Autumn heralds the start of what I like to call ‘big pot’ cooking.
I’m sure you know what I mean; those lovely big casseroles filled with all manner of slow-and-low-cooked things.
After the relatively fast and furious food of summer, all open flames and super-quick sizzles, it’s nice to relax a bit and let the oven do some of the legwork.
This is the time of year for pot-roasts, braising and stewing. Now is when we should be starting to ask our butcher for those cuts of meat that take a little more time and attention to cook to perfection. Pork shoulder, lamb shanks, beef brisket, that sort of thing, perfect for tucking into a big pot along with some root vegetables, a few herbs and a big splash of wine, then shutting away in a low oven and forgetting about for a few hours.
I love these dishes, partly because they’re quick and simple, but mainly because their flavour is so satisfying.
The slow-cooking process really gets the maximum flavour out of the tastiest cuts of meat and helps relax the tougher parts into melting tenderness. Nothing satisfies quite like a rich boeuf bourguignon, or a Lancashire hotpot, rich and succulent, brought to the table steaming merrily. It’s sociable grub of the highest calibre.
And so is this week’s recipe, a soup-ified version of the classic chili con carne. There are so many recipes for this dish it’s almost impossible to find the definitive one.
Many people think, wrongly, that it’s a Mexican dish, and while the genetic code of the recipe certainly comes from Central American cooking, it’s actually a Texan creation, originally a sort of meatloaf made for rehydrating and cooking in pots for sustaining long wagon-train journeys.
Since then it’s become a worldwide hit – a rich concoction of minced and/or chopped beef with onions, garlic and peppers with hot chili and spices, simmered slowly with tomatoes and beans.
My personal preference is for a combination of minced steak and some chopped, seared sirloin, along with plenty of cumin, a good kick of chili heat and the last-minute addition of a little 100% cocoa chocolate (if you can find it) which intensifies the flavours and adds that Mexican influence I’m after.
I’m sure, like me, you have a personal favourite recipe to work from, so please feel free to use that. Just add a little more tomato and stock and you have your soup.
Along with our chili soup, we’re making some simple cornbread – a classic accompaniment. While regular bread is perfectly acceptable with chili (sourdough loaves are especially good) the sweetness and texture of cornbread is absolutely spot-on – it soaks up the juices incredibly well, and that rich, slightly tart flavour marries up well with the intensity of the soup.
Cornbread aficionados will know that no loaf or muffin is complete without a generous slathering of butter, and I’d been wanting to try out a recipe for a burnt tomato version for a while. It seemed just the ticket to accompany this dish – a thick paste of over-roasted tomato bound with salted butter and chilled, it adds a further dimension of flavour to this already super-tasty warming supper dish.
Try to give the chili a night in the fridge, too. Like all stews, it prefers a night’s slumber to allow the flavours to mingle and develop.
With November approaching at alarming speed, this is a great one to remember for bonfire night, too. It’d be a great bowlful to watch the fireworks with – a real banger!
FOR THE SOUP:
2 tbsps olive oil
1 small onion, finely chopped
1 stick celery, finely chopped
4 garlic cloves, minced
1 red pepper, seeded and finely chopped
1 green pepper, seeded and finely chopped
1 large tin red kidney beans, drained
400g tinned chopped plum tomatoes
2 tbsps tomato purée
1 litre beef or chicken stock
large pinch of dried chili flakes (optional)
2 tsp ground cumin
500g minced steak
275g sirloin or rump steak, diced
50g very dark chocolate (at least 85% cocoa)
A handful of fresh coriander
A few hot chili peppers, sliced very thinly (optional)
FOR THE CORNBREAD:
240g plain flour
240g fine cornmeal or polenta
2 tablespoons baking powder
2 teaspoons Maldon salt
4 medium eggs
570ml buttermilk
200ml milk
100g butter, melted and cooled
FOR THE BURNT TOMATO BUTTER:
450g ripe tomatoes
4 cloves of garlic, minced
A little olive oil
230g unsalted butter, diced, at room temperature
Maldon salt and freshly-ground black pepper
EXTRAS:
Muffin tins or a suitable cake pan for the cornbread
A little soured cream, for garnish
METHOD:
To make the soup, heat a little olive oil in a saucepan, and add the onion, garlic and celery. Cook slowly until translucent and ever so slightly golden. Add the chili flakes and cumin and cook for a few minutes to allow the spices to warm and release their oils. Add the chopped peppers, the kidney beans, the tomatoes, purée and the stock and bring the pan to the boil. Lower the heat to a gentle simmer. Set a dry frying pan on a high heat, and sizzle the minced beef in small batches until well-coloured. Tip into the soup as you go. Finally, sizzle the diced steak until very well browned, and tip that in too. Add the chocolate and let the whole thing simmer for about 30-45 minutes. Test for seasoning, adjust to your taste, and add the chopped coriander.
For the tomato butter, reheat the oven to 220 °C / Gas 7. In a suitable baking tray, mix together the tomatoes and garlic. Drizzle a good slug of olive oil over the tomatoes and garlic, along with a splash of lemon juice and a little salt and pepper. Mix well then roast the tomatoes for at least 45 minutes, stirring occasionally, until the tomatoes are deeply roasted and almost blackened. Remove from the oven and tip into a sieve over a bowl.
Using a rubber spatula or the back of a spoon, press the tomato flesh through the sieve, getting every scrap. Let the tomato paste cool then scrape into a food processor and whizz until you get a very smooth puree. Add the butter in small chunks and process until completely mixed, scraping down the sides of the food processor once or twice. Spoon into a suitable jar or tub, or roll into a sausage-shape in clingfilm, and refrigerate until you’re ready to serve.
Now for the cornbread. Lightly grease the muffin tins (or cake pan). Heat the oven to 200°C / Gas 6. Combine the flour, polenta, baking powder and the salt in a mixing bowl. In another bowl, beat the eggs into the buttermilk, and then add the milk and the melted butter, whisking until amalgamated. Pour the egg mixture into the dry ingredients and stir to a smooth batter. Pour into the tin/s and bake for 20-25 minutes (a little longer for the large tin) until risen slightly and golden brown. The cornbread should be just beginning to pull away from the sides of the tin. Allow the muffins to cool a little before turning out. They will freeze very well, and can be reheated by wrapping in foil in a medium oven for 20 minutes or so.
To serve, warm the cornbread, and serve with a good smear of tomato butter alongside a big bowl of the fiery soup with a swirl of soured cream and a few slivers of chili.
