Bean and Chunky Vegetable Chilli

Beans are a versatile ingredient and a great way to get a meat-free protein hit. We use a variety of beans on their own or pair with vegetables for a satisfying.

For the optimum result (great flavour, low budget) we use dried beans but canned beans are also fine.

Ingredients

500g dried red kidney beans
1 large carrot, peeled and cut into thick half moon slices
1 large courgette, cut into thick half moon slices
1 red pepper, roughly chopped
1 yellow pepper, roughly chopped
1 565g tin of peeled plum tomatoes, blended to sauce consistency
400ml water
1 tbls extra virgin olive oil
1 large onion, finely iced
2 cloves garlic chopped
2 large red chillies, finely sliced
1 tsp red chili flakes (optional - we like it hot!)
1tsp cumin powder
1 tsp dried oregano
1tbls red wine vinegar
salt and pepper

Soak the kidney beans in water overnight then simmer in unsalted water for 1.5-2hr until tender. Drain and diving into 2. Use half for this recipe and freeze the reminder for future use.

Heat the oil in a pan, add the onions, reduce the heat and cover the pan with a lid to sweat the onions for 10 minutes. Add the garlic, chilli, oregano, cumin and chilli flakes (if using). Stir and heat for 2 minutes. Add the carrots, courgettes, kidney beans and blended plum tomatoes and water. Stir through, layer the chopped peppers on the top, cover and simmer for 25 minutes. The vegetables should be tender and the sauce thickened.Stir the chilli to mix the peppers through and check the seasoning. Add the red wine vinegar, stir and cook for a further 5 minutes. Serve with brown rice or crusty bread.


If using beans only try a mix of pinto beans, navy beans, black beans and chick peas and add at the same time as the kidney beans.