Jamie Oliver amazing veggie chilli

It seems more and more people are cutting down on meals with meat in these days, whether that is for health reasons or environmental reasons, I can't help thinking that introducing more vegetarian meals into your diet can only be a good thing. I am certainly eating more meat free dishes, and with all the wonderful recipes out there I certainly don't miss meat in the meals. Any one watching Jamie Olivers new series Meat Free Meals will see the care and attention he bestows on all of the dishes to make sure they are cooked as lovingly as roasting a prime piece of meat. This dish is from the new cookbook and I have made it a couple of times now. I haven't felt the need for the rice and the tortillas as I feel the addition of the potatoes is enough carbohydrates with the meal. But if your have a larger appetite go for it. The only thing I would say is instead of adding water, maybe add stock for a little more flavour and a bit of tomato puree. I added the water both times and just felt it needed a little something more flavourwise.

Ingredients Serves 4 2 red onions 2 sweet potatoes (250g each) 3 mixed-colour peppers 4 large ripe tomatoes olive oil 1 tsp cumin seeds 1 tsp smoked paprika 4 cloves of garlic 1 lemon 1 x 400g tin cannellini beans hot chilli sauce 250g black rice 1 bunch (30g) fresh mint 4 small flour tortillas 4 tbsp natural yoghurt

Method

Preheat a griddle pan to high. Peel the onions, scrub the sweet potatoes and deseed the peppers. Cut off a small chunk of each and put aside with one tomato (this is for the salsa later). Roughly chop the rest of the veg into 4cm chunks and halve the remaining tomatoes, then chargrill, working in batches.

Drizzle 1 tablespoon of oil into a large casserole pan over a medium-low heat and stir in the cumin and paprika. Peel, roughly chop and add the garlic, finely grate in the lemon zest, and add the grilled veg bit by bit as they’re ready, stirring regularly. Tip in the beans (juices and all), and 1½ tins’ worth of water, then add around 1 tablespoon of chilli sauce (or to your liking). Season with sea salt and black pepper and simmer for 30 minutes, or until thickened and reduced. Meanwhile, cook the rice in a pan of boiling salted water according to the packet instructions. Pick 2 sprigs of mint leaves and very finely chop with the salsa veg, then toss with the lemon juice and season to taste with salt and pepper.

Warm the tortillas on the griddle and ripple a good few shakes of chilli sauce through the yoghurt. Serve the chilli with the black rice, salsa, yoghurt and tortillas, and pick over the mint leaves. Enjoy!