Family favourite: Vegetarian chilli beans
Mexican food is often a favourite with the whole family. If your kids are fussy about spice, leave out the chilli powder initially, then add it little by little each time you cook the dish to increase their tolerance.
Time to prepare: 15 minutes
Cooking time: 4 minutes
Serves: 4
Ingredients:
½ red onion, chopped (use remainder for salsa)
1 red capsicum (pepper), seeds and membranes discarded, chopped
400g tin chopped tomatoes
1 tablespoon tomato paste (concentrated purée)
2 x 400g tins red kidney beans, drained and rinsed
3 teaspoons ground coriander
2 teaspoons ground cumin
½ teaspoon chilli powder
2 garlic cloves, crushed
2 dried bay leaves
125 ml good-quality vegetable stock
85g sour cream
2 tablespoons coriander (cilantro) leaves, coarsely chopped (optional)
flour tortillas or steamed rice, to serve (optional)
Avocado salsa
1 avocado, peeled and diced
2 tablespoons lemon juice
1 roma (plum) tomato, seeded and diced
½ red onion, thinly sliced
1–2 tablespoons olive oil
Directions:
1. Place the onion, capsicum, tomatoes, tomato paste and beans in the slow cooker. Add the ground coriander, cumin, chilli powder, garlic and bay leaves. Pour in the stock and stir to combine well. Cover and cook on low for 4 hours.
2. Put all the avocado salsa ingredients in a bowl and gently stir to combine. Season to taste with sea salt and freshly ground black pepper. Cover and refrigerate until required.
3. Spoon the chilli beans into bowls. Top with a dollop of the sour cream and scatter over the coriander, if using. Serve with the avocado salsa and tortillas or steamed rice, if desired.
Images and recipes from Slow Cooker Vegetarian by Katy Holder, Murdoch Books, RRP $29.99 Photography by Alan Benson