With the weather getting colder by the day, it’s time to batten down the hatches, stoke up a roaring fire, and make some real home-cooked comfort food. Salad, in our humble opinion, can wait till Spring – this is the time for soups, stews and, of course, chilli.
This chilli recipe is perfect for cooking on top of a wood stove. If you don’t have a wood stove, then this will also work in a Slow Cooker, an oven-proof casserole dish in the oven, or on the stove top in an ordinary pan. However you cook it, the key is simple – slow, long cooking with robust flavours. We hope that this recipe inspires you to make something delicious that will warm the cockles of your heart!
2/3/4 Day Chilli
Serves 6-8
2 tablespoon cooking oil
1 pound ground beef
2 cans red kidney beans
2 cans diced tomatoes / an equivalent quantity of fresh tomatoes
1 large onion, finely diced
2 large carrots, finely diced
5 sticks celery, finely diced
2 red peppers, finely diced
1 green pepper, finely diced
5 cloves garlic, finely chopped
3 bay leaves
1-2 chipotle chilli pepper, to taste, finely chopped
2 teaspoons dried oregano
2 teaspoons paprika
2 teaspoons ground cumin
2 tablespoons molasses
1 tablespoon brown sugar
Salt and pepper to taste
To Serve:
Grated cheese
Sour cream
Cilantro
1. Heat the cooking oil in a large pan with a lid, and once hot add the onions, carrots, celery, red and green peppers. Fry on a medium heat until all the vegetables are soft.
2. Add the garlic, bay leaves, chipotle pepper, oregano, paprika, cumin and ground beef and fry on a medium heat until the beef has lost all of its pinkness.
3. Add the tomatoes, molasses and brown sugar, and bring to the boil.
4. If you are using your wood stove, place a cast-iron trivet on the top of the wood stove, and then place the pan of chilli, with lid on, on the the rivet. If you are cooking on your stove top, turn down the heat to the minimum heat and put the lid on. If cooking the chilli in your oven, transfer the chilli to an oven-proof casserole dish with a lid and turn the oven down to its lowest setting. If using a Slow Cooker, transfer the chilli to the slow cooker and turn to the lowest setting.
5. Slow cook the chilli for 2/3/4 days, checking the liquid levels regularly and topping up with water if necessary.
6. Serve with rice, grated cheese, sour cream and chopped fresh cilantro.