Main dish
Nigella's Cheesy Chilli recipe
Jump to recipeMy go-to chilli recipe. Easy, delicious and adaptable. This recipe introduced me to the idea of adding chorizo to chilli and I'm very grateful.
- Prep15m
- Cook30m
- Total45m
Nigella's Cheesy Chilli is a favourite but I often find myself changing it, sometimes bulking it up with lentils, sometimes leaving out the cheese. Whatever I do, it's consistently good because of the chorizo. Chorizo in chilli is a wonderful idea.
The extras that I add are onion, garlic and black beans (in addition to kidney beans). Low fat mince (around 5% fat) works well and Cheddar cheese is fine in place of mozzarella. Occasionally I double the recipe but still use the same amount of beef (500g), adding tinned lentils and more beans in place of the meat.
The chilli can be made up to 2 days in advance (without the cheese) and freezes well.
Recipe credit
Kitchen (affiliate link) by Nigella Lawson.
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Recipe
Nigella's Cheesy Chilli
- Prep15m
- Cook30m
- Total45m
Serves: 6
Ingredients
- 1 tbsp olive oil
- 1 red onion, chopped
- 2 cloves of garlic, chopped
- 3-4 inch chunk chorizo, diced
- 500g beef mince
- ½ tsp cocoa powder
- 1 tsp dried oregano
- 1 tbsp sun-dried tomato paste (or a few chopped sun-dried tomatoes or tomato purée)
- 1 tin chopped tomatoes (400g)
- 125ml water (swilled from the empty tomato tin)
- 2 tsp Worcestershire sauce
- 1 tin kidney beans (drained)
- salt and pepper
- 2 balls of mozzarella cheese
- Small handful fresh coriander, chopped (optional)
Method
- Place a large heavy-based casserole pan or large saucepan (one that comes with a lid) over a medium heat and add 1 tablespoon of olive oil.
- Add 1 chopped onion to the pan and fry for a few minutes then add 2 chopped garlic cloves and fry until the garlic starts to colour.
- Add diced chorizo (from a 3-4 inch chunk of sausage) to the pan and fry until the chorizo releases its orange oil then add 500g of beef mince, breaking it up in the pan.
- Once the mince no longer looks raw, add ½ teaspoon of cocoa powder, 1 teaspoon of dried oregano and 1 tablespoon of sun-dried tomato paste. Stir well then add 1 tin of chopped tomatoes, 125ml water (swilled out from the tomato tin), 2 teaspoons of Worcestershire sauce and 1 tin of drained kidney beans. (If I'm using extra lentils and beans I add them to the pan now.)
- Allow to come to a bubble, turn down the heat, put the lid on the pan and simmer for 20 minutes.
- Taste and season with salt and pepper.
- At this point you can allow the chilli to cool or, if using it straightaway, turn off the heat, tear over 2 balls of mozzarella and optionally sprinkle with chopped coriander. Serve with rice, tortillas or baked potatoes.
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