Craig's Runners Up Chilli Recipe

Before the kids came along, I used to host an annual chilli cookoff for my mates.

Everybody brought a pot to share, and we worked through them one by one, grading each on five characteristics with different weightings.

The gradings were based on flavour, heat, texture, X-factor and "is it a chilli?". The first three are pretty self-explanatory, but the last two might need some explanation.

X-factor was something I threw in to try and even things up. It had the highest weighting and was intended to create some chaos in the ratings.

The last one was added because the first time I did this, someone entered a cob loaf and came third. That was purely because it got such high X-factor ratings!

I never actually won one of these cookoffs, but I came second every year. First prize for most consistent!

So - here's my Runners Up Chilli Recipe. The method is quite important as we're developing flavour and complexity at every step. I consider it part-way between a Chilli and a Mole as the flavour is pretty sophisticated.

This is a Sunday afternoon recipe, not a quick mid-week meal after work!

Presentation is not my strong suit...

Ingredients:

800g beef mince

Oil for frying (I use macadamia)

3-5 tbsp mexican spice mix by Weigh 'n Pay

3-4 dried mexican chillies of choice (I use chipotle, ancho & guajillo)

1 shot of coffee

1 brown onion diced

4 garlic cloves minced

1-2 fresh paprika diced

1 red capsicum diced

3-4 fresh peppers/chillies diced (if you can find them, try IGA/Farmer Jacks... sometimes even Coles)

Big bundle of fresh coriander (seperate stems from leaves)

3 tbsp tomato paste

800g crushed tomatoes

85g red kidney beans - soaked overnight & cooked for one hour (or one tin)

1 tbsp beef stock concentrate

150-400ml water.

Ingredients in italics available from Weigh 'n Pay!

Method:

1. Heat a fry pan over med-high heat, add a good drizzle of oil and then add mince. Quickly break up the mince over the surface of the pan and do not touch for 3-4 mins. You should see lots of brown bits on the bottom and almost cooked through to the top. Sprinkle over the mexican spice blend and start breaking it up further.

   
   

2. Finish cooking beef such that it is broken apart with lots of crusty brown bits (maillard). Set aside mince and be sure to save all the oil and brown bits too.

   
   

3. Meanwhile, place dried mexican chillies into a mug and pour coffee shot over the top. Add a bit of boiling water so that the chillies are covered by halfway.

   
   

4. Heat a large pot over medium heat, add a drizzle of oil and then in with the onion, garlic, fresh paprika, capsicum and fresh peppers. Cook for 5-7 mins with the lid on until everything softens a bit. Add coriander stems and cook for futher 1-2 mins.

   
   

5. In with the browned mince, tomato paste, crushed tomatoes, kidney beans, stock concentrate, & whole chilli/coffee mix. Bring to a simmer and then reduce heat so it's bubbling gently.

   
   

6. Cook for 1-2 hours with the lid cracked. Stir regularly and top up with water as necessary.

   
   

7. Stir through fresh coriander leaves right before serving (reserve some for garnish). Pull out any whole chillies you don't want to bite into.

   
   

8. Serve with rice or baked potatoes, corn chips, sour cream and a simple guac.

Craig's mate Leigh - the inaugral winner! Craig made a nacho hat using masa lista, a few cake tins and Bump In Burger's deep fryer. Fun!