One Pot Meal: Nigella Lawson’s Cornbread Topped Chili Con Carne

Ingredients

For the Chili
• 4 tablespoons olive oil
• 4 onions, finely chopped
• 2 cloves garlic, minced
• 2 teaspoons dried or crushed chili flakes
• 2 teaspoons ground coriander
• 2 teaspoons ground cumin
• 5 cardamom pods, bruised
• 2 red peppers, seeded and finely diced
• 3 pounds 4 ounces ground beef
• 7 cups canned chopped tomatoes
• 1/2 cup tomato ketchup
• 1/2 cup tomato puree
• 1 cup water
• 2 tablespoons cocoa (DO NOT LEAVE OUT!!!)
• 3 1/2 cups canned red kidney beans
For the Cornbread:
• 1 1/2 teaspoons salt
• 4 cups cornmeal
• 1/4 cup all-purpose flour
• 6 teaspoons baking powder
• 2 teaspoons ground cinnamon (See reviews / Might want to reduce)
• 3 cups buttermilk
• 4 eggs
• 2 teaspoons honey
• 1/4 cup vegetable oil
• 2 cups grated Cheddar
Serving suggestion:
• 2 cups sour cream
• Ground paprika, for dusting
• 3 3/4 cups grated Cheddar
• Special equipment: Very large pan

Directions

For the Chili:
1. In a large pan or dutch oven, heat the oil and sauté the onion and garlic until softened.
2. Add the chili, coriander, cumin, and crushed cardamom pods and stir well.
3. Add the peppers then break up the ground beef into the pan and, using a fork, keep turning it to separate it as the meat browns.
4. Add the chopped tomatoes, ketchup, tomato puree, and water stirring to make a rich red sauce.
5. When the chili starts to bubble, stir in the cocoa.
6. Add the beans and simmer partially covered for 1 1/2 hours.
7. At this point, you can cool and freeze the chili, or just keep it in the refrigerator overnight.
Melding the Chili and Cornbread:
8. Preheat the oven to 425 degrees F.
9. Pour the chili into a large, wide dish or keep in the pan you cooked it in if it is ovenproof.
10. Either prepare the cornbread mix if you are going to take a shortcut, adding the cheddar and honey to it or prepare it from scratch.
11. Combine the salt, cornmeal, flour, baking powder, and cinnamon in a bowl.
12. Whisk together the buttermilk, eggs, honey, and oil in a bowl and stir into the dry ingredients.
13. Pour the cornmeal topping over the chili con carne, taking care to spread over the top as evenly as possible.
14. Sprinkle the cheese over the top of the cornbread.
15. Bake in the oven for 30 - 40 minutes or until the cornbread topping is risen and golden and the chili underneath is bubbling. How long this takes depends on the how cold or hot the chili was when it went into the oven.
16. Let the chili stand for about 5 minutes once out of the oven before cutting the cornbread top into squares or slices to serve with a helping of chili underneath.
17. Top with your favorite topping of choice, whether it's paprika dusted sour cream, some grated sharp cheddar or even some guacamole.
18. Enjoy!

Notes

http://cookinginstilettos.com/one-pot-meal-nigella-lawsons-cornbread-topped-chili-con-carne/

This recipe was featured at Cooking In Stilettos.com and, unless otherwise noted and attributed, retains the copyright.