I’ve never been to Mexico, so I can’t be sure that this chilli con carne tastes authentic, but it is really delicious (if I do say so myself!).

Think rich and thick beefy stew. With a beautiful red-ish colour from the tomato and paprika. And those lovely red kidney beans just adding a little something extra.

Chilli con carne is surprisingly easy to make, a bit like making a bolognese sauce. The main difference is the heat (chilli con carne literally means chilli with meat) and the red kidney beans. However, the heat can be tamed down. This recipe is quite mild, but feel free to add more chilli powder!

How to Make the Chilli Con Carne

I said it, and I’ll say it again! It’s not hard.

Chilli con carne can make a great weeknight dinner – and can even be used for a dish like enchiladas or quesadillas (more on that later!).

To make this great dish, start by heating up the olive oil in a pot over medium heat. Add the onion and fry until translucent and soft. 

Add the garlic and let it fry for just a minute or so (so it doesn’t burn) before adding the beef mince. Turn the heat up to high and quickly brown the mince, making sure to break up the clumps with your spatula.

Once you have browned the mince, add in the chopped tomatoes, strained tomatoes, tomato paste, salt and pepper to taste, paprika, chilli powder, optional whole chilli, origanum, beef stock powder, and boiling water if using. Yup, just chuck in 90% of the ingredients in a go!

About the boiling water; it’s optional. If you want a thicker, richer sauce you can leave it out, as I did. Otherwise, add it in for a bit more of a runnier, saucier sauce! I would go for the first option if you’re planning on using the sauce for enchiladas, quesadillas, or you just like thick sauces!

As for the chilli and chilli powder; how much or how little you add is completely up to you. Here, I only added ½ a teaspoon of chilli powder and kept the chilli whole. This made quite a mild sauce, so not really chilli con carne! To spice it up, double up on the chilli powder or chop up the chilli. Or both!

Once the chilli con carne comes to a boil, turn the heat down to the lowest and cover. Simmer until the mince is tender and delicious! 

Finally, add the red kidney beans and simmer for an extra 5-10 minutes, just to heat them up.

Serving & Storing

My-oh-my, are there a lot of options when it comes to serving chilli con carne!

You can have it on rice, in a burrito, in enchiladas, in quesadillas, in tacos, on nachos. And the list goes on!

Here are a ‘few’ ideas of what to serve the it with:

• Starch: white rice, tacos, potatoes, wraps/tortillas, nachos, pita bread, corn/maize, naan (like this wholewheat naan)
• Dairy: sour cream, yoghurt, grated cheddar, smooth cottage cheese
• Veg/dips: sliced avo/guacamole, finely chopped tomato/tomato salsa
• Garnish: thinly sliced jalapeno, fresh coriander

So much to choose from! I love how each topping adds a little twist and flavour profile, all coming together in one of the yummiest dishes ever.

As if it could get any better, chilli con carne also stores really well. 

You can pop the leftovers in the fridge and heat them up over the next few days.

Chilli con carne also freezes fantastically. Just put it into a container and into the deep freezer. To heat it up, just allow it to defrost and heat it up on the stovetop or in the microwave.

Don’t be shy! You could even double up the recipe and freeze a whole batch. That way, you’ll have dinner sorted on a really busy day.