Hello! It's a stew season and one of my favourite stews is the one with minced beef, chillies, peppers and beans... Yes, it's chili con carne!
This recipe contains mainly storecupboard ingredients. Although the list may seem quite long, don't worry. It's easy to make!
All you need to do is to gradually add the ingredients to create this delightful and nutritious meal.
The name of this dish literally means 'chilli with meat'.
I usually cook it with minced beef, but you can change it for pork or turkey, depending on what you've got at home or what your dietary preferences are!
After meat, the next most important ingredient in this recipe is pepper and chillies. Feel free to use fresh chilli peppers (red, green or mix), or chilli powder instead of chilli flakes. The same about the red pepper - green/yellow/orange one will work here just as well.
The sauce is made of canned tomatoes and a strong beef stock. Chopped tomatoes can be easily substituted by plum tomatoes in tomato juice, or even better - by fresh salad tomatoes (about 12 of them). Just cut (and peel) them before adding to the sauce. Make sure you check the taste of the tomatoes used - they can be sometimes acidic. Fix it with a 1tsp of sugar if needed!
Chili has got this beautiful red color, but you can add even more vibrant colors to it by serving it with fresh coriander, slice of lime, dollop of soured cream, grated cheese or jalapeno peppers!
This American-Mexican dish is packed with big flavours and makes a great weeknight dinner, but it could also be a star of your dinner party.
When sharing, serve it with rice, tortillas or tortilla chips (nachos), so that everyone can grab a bite!
Aaand... It'll taste the best with a glass of chilled margarita!
Finally, this meal can also be frozen and saved for later. Let it cool down, store in an air-tight container and consume within two months after freezing.
📖 The Recipe
Chili con carne with rice
Ingredients
- 500 g minced beef 20% fat, chilled
- 1 onion roughly chopped
- 2 cloves garlic finely chopped
- 1 red pepper sliced
- 1 teaspoon paprika
- 1-2 teaspoon chilli flakes and/or chilli pepper sliced, to taste
- 1 tablespoon tomato puree
- 1 beef stock cube crushed
- 2x400 g can chopped tomatoes
- 1x400 g can red kidney beans
- 1 ½ cups long-grain rice
- salt, black pepper to taste
For serving
- chopped fresh coriander, lime
Optional
- grated cheese, cheddar, soured cream (1tbsp/pp), jalapeno peppers
Instructions
- Boil a kettle of water.
- Using a large non-stick frying pan, place it on hob and set on high heat. Once the pan is hot, add minced meat. Fry it until brown, breaking up the meat with a wooden stirrer and stirring occasionally.
- When the meat is browned, add onion, garlic and red pepper. Toss, cover with a lid and cook for 5 minutes.
- In the meantime, start preparing the rice. Rinse it thoroughly under running tap water and cook it with 3 cups of hot water and a pinch of salt. Cover with a lid and bring to boil. Once it starts to bubble, immediately turn the heat down to low and cook until soft. Adjust cooking time according instructions on the packet. Cook for longer and/or add more water if needed.
- Back to the meat sauce: Add chilli flakes or chillies and paprika, cover, lower the heat to medium-high and cook for 5 minutes.
- Stir in tomato puree, cover again and cook for 5 minutes.
- Add 150ml hot water and beef stock cube, stir gently and leave to simmer for 5 minutes.
- Tip in canned tomatoes and stir. Cover and cook for 5 minutes.
- Drain and rinse red kidney beans and add them to the meaty sauce. Season with salt and black pepper if needed. Cover and cook for 3-4minutes.
- Serve with rice, freshly chopped coriander, and lime wedges, eventually with a spoonful of soured cream and sliced jalapeno peppers. Enjoy!
Tra Italia e Finlandia
I like chili con carne and i make it willingly! 🙂
Country Girl in London
That's great! What is yourite side dish to go with it? 🙂
Tra Italia e Finlandia
I like red rice cooked the Pilaf method..
Country Girl in London
That sounds like a great combination! 🙂
Country Girl in London
Your favourite *
kutubuku
Love it! I tend to make it meat-free version with those plant-based meat because we try to eat less meat (not vegetarian yet) and it worked just fine!
Country Girl in London
Thank you! That's a great option too, I agree! 🙂 Have a lovely weekend ahead! X
Charlie DeSando
Looks great!
Country Girl in London
Thank you!