cute kitchen

This is another one of those perfect weeknight meals that is easy to put together and leaves everyone feeling satisfied. It’s a drier version of chilli con carne, there are no tomatoes in it but there’s still the sweetness from the tomato paste and the small addition of sugar.

I‘m only including the recipe for the meat mixture here. Make any type of salad that tickles your fancy to go along with it! Mine was crunchy lettuce leaves, baby spinach leaves, cucumber and cherry tomatoes. For the dressing I mixed 1 tsp. of black sesame paste with 2 tsp. of maple syrup. I then stirred in 2 Tbsp. of white wine vinegar and finally drizzled in olive oil, slowly, stirring until I got the consistency I was after (not too thick, not to watery!). Season to taste. You could definitely use tahini instead of the black sesame paste – I just prefer the earthy flavour of the black paste.

It’s very possible that this meal would serve four people but in my house it only serves three (luckily my daughter was out for dinner tonight.. 😊). Serve in any case with fluffy, hot basmati rice.

Ingredients for 3 big, or 4 normal eaters

2 onions, chopped into small cubes

2 Tbsp. olive oil

640g minced beef

3 Tbsp. tomato paste

3 Tbsp. balsamic vinegar

1 Tbsp. sugar

1tsp. each of the following:

ground cinnamon powder

ground cumin powder

ground coriander powder

330g chickpeas, drain well

400g black beans, drain well

15g flat leaf parsley, finely chopped

• fry the onion in the olive oil until soft and glassy looking but not browned

• stir in the minced beef. Cook for 5-6 minutes until well browned, stir regularly!

• add all 3 tsp. of the spice powders and stir until the beef and onion mix is well coated. Continue to stir for a couple of minutes.

• stir in tomato paste, balsamic vinegar and sugar. Stir well and then add the drained chickpeas and the drained black beans.

• stir every couple of minutes for the next 5-10 minutes until the beef looks nice and juicy. Season really well with salt, pepper and chilli flakes. Turn the heat off and stir through the chopped parsley before serving with rice and salad!