It's A Little Chilli (...Con Carne) Outside

I refuse to spend the month of January hungry.

According to my Instagram and Facebook, the majority of my friends are living strictly lettuce-only-lives over the forthcoming frosty weeks.

Now I'm all for eating healthy and everything, but come on! It's bloody freezing outside and a pile of iceberg is gonna do nothing but make me downright sorrowful.

Instead of repenting my Quality Street related sins like a good girl, I'm rebelling.

I'm going to chow down on a bowl of Chilli Con Charlotte and you're invited to join me!

Rich, packed full of flavour and totally home-made I don't want to hear a peep from you about having this as a 'cheat' meal. This is good-for-the-soul, proper winter grub.

Knock up a batch midweek and take the leftovers in for a corker of a packed lunch the next day. I promise you now, you're going to love it! 

To make enough for four servings, you're going to need:

800g tinned chopped tomatoes

400g kidney beans

1 can baked beans (I like Heinz Five Beans)

2 white onions, diced

2 red peppers, roughly chopped

2 garlic cloves, crushed

2 tbsp balsamic vinegar

Small bunch fresh coriander

2 heaped tsp cinnamon

3 heaped tsp ground cumin

3 heaped tsp chilli powder

3 heaped tsp paprika

500g lean minced beef

2 tablespoons brown sugar

Dollop of crème fraîche

I serve mine up with fluffy white rice & pitta's, jacket potatoes or salted corn chips.

In a big pan, drizzle in a little olive oil and add the chopped onions and garlic. After a minute or so, throw in the peppers and turn the heat down to medium.

When the peppers have softened, add the spices and season well. Drain the kidney beans and add them to the pot too, along with the baked beans and balsamic vinegar.

Give everything a stir and throw in your tomatoes. Fill one empty can up with water and add that too. Sprinkle in your sugar, pop on the lid and leave to simmer.

In a separate pan, brown your mince and season with salt and pepper. Begrudgingly drain off the excess oil and add the beef to the chilli sauce. Have a taste and adjust the spices accordingly. I always end up throwing in more chilli powder and cumin!

Pop the lid on and simmer for 45 minutes, giving it the occasional stir and taste test (very naughtily eat some and groan). Meanwhile, boil your rice and toast the pitta's.

Just before serving, sprinkle over the coriander and swirl in your crème fraîche.



Enjoy! And remember to keep some for tomorrow's lunch if you can stop yourself from devouring the whole pot. It really is the bomb diggity the next day.

Peanut Pork

Kate Moss once said that nothing tastes as good as skinny feels. Kate Moss clearly hadn't tried my Peanut Pork.

Sitting down for supper with a plate of charred meat dripping in a spicy, silky peanut sauce is my idea of heaven on a chilly mid-week evening.

You could be forgiven for associating satay sauce with chewy chicken sticks from your local Chinese takeaway, but times have changed, my friend. My Peanut Pork can be whipped up within the hour, feeds 2-3 people and is far less calorific than number 27. Especially without that free bag of prawn crackers.

To make your own Peanut Pork, you'll need:

500g free-range pork fillet

10 wooden skewers

For the marinade

150ml coconut cream

1tbsp finely grated fresh ginger

1 tbsp finely chopped lemongrass

1/2 two ground turmeric

2 tsp ground coriander seeds

2 tsp ground cumin seeds

A pinch of black pepper and salt

For the peanut sauce

3 x generous tablespoons of crunch peanut butter

1/2 red chilli, deseeded and finely chopped

2 x garlic cloves, crushed

2 tsp finely grated ginger

1/4 tsp ground turmeric

1 x tbsp honey

2 x tbsp soy sauce

50ml semi skimmed milk 

A squeeze of lemon juice

A sprinkle of peanuts (optional)

First up, fetch your fillet. You can find these decently priced in all big supermarkets. You want one which is ever so slightly marbled, the white fatty bits mean serious flavour. That said, dont be afraid to trim off any excess chub. Mrs Moss might be a culinary invalid, but she sure didn't get those abs eating crackling.

Next up, make your marinade. Chuck everything in a big bowl and add your meat in batches.

Make sure everything is nice and evenly coated in your creamy, spiced goo.

Cover with clingfilm and put to one side. The longer you can leave your pork to marinate, the better. If you're super organised and want to make it in advance, leave it in the fridge overnight. If you're making it at short notice, make sure it's at least had an hour to soak.
In the meantime, soak your skewers in cold water to stop them from burning in the pan. Scientific, hey? Just call me Heston, baby!

To make your peanut sauce, pop your peanut butter, chilli, garlic, ginger, spices, soy sauce, lemon juice and 50ml of water in a blender.

Whizz it all up until it's nice and smooth. Stir in your milk, drop by drop, until it becomes nice 'n' runny. Top with peanuts, stand back and perform a small triumph dance. This sauce is incredible. And it's really 'nut' so hard to make at all. So make the most of it.

Cover your sauce and defend it from any passerbyers with the force of three jiu-jiutsu warriors. 

Take your marinated pork out of the fridge and take a whiff. Smells good, right? You ain't seen nothin' yet, pal. Remove your skewers form their private pool and give them a wipe. Then, get a'skewering your pork.

In a sizzling hot griddle pan, lay down your pork. Leave it took cook for 4-5 minutes on each side or until it's brown and crispy all over. You really don't want to over cook it, so pay serious attention. Chewy pork is nasty.

Spoon over any leftover marinade as it cooks and give your skewers a twirl. When they're done, plate up and dig in. I served mine with a quick and easy tomato and chilli salsa and wholegrain rice.

 

Whatever way you do it, drizzle on your peanut sauce generously and scoff like there's no tomorrow. I'd love to know how yours turns out, tweet pictures to charlo_journo. Happy Peanut Porkin'!