Chilli Feast
Like mash, chilli was another staple of childhood dinners and to this day one of my absolute faves. The chilli was a stalwart of my dad’s repertoire. Like myself he had a talent for melting cheese, a once-a-generation type cheese melting talent – but beyond that he was a good cook so it is going to sound like I am slightly overstating his talents as a cook when I say that the secret ingredient to his famous chilli was ketchup, which is perhaps not the most innovative secret ingredient of all time. This version of chilli pushes the boat out somewhat with ale, coffee and chocolate for a rich, deeply unctuous sauce.
Serves 4-6.
--2 tablespoons rapeseed oil
--2 onions, diced
--3 garlic cloves, sliced
--500g beef mince
--300g diced beef steak in 1cm cubes
--2 tablespoons ground cumin
--2 tablespoons ground coriander
--2 teaspoons cayenne
--2 teaspoons dried oregano
--1 x 400g (14oz) can chopped tomatoes
--1 empty tomato can filled with dark ale
--50ml (13⁄4fl oz) shot of coffee
--2 tablespoons tomato paste
--2 tablespoons ketchup
--2 squares dark choc, (15g)
--1 tablespoon dark brown sugar
--1 can drained kidney beans
--1-2 teaspoons salt
--Sour cream and guacamole, to serve
Heat the oil in a large saucepan over a medium heat. Add the diced onions and the sliced garlic, and cook until softened. Increase the heat and add the mince and the cubed steak. Once the meat has browned, add the ground cumin, the ground coriander, the cayenne and the dried oregano, stir together and cook for about five minutes. Next add the chopped tomatoes, the dark ale, the shot of coffee, the tomato paste, the ketchup. Bring to the boil, then simmer for 30-45 minutes until the sauce has thickened. Stir in two squares dark chocolate, the dark brown sugar and the drained kidney beans. Check the seasoning with 1-2 teaspoons of salt and serve with the sour cream and guacamole.