It's been a while since I've posted a Chilli recipe, because if you've done one right before, you don't normally need to record a newer recipe. But sometimes I vary how I make it, and if it gets interest of social media friends, I'll record the recipe here, then share it!
I try as much as possible to purchase and use organic loose ingredients from my local eco friendly, organic and sustainable refill store. In my case OmNom Zero Waste on Wesley St in Southport, Lancashire.
Other than that, I'll use the odd cheap tin of stuff from my monthly online supermarket shop as fillers etc. Usually chopped tomatoes or jars of family sized passata or bolognese sauce etc.
I use a slow cooker, so cooking time is long, but means I can leave it unattended and rarely need to return to it, as I get on with other stuff.
I presoak dried ingredients like beans and legumes overnight, as they will bulk up and literally double up in size, and rinse them before putting in as the first ingredient in my slow cooker. The added heat of the bottom of the slow cooker helps cook the dried and then rehydrated ingredients quicker. Important for red kidney beans for example.
If you want to save time you can cook the slower ingredients separately in a pan and add later, or you can cook the whole lot in a casserole dish in your oven, but you will need to check the consistency and stir occasionally.
If you have a really big cooking pan, you could do it all step by step in there and monitor as it simmers and cooks etc.
This is my ingredients list in pretty much the order I add them. I get 8/9 takeaway size container portions out of this:
300g dry weight of organic red kidney beans (Must be soaked overnight)
300g dry weight of organic black beans (must be soaked overnight)
300g tin of good old baked beans.
400g/500g of dry weight butter beans (must be soaked overnight)
400g Dried organic red lentils (no need to soak overnight)
2 x 400g tins of chopped tomatoes
1 x 300g pack of chestnut mushrooms whole.
2 x large white onions, or red onions.
4-6 x Fresh red chillis (DESEEDED) You have been warned (I used 6).
2 x teaspoons of ground cumin
2 x teaspoons of chilli powder
2 x teaspoons of cumin seeds
3 x teaspoons of Lazy chopped garlic
2 x teaspoons of Lazy chopped chillis
2 x veg stock cube
1.5 pints of hot water with the all the above seasoning's mixed in, then poured over the other ingredients in the slow cooker, and give a quick stir, and put lid on.
Cook on high for as long as you need (3-4 hours in my case) give it a good stir, and give it a taste to check the hotness and overall flavour.
I found mine had a serious chilli kick, so I added a 600G jar of Dolmio passata/tomato based sauce, to tame the flavour a bit. And added half a pint of fairly weak consistency onion gravy mix.
After the first four hours it will usually all be simmering away, so you will need to keep checking and stirring to stop it sticking to your slow cooker etc.
I turned mine down and left it for another hour after checking the firmness of the kidney beans, for example, as they will be the hardest ingredient. You need to ensure these are cooked well. Once softened, the dish is ready to go.
Let it cool a bit and test the consistency. If it's too runny, then leave simmering for longer, or add some vegan gravy granules as a thickener and added flavour, I find an onion gravy one good normally, or the Red Bisto gravy granules.
Once cooled and thickened a little you can serve it, or start to put it in your storage containers etc.
I typically stick a few in my fridge once cold, and the rest in the freezer. Re heating only takes 4 mins in a microwave, and you can add more liquid if needed at this point. If frozen, defrost for 4–5 hours at room temperature or a minimum of 24hrs in the fridge, and microwave for 4–5 minutes, stirring halfway if possible.
Well good luck. Be careful with those fresh chillis, and enjoy!
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