Perhaps the most famous chilli recipe of them all is the chili con carne. There are a million different recipes online and everyone has their own take. This chilli con carne recipe is a simple base recipe that you can adapt and tweak as you like.
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Ingredients:
4 fresh chillies
2 tins of tomatoes
1 squirt of tomato puree
1 large onion
4 cloves of garlic
1 teaspoon of ginger paste
A tin of kidney beans
1 kg of lean mince beef
1 tablespoon of vegetable oil
Method:
Heat the oil in a large pan. Once hot add the finely chopped garlic, ginger and onions. After a few minutes the onions should begin to darken in colour. When this happens add the mince and stir continuously until it has lost its red colour.
Next add the finely chopped chillies, chopped tomatoes, kidney beans and a squirt of tomato puree. At this point you can also throw in a glass of red wine if it takes your fancy. Simmer on a low heat for about an hour, stirring occasionally.
Serve with a good portion of plain rice or jacket potato and large big dollop of natural yogurt.
Chilli Con Carne Recipe Adaptions
Once you’ve perfected the base recipe some simple tweaks will boost the flavour. I like to add a teaspoon of cumin powder and paprika to add a bit of a depth of flavour. Some people swear by adding a small amount of dark cooking chocolate to chilli however personally i’m not a fan.
Again this is a very simple recipe that uses the basic tomato and chilli sauce as a base.
Tomato Soup Ingredients:
3 tins of plum tomatoes
2 cloves of garlic
1 tablespoon of olive oil
1 dried red chilli
2 tablespoons of red wine vinegar
1 large handful of fresh basil
about 20 ripe cherry tomatoes
Method:
Heat the olive oil in a large saucepan then add the finely chopped garlic and chillies. Cook for a couple of minutes until the garlic begins to darken in colour. Next add the plum tomatoes being careful not to break them. The idea is to keep the tomatoes from breaking up until just before your serve the sauce. Add 1 tablespoon of the dried oregano and simmer on a low heat, stirring occasionally.
After 30 minutes, simply place the cherry tomatoes on a baking tray in the oven (180 degrees) for 20 minutes. When done add them, along with most of the basil, to the plum tomatoes simmering mentioned above. After a further 10 minutes, add the red wine vinegar then stir to break up the plum tomatoes. This could also be done in a blender ? how smooth you want the final soup is a matter of choice.
Serve with a generous topping of finely chopped basil sprinkled on top.
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This is such a simple recipe but one that is extremely versatile. The tomato sauce can be used on it?s own in virtually any pasta dish or as a great sauce on homemade pizzas. The main attraction of this sauce however is it?s versatility. It makes a great base sauce that can be used in many Indian dishes such as mattar paneer. or more traditional dishes such as tomato soup.
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Ingredients:
3 tins of plum tomatoes
2 cloves of garlic
1 tablespoon of olive oil
1 dried red chilli
2 tablespoons of red wine vinegar
2 table spoons of dried oregano
Method:
Heat the olive oil in a large saucepan then add the finely chopped garlic and chillies. Cook for a couple of minutes until the garlic begins to darken in colour. Next add the plum tomatoes being careful not to break them. The idea is to keep the tomatoes from breaking up until just before your serve the sauce. Add 1 tablespoon of the dried oregano and simmer on a low heat for 1 hour, stirring occasionally.
After 1 hour add the remainder of the oregano, and the red wine vinegar then stir vigorously to break up the tomatoes.
