Chilli con Carne

I had been rather quiet for a while. Work was busy and we were moving into a new house—with a larger kitchen—so there was little time for major culinary projects. Several good friends helped us move, and I served dinner: my version of chilli con carne. A friend had grown a large amount of chillies that needed using, and she asked for the recipe.

This can easily be made in a pressure cooker to reduce the cooking time, but it is not essential.

Chilli con carne

Ingredients – serves about 6

• 200 g bacon, preferably well smoked
• 300 g chicken breast
• 400–500 g beef chuck or other stewing beef
• 4 tins chopped tomatoes
• 4 tins beans in tomato sauce
• 4 tins kidney beans or mixed salad beans
• 6–8 spring onions, chopped
• 2 red peppers, cut into strips
• 2 glasses red wine
• 7 whole garlic bulbs
• Chilli to taste
• 5 tbsp ground cumin
• 4 tbsp smoked paprika, or 2–3 tbsp pimentón
• 500 ml water
• 6 tbsp olive oil
• Salt and pepper

Method

1. Preheat the oven to 175 °C. Cut the tops from six garlic bulbs, pour a tablespoon of olive oil over each, season, wrap in foil and bake for at least one hour.
2. Dice the bacon, chicken and beef. Cut the chicken into roughly 1.5 cm cubes and the beef into somewhat larger, 2.5 cm cubes.
3. Brown the meat in batches in a well-heated pot with a little oil. Do not overcrowd it. I start with the bacon to get as much flavour into the pot as possible.
4. Return all the meat to the pot, add the red wine and reduce over medium heat.
5. Add the tomatoes and beans. Split the remaining garlic bulb into cloves, remove the bitter shoots, roughly chop the garlic and add it.
6. Add the spring onions and peppers.
7. Add about half the chilli you expect to use, then adjust gradually. You can always add heat, but you cannot remove it.
8. Add the remaining spices and the water.
9. Cook very gently for a long time, with only the occasional bubble. I aim for at least four hours. Add more water if it becomes too thick; red wine or a strong beer also works well.
10. Season with salt, pepper and more chilli if needed.
11. Serve with the baked garlic, nachos, tortillas, sour cream and whatever else you fancy. Finely chopped red and green chilli is useful for anyone who wants more heat.

Enjoy.
Tore