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COLUMN: Ilse Cooks the Books (Spicy beans and chilli fajitas)

───   15:18 Fri, 04 May 2018

COLUMN: Ilse Cooks the Books (Spicy beans and chilli fajitas) | News Article

It’s May, and by now the reality of the 1% VAT increase has truly hit home. Food is a major part of any household’s budget and what’s more, it’s not a nice to have, it’s a must-have!


That’s why I’m dedicating the month of May to budget-friendly recipes that taste delicious, are good for you and don’t contain expensive or special ingredients.

It’s a simple fact that meat is one of the most expensive items on your shopping list. South Africans are meat lovers and I won’t for a second urge you to become a vegetarian (or heavens forbid – a vegan), but we could all cut back on our red meat consumption;  not only for health reasons, but also for environmental and budgetary reasons.  Hence the worldwide trend of meat-free Mondays.

A meat-free meal doesn’t have to mean a taste-free meal.  Case in point:  The past weekend my sister, brother-in-law and dad came to visit us in Kimberley.  My sister is a vegetarian and on two occasions I made her a separate meat-free dish while the boys took over the braai.  One was a North African aubergine stew, where the aubergines are cooked wrapped in foil over the coals and then mixed into a delicious, rich tomato sauce.  The other was a vegetable potjie, while we were enjoying a chicken one.  On both occasions, we had to ask the men to stop eating her food and eat the boerewors, steaks and biltong pâté I so lovingly prepared!

One of the cheapest meat replacements, are beans.  Beans are extremely versatile and crazy good for you.  They are low in fat, a good source of iron and protein, an excellent source of iron and folate, and they are high in fibre.  One of my favourite ways of enjoying beans, are in dishes where you would usually use mince, like this week’s recipe.

5 NIGHTS A WEEK – SPICY BEAN AND CHILLI FAJITAS

5 Nights A Week is a lovely recipe book that I bought many years ago.  I’ve not seen it in the shops since, so it was probably one of those books that had a very short run on the bookshelves.  Nonetheless, it gives five recipes per chapter in different categories.  The bean and chilli fajitas are in the 5 Nights a Week Vegetarian section.  It’s a play on an American chilli, but with beans.  I served it up help-yourself style and it went down a treat!  You’ll need:

40 ml olive oil

1 onion, finely chopped

2 garlic cloves, crushed

1 red pepper, chopped

1 small red chilli, seeds removed, finely chopped (I used a seeds-in Jalapeno)

2 teaspoons ground cumin

190 jar sundried tomato pesto (or use a few chopped sundried tomatoes)

2 x 400 g cans of red kidney beans, drained (I don’t like kidney beans, I used a can of cannellini and a can of butter beans)

425 g can of chopped tomatoes

1 teaspoon of caster sugar (if you think the sauce needs it)

In a large, heavy-based saucepan, heat the oil over a low heat.  Add the onion and cook for 5 minutes, until soft.  Add the garlic, red pepper and chilli and cook, stirring for another minute or two.  Add the cumin, pesto (or sundried tomatoes), beans, tomatoes and sugar (if using).  Cook over a low heat for 15 minutes, until slightly reduced, stirring occasionally.  Season to taste.

Serve with tortillas for wrapping, guacamole, sour cream, a few thin slices of red onion, coriander, sour cream and grated cheese. 

I used a martini glass to cut the tortilla into smaller circles.  That makes it easier to compose the perfect bite!  

Follow me on Twitter (ilse123) or on Facebook (https://web.facebook.com/IlseCooksTheBooks/) to chat about food and more!

ooOoo





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