Mums vegetarian chilli

Now this is something that takes me back to my childhood! My mum makes such a good veggie chilli...so you have her to thank for this! This is a great one to make for meal prep as it freezes really well, it's full of natural goodness, the kidney beans form a good source of natural protein whilst still being naturally low-fat. Also, if you are coeliac you can substitute the rice for cauliflower rice/quinoa/jacket potato or roasted sweet potato (and if you have any other suggestions I'd love to hear from you!!). There is one secret ingredient in this dish....CHOCOLATE!!

You will need:

1 x brown onion, diced

2 x cloves of garlic, crushed

1 x courgette (zucchini), sliced

1 x red pepper, roughly chopped

1 x yellow pepper

1 x large red chilli sliced

10 x button mushrooms, quartered

10 cherry tomatoes, whole

 400g of chopped tinned tomatoes

400g of passata

1 tbsp of tomato paste

1-2 tsp chilli powder or flakes

3-4 squares of plain dark chocolate or a sprinkling of cocoa

Brown rice**optional

Herbs: I used chopped parsley and topped with spinach

Seasoning

Serves 4-6

Method:

  • Preheat your oven to 150 degrees C.

  • In a deep pan cook off the onion and garlic in oil (I like olive or coconut oil).

  • Add in the fresh chilli, courgette and mushrooms and cook for a few minutes before adding in the red and yellow peppers. Cook off for a few minutes.

  • Add in the tomato paste, chilli powder, red kidney beans, passata and the chopped tomatoes. Give it a good stir and add some salt and pepper.

  • Add in the cherry tomatoes.

  • If the ingredients are not all covered by the sauce then top up the mixture with filtered water.

  • Add in the kidney beans and the chocolate.

  • Cook for a good 10 minutes and be careful it doesn't reduce too much. Taste and add more chilli or seasoning if necessary.

  • Transfer the mixture into a lidded baking dish and pop in the oven. Cook for 30 - 45 minutes on 150 degrees...be careful it doesn't reduce too much (check it every 15 minutes). **see notes for a quicker cooking option.

  • Pour the chilli over brown rice (or any of the other suggestions above).

  • Season to taste.

  • Serve with fresh herbs and spinach.

  • Enjoy x x

Notes: 

  • I find this is a dish that gets better with age! By cooking it in the oven I find the flavours combine really well and the sauce reduces to a nice thick consistency, however this is not necessary if you are in a rush you can just continue to cook it on the hob for an extra 10 minutes at least (so 20 minutes in total). I don't think the end result is as nice and rich, but I understand that sometimes we just don't have the time!

  • This is awesome the next day and can be frozen into batches for your freezer stock.

  • Feel free to add in extra pulses such as lentils and chickpeas.

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