Healthy Chilli Con Carne
Easy midweek meals are my go-to for dinners. Meal planning is NOT my strength. If you’re anything like me, a quick, healthy chilli con carne with homemade bread, or even a bag of tortilla chips if time is really tight, is a winning dinner!
With ground beef, ground turkey, or ground chicken defrosted, or almost defrosted, you can have a healthy meal of chilli con carne ready in about 30 minutes.
Do you happen to have sourdough bread cold fermenting in the fridge? Pop that in the oven before you start the chili and you’ll have dinner on the table in less than an hour. No bread ready? Blue corn tortilla chips, or maybe some cornbread, will do just fine. My kids never balk at a dinner that involves bread or chips.
Try pulling out a portion of the soup before you add the spices, though, if you have picky eaters. I give my oldest, 7, plain kidney beans when we have chili night. So gross, but she loves it! And my youngest, 4, will get the soup without the spices. Making multiple dinners for picky eaters is just not my style, but I want to know my kids ate some nutrients at meal time, so I’ll tweak where I need to.
Pantry Staples for a Healthy Chilli Con Carne
I don’t know about you, but I buy the same things nearly every time I grocery shop. And a part of my “go-to” pantry staples are ingredients for this chili.
Keep your pantry stocked with canned chili beans, tomato paste, and chili seasoning mix. Sure, you can make your own chili seasoning, but I love my recipe because there is not a single measurement in sight. And chili mix packets are like $1, so it’s not going to break the bank!
You can pick any chili seasoning mix you like. I use low sodium, regular, and hot, all in different brands. The chili tastes great every single time.
Once you have these pantry staples, as long as you have the ground meat/poultry, onion and pepper, you’ve got yourself the ingredients for healthy chilli con carne.
Some chili recipes like to let the soup simmer for a while. If you’re short on time, once it’s fully cooked (about 30 minutes) you can eat! I have found zero difference between eating chili right away or letting it simmer for a few hours. I don’t do “hours” for dinner. Sourdough bread and bagels? Yep. Absolutely. But dinner? Heck to the no. Not a chance. But that’s just me!
No Chili Seasoning Mix?
I won’t leave you hanging if you don’t have a packet of seasoning mix. Instead, you can throw 2 tablespoons of chili powder, 1/2 Tablespoon of paprika, 1 teaspoon salt, 1 teaspoon onion powder, and 1/2 teaspoon of garlic powder into the pot when you toss in the beans. If you like your chilli con carne a bit spicy, use a full tablespoon of paprika.
Tips on Baking Bread for Quick and Healthy Meals
Homemade bread really kicks the quality factor up a notch when it comes to quick and easy meals, especially weeknights where time is of the essence. If you don’t have sourdough already going in the fridge, you may need a few more hours to plan out your bread.
I have found that starting an easy loaf of bread when I’m cleaning up lunch is a simple way to get homemade bread on the table for dinner.
Throw the flour, yeast, and water together and knead for 5 minutes, or better yet, throw the ingredients in the mixer and let it mix for 1 minute, pop it in a bowl to rise for an hour, form it into a ball or into a loaf, let it raise again, and then pop it in the oven when your kids are home from school and you’ve started the chili.
The more bread you make the faster you get! You can’t go wrong with bread (unless you’re counting carbs, and then nix the bread).
Healthy Chilli Con Carne
Ingredients
- 1 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
- 1 pound ground beef/turkey/chicken
- 1 medium chopped onion Any variety works. I use what I have in stock.
- 1 chopped bell pepper I prefer orange, red or yellow.
- 1 can chili beans
- 1 can tomato paste (6 oz)
- 1 chili packet
- 1 cup broth chicken, vegetable, beef – – it all works:)
- 1 tsp honey a quick squeeze of the bottle is fine. skip the measurement
- shredded cheddar cheese optional for topping, but a YES for me.
- avocado optional
Instructions
- Heat a soup pot on medium and add oil.
- Add the onion and pepper and cook about 5 minutes until soft.
- Add the ground beef/turkey and cook until fully cooked through, and no pink remains.
- Add in the paste, broth, beans, chili seasonings, and honey. Stir until fully mixed.
- Reduce the heat to low and stir occasionally for about 25 minutes.
- Optional: Top your serving with shredded cheddar cheese or avocado. I especially love avocado with lean ground turkey to boost the fat content up a bit.
Notes
