be eaten on its own or served with rice, as is common in the UK (controversial in the US!), with toppings of your choice such as grated cheese, sour cream and guacamole. Any leftovers (if you have any, we often don’t because my children cannot stuff this into their mouths quick enough!) can be frozen or made into burritos or quesadillas the next day.
800g diced beef
2 tablespoons plain flour
2 tablespoons smoked paprika
1 tablespoon garlic powder
1 tablespoon ground cumin
1 teaspoon cayenne pepper (optional)
3 tablespoons neutral oil (rapeseed il/vegetable oil)
1 tablespoon adobo chilli paste (optional)
4 cloves garlic, finely chopped or two heaped tablespoons frozen chopped garlic)
1 large onion, chopped
2 carrots, finely chopped
1 bell pepper, chopped
1 small bunch fresh coriander, chopped (incuding the stalks)
50ml red wine or a splash balsamic vinegar
2 tablespoons tomato puree
500ml beef stock
1 teaspoon dark brown soft sugar
A splash of Worcestershire sauce
1 x 400-ml tin black beans, pinto beans or kidney beans
Salt and black pepper, to taste
Cooked rice, sour cream, grated cheese, guacamole and hot sauce, to serve
Put the beef in a large bowl and season with salt and pepper. Sprinkle over the flour to coat, then add the paprika, garlic powder, cumin and cayenne pepper (if using) and stir to combine.
Place a large heavy based saucepan or frying pan on the stove over a medium heat and add the oil. When sizzling, add the seasoned beef and brown all over, stirring occasionally. Add the chilli paste, if using, and the garlic, onion, carrots, peppers and coriander stalks and fry until softened.
Put the whole mixture into the pot of a slow cooker and add the balsamic vinegar, tomato puree, stock, Worcestershire sauce and beans and stir to combine. Cook on high for 3–4 hours, then place the whole pot with the lid off in the oven (preheated to 180C) and leave to cook for 1 more hour. Alternatively, if you don’t have a slow cooker, use a cast iron casserole pot for the whole recipe and cook in the oven with the lid on.
Season to taste with salt and pepper and top with the coriander leaves.
Spoon in bowls and serve with rice, cheese, sour cream, or any other toppings of your choice. Eat, enjoy and feel warm from head to toe!