Cook: Beef & Vegetable Chilli

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While chilli may not be the most photogenic dish, it is one of the tastiest. This recipe makes a huge batch, perfect for the freezer for lunches or easy evening meals.  I'll admit right now that this is very much my own take on chilli, and may not resemble traditional versions too closely. However, I think the addition of a bunch of vegetables can only be a good thing, right?

I love this recipe so much I thought it would be mean not to share it. If you use lean beef, it's also a healthy option. The great thing about this recipe is it's super versatile- you can swap in whatever you have in your fridge, and adjust it to your own preferences. I'd normally also include a tin of red kidney beans, but didn't have any in the cupboard.

Beef & Vegetable Chilli

Serves at least 6

500gm lean minced beef

2 tins chopped tomatoes

500ml beef or vegetable stock

1 onion

2 celery sticks

2 large carrots*

2 medium peppers*

1 large handful green beans

1 tin no salt added sweetcorn

1 tin black beans

1tbsp olive or vegetable oil (not shown)

1/2 tsp paprika

1/2 tsp ground chilli seeds

1/2 tsp cumin

1/2 tsp cayenne pepper

Chilli powder to taste (not shown)

Black pepper to taste (not shown)

1. Roughly chop the vegetables into 1in cubes. Keep in 3 piles: onion; carrots & celery; peppers & green beans.

2. In a large pan, sauté onions in the oil over medium to high heat. When partially softened, add half the beef and cook until beef is lightly browned. Remove from the pan. Brown the remaining beef (there will be enough fat in the pan from the first batch, you shouldn't need to add more oil), adding the celery & carrot to the pan when the beef is half cooked.

3. Add the beef & onion you set aside back to the pan. When the onions, carrots & celery start to soften, add the peppers & beans. Cook for 2-3 minutes.

4. Add the tinned tomatoes and stock to the pan and bring to the boil. Add spices and stir well- be careful not to add too much to start, as the flavours will develop. You can always add more, but it's difficult to take out 3 spoons of chilli once it's in!

5. Turn down the heat, cover and simmer for 25-30 minutes, or until the vegetables are fully softened, stirring occassionally. If it starts to dry out, add a small amount of water. 

6. Add the sweetcorn & black beans (drained and rinsed), and stir well. Check the level of spices, adding more if necessary. Simmer for a further 5-10 minutes, allowing the corn and beans to soak up the flavours.

Serve over rice and top with cheese, then freeze the leftovers.

What's your favourite go to freezer meal?

* I used 4 small carrots and 3 small green & red peppers, as that's all I had in the fridge.