I know how troublesome it can be to juggle between work Zoom calls and cooking a meal for yourself and the family. Most times I’ve had to resort to ordering in, but it does add it very quickly to expenses. On the look-out for hassle-free lunch recipes (that even keep for dinner or the next day’s lunch), I stumbled across this one-pot chilli recipe that requires minimal prep and only 15 minutes over the stove.
Chilli can easily be served with tacos, or over nachos with melted cheese, or enjoyed straight up on its own with a generous sprinkling of cheese. The best part of this Easy Chilli in 20 Minutes recipe is that besides the addition of minced beef, you can choose whatever add-ons you want, be it beans, sweet corn, capsicums, or jalapenos!
Your imagination’s the only limit, and since a single portion is a pot’s worth, you can freeze it for another meal; it’s the perfect solution for when you’re tight on time, but need to satiate a grumbling belly any time of the day.
Ingredients
- 1 large yellow onion, diced
- 1 can diced tomato, unstrained
- 1 can sweet corn, strained
- 1 can chilli beans, strained
- 800g minced beef
- 1 packet taco seasoning mix
- 2 bay leaves (optional)
Tools
- Chopping board
- Knife
- Can opener
- Pot
- Large spoon (for stirring) OR ladle
Recipe Preparation
Preparation time: 5 minutes; Cooking time: 15 minutes
Feeds six
- Peel and dice the yellow onion.
- Heat up a pot on the stove and add oil, just enough to cover the base of pot.
- Add in the diced yellow onions and stir till translucent and fragrant.
- Add in the minced beef and cook till most of the beef is light brown.
- Add in taco seasoning mix and stir well.
- Add in 1 can of diced tomato and continue to stir.
- Add in 1 can of chilli beans, followed by 1 can of sweet corn and mix all the ingredients well.
- (Optional) You may add some water if you find that the chilli is too dry.
- (Optional) At this point, you may add the 2 bay leaves.
- Leave the chilli simmering for 10 minutes, uncovered, and then do a final stir before switching off the stove. Let the pot stand for another 5 minutes before serving.
Recipe Preparation (In Pictures)
Step 1: Peel and dice the yellow onion.
Step 2: Heat up a pot on the stove and add oil, just enough to cover the base of pot.
Step 3: Add in the diced yellow onions and stir till translucent and fragrant.
Step 4: Add in the minced beef and cook till most of the beef is light brown.
Step 5: Add in taco seasoning mix and stir well.
Step 6: Add in 1 can of diced tomato and continue to stir.
Step 7: Add in 1 can of chilli beans, followed by 1 can of sweet corn and mix all the ingredients well.
Step 8: (Optional) You may add some water if you find that the chilli is too dry.
Step 9: (Optional) At this point, you may add the 2 bay leaves.
Step 10: Leave the chilli simmering for 10 minutes, uncovered, and then do a final stir before switching off the stove. Let the pot stand for another 5 minutes before serving.
I was honestly quite surprised by how good this Easy Chilli in 20 Minutes recipe turned out; the taco seasoning mix added just the right amount of salt and spiciness to the chilli. I didn’t feel the need to adjust the recipe at all. As for the corn and beans, they didn’t turn to mush, so I had an opportunity to enjoy a nice subtle crunch and sweetness from the corn and starchy bites from the chilli beans.
The addition of the bay leaf at the end also gave the chilli a robust taste, so if you can get your hands on some, I highly recommend throwing those in. I enjoyed the first half of my chilli with bread, allowing it to sop up all the rich juices, while for the second half, I sprinkled a generous dose of Parmesan cheese and enjoyed it as is.
Either way was just as good, and I still had plenty leftover to last me at least two more meals! This no-frills recipe only needed a dicing of onion and I was ready to start cooking, which saved me lots of time in terms of dishwashing as well.
The next time you’re short on time and ideas for breezy recipes that’ll satiate you, look no further than this fool-proof Easy Chilli in 20 Minutes creation.
Expected Damage: S$5 – S$7 per portion (feeds six pax)
