Monday 4 February 2008

Chili Con Carne Pie

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I guess you could call this is a Mexican take on a Shepherd's Pie. I love the way the tumeric makes the potatoes yellow.

I'll post the recipe as I found it in Lesley Water's Healthy Food cookbook, but I usually play around with it a little by sometimes adding peppers, or sweetcorn or some chipotle chilies for a lovely smoky heat. Replacing half the meat you'd normally use with lentils not only adds extra fibre, it also makes it healthier.

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Chili Con Carne Pie

For the Chili:
1 tbsp olive oil
1 onion, finely chopped
1 garlic clove, crushed
1/2 lb ground beef, extra lean
2 red chilies, deseeded and chopped finely
1 tsp ground cumin
1 tbsp red pepper tapenade
400gr can chopped tomatoes
1/2 pint vegetable stock
100gr puy lentils
400gr can red kidney beans, drained
15gr ounce plain dark chocolate, roughly chopped
salt, to taste
pepper, to taste

For the Mash Topping:
2 lbs potatoes, peeled and cubed
3 tbsp 1% low-fat milk
1 tsp turmeric
2 tbsp fresh coriander, chopped

Fry the onion and garlic for about five minutes in a little olive oil over medium heat.

Increase the heat and add the ground beef, stirring continuously until browned, about 5 minutes.

Add the chillies and cumin and continue to fry for one minute.

Mix in the chopped tomatoes, tapenade, stock, lentils and beans and bring to the boil, reduce heat and simmer for about 30 minutes.

Stir in the chocolate and season with salt and pepper, if you feel it needs more heat you can add some chilli powder or hot sauce.

While the chilli is simmering, cook your potatoes until tender.

Mash with the milk, tumeric and cilantro. Season to taste.

Place the chilli into an ovenproof dish and top with the mash, without smoothing it down too much.

Place under a preheated grill for 5-10 minutes until the top is golden brown and crisp.

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1 comment:

Amanda at Little Foodies said...

Chilli Con Carne Pie, delicious!