Friday night is CHILI night in the Green Eatz household. A new version is created each week, sometimes extra hot and spicy, sometimes mild and tasty. But always vegetarian! If you fancy an all-vegetable and bean chili, have a look at my recipe for Black Bean and Squash Chili.

Ingredients

  • 1 onion
  • 2 sticks celery
  • 2 cloves garlic
  • 1 tablespoon olive oil
  • 2 habaneros
  • 2 serranos
  • 2 teaspoons cumin
  • 2 teaspoons paprika
  • 2 teaspoons chile powder
  • 2 teaspoons dried oregano
  • 1 to 1 1/2 cups vegetarian grounds/mince or substitute with Jackfruit
  • 1/2 cup cherry tomatoes
  • 1 tin chopped tomatoes
  • 1 tin red kidney beans
  • 1/4 cup chopped cilantro/fresh coriander

Method

  1. Roughly chop the onions and celery and mince the garlic cloves
  2. Fry onion, celery and garlic gently in the olive oil until onion is translucent
  3. Finely chop the fresh chiles
  4. Add the cumin, paprika, chile powder and fresh chiles and stir-fry together for a few minutes
  5. Halve the cherry tomatoes and add to pan with the tin of tomatoes
  6. Heat until simmering gently
  7. Add the kidney beans and heat until simmering again
  8. Add 1 cup of the vegetarian grounds and heat until simmering (or jackfruit)
  9. Simmer gently for 10 minutes and check consistency
  10. Add more grounds for a chunkier texture or more tomatoes to add liquid
  11. Add the oregano and simmer for another 15 minutes
  12. Roughly chop the cilantro with scissors
  13. Just before serving, stir in the chopped cilantro

Serves 4


Chili spices

The trick to making a spicy chili is finding good quality spices and fresh chile peppers. In Australia, Herbie’s Spices are the best whilst here in the US it is best to track down the Mexican shelves in your supermarket.

Vegetarian grounds or mince also have very different properties…some expand on cooking and others absorb a lot of liquid. Make sure you add gradually to the recipe, and adjust accordingly to get the right chunky texture. Quorn grounds have exactly the right consistency, but be warned that it is not vegan as it contains free-range egg. Jackfruit is also an option – you can find it in most supermarkets in the chilled section.

Nutrition facts: chile peppers contain high levels of vitamin A and C. The tasty component capsaicin not only gives it heat but also anti-inflammatory and pain-killing properties.