A little bit of spice but more of a mellow kick – this Chilli con Carne recipe is lovely (if I do say so myself). It’s not so hot that the children will complain, but the heat is still there.
This is a simple recipe that you can pop into the pan, then leave to simmer – not much effort but excellent results. It still surprises me why many families choose to cheat when making a Chilli con Carne. You only need a few spices and, once you own them, you can use them again and again in many other dishes.
I like to leave the chilli for 10 minutes or so after cooking with a lid on. Not only does this give the food a chance to cool down slightly, it also allows the flavours of the spices to mix in properly with the meat.
This is a dinner that I love to batch cook (just double up on all the ingredients) and I freeze half of it. The flavours get even deeper after being in the freezer and it has even more of a kick once it’s defrosted and reheated.
You can buy a chilli stir in sauce for £1.58 or a packet mix for a slightly more reasonable 98p – but why do you need to when you can make it from scratch at a fraction of the price?!
- 500g minced beef (£2)
- 1 diced onion (6p)
- 1 pepper, chopped (33p)
- 1tsp cumin (8p)
- 1tsp chilli powder (6p)
- 1tsp paprika (6p)
- 1tsp mixed herbs (2p)
- 1 tin chopped tomatoes (31p)
- 1 beef stock cube mixed with 300ml hot water (2p)
- 1 tin kidney beans (23p)
- 1tbsp oil (2p)
- 280g rice (11p)
- Heat the oil in a pan and add the onion.
- Once the onion has softened, mix in the spices and cook for a few minutes.
- Add the peppers then the minced beef and cook until the mince is browned.
- Stir in the tomatoes and stock, reduce the heat and cook for 20 minutes.
- Drain the kidney beans, add to the chilli and cook for 10 more minutes.
- Start to cook the rice
- Remove the chilli from the heat, cover and leave to absorb the flavours of the spice until the rice is ready.
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Ricky Willis is the original Skint Dad. A money-making enthusiast, father, and husband to Naomi. He is always looking for unique ways to earn a little extra.
I love chilli con carne! As my boys don’t like beans much, I bung in a can of mixed pulses or the smaller black eyed peas, and add worc sauce and cayenne pepper for more bite! I love your philosophy – low cost food is so much healthier. Frozen veg can also help to keep costs down by being quicker to prepare than calling for a take-out. Frozen onions are my saviour….!