Chilli con carne is a staple dish at any family gathering - classically packed with meat, veggies and a whole array of spices. But TV chef Nigella Lawson claims one secret ingredient will elevate this home favourite to a whole new level - and it's probably the last thing you'd expect.
The 64-year-old food writer is already known for her wacky but delicious recipes - from banana skin curries, to parmesan cheese shortbreads, and this one certainly won't disappoint. Taking to her online blog, she unveiled: "The cornbread topping is a glorious golden touch, that everyone can crumble into the spiced meat as they eat, for ballast and crunchy contrast.
"It makes your life easier and the chilli better if you make the meat up in advance, adding the topping and baking the lot just before you serve." If you haven't heard of cornbread, it's pretty much what it says on the tin - a quick bread made from cornmeal that's quite popular in the US.
While you can buy fresh loaves of this at Whole Foods for £5.29, Nigella suggests her own simple recipe which requires just 10 ingredients. But before delving into that, she says it's important to start on the chilli itself first - and that all begins with four onions and two garlic cloves.
"Peel and finely chop the onions," she wrote in her recipe, serving 20 people. "You might want to use the processor here, and if so, add the peeled garlic or mince it by hand. Heat the oil in a very large pan — it has to take everything later — and fry the onion and garlic until they begin to soften."
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Two teaspoons of chilli flakes, ground coriander and cumin should then be added to the mix, followed by five bruised cardamom pods. This should be stirred continuously, while chopping two red peppers.
The 64-year-old food writer is already known for her wacky but delicious recipes - from banana skin curries, to parmesan cheese shortbreads (Toronto Star via Getty Images)Once diced, these need adding to the mixture too. She continued: "Break up [one and a half kilograms of] minced beef into the pan and, using a fork, keep turning it to separate it as the meat browns. It's hard to brown quite so much meat, so just do the best you can."
Believe it or not, Nigella then advises taking eight tablespoons of tomato ketchup and adding this to the sauce, followed by four 400-gram cans of chopped tomatoes and another eight tablespoons of tomato puree. Pouring two 400-gram cans of kidney beans and one cup of water will then almost finish off this mix, which should now be a vibrant red.
"When the chilli starts to boil, sprinkle over the cocoa and stir it in," Nigella explained. "Simmer partially covered for 1½ hours. At this point you can cool and freeze the chilli, or just keep it in the fridge — or a cool place — overnight."
This is when the cornbread comes into play. To start, you should whisk together 750 millilitres of buttermilk, four large eggs, two teaspoons of honey and four tablespoons of vegetable oil altogether.
A sprinkle of salt, 650 grams of cornmeal, four tablespoons of plain flour and six teaspoons of baking powder should then be stirred into this, forming a bright yellow batter. A little cinnamon can add some extra flavour too - and Nigella recommends two teaspoons.
She continued: "Pour the cornmeal topping over the chilli con carne, or blob it over to cover the top as evenly as possible. Don't worry if some of the chilli seeps through as this won't matter one tiny bit.
"Sprinkle the cheese (150 grams) over the top of the cornbread and then bake in the oven for 30 minutes or until the cornbread topping is risen and golden and the chilli underneath is bubbling." If you decide to freeze the chilli, this will take a little longer, so make sure to keep an eye out and judge on a case-by-case basis.
Once cooked, Nigella recommends serving this with guacamole, cheese and sour cream for some extra flavour. She added: "Divide the sour cream into another two bowls, and dust with a little paprika and, into yet another pair of bowls, grate the Cheddar so that people can take clumps and add the tangy cheese to their plates of guacamole and sour-cream splodged chilli."
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