Name: Chilli con carne cottage pie
Total time: 1 h 20 min
Yield: Serves 6
Ingredients: 2 tsp rapeseed oil; 1 onion, finely chopped; 2 red peppers, deseeded and roughly chopped; 2 cloves garlic, crushed; 1 tsp ground cumin; 1 tsp mild chilli powder; 1 tsp paprika; 450g beef mince (5% fat); 400g tin chopped tomatoes; 400g tin kidney beans, rinsed and drained; 1 tbsp tomato purée; 1 tsp bouillon powder; 1 bay leaf; 1kg sweet potatoes, peeled and cut into chunks; ½ a small bunch coriander, roughly chopped

A cottage pie topped with sweet potato mash

2 tsp rapeseed oil
1 onion
finely chopped
2 red peppers
deseeded and roughly chopped
2 cloves garlic
crushed
1 tsp ground cumin
1 tsp mild chilli powder
1 tsp paprika
450g beef mince (5% fat)
400g tin chopped tomatoes
400g tin kidney beans
rinsed and drained
1 tbsp tomato purée
1 tsp bouillon powder
1 bay leaf
1kg sweet potatoes
peeled and cut into chunks
½ a small bunch coriander
roughly chopped

Method

step 1
Heat the oil in a large, deep frying pan over a medium heat, and cook the onion and peppers for 5 minutes until softened and the onions are translucent. Add the garlic and spices, and cook for a further 2 minutes until everything is well coated in the spices.
step 2
Add the beef and cook for 5 minutes, breaking it up with a spoon, until the meat is no longer pink and no large clumps remain. Turn up the heat if you need to – you want the meat to fry, not stew.
step 3
Add the tomatoes, beans and tomato purée. Half-fill the tomato tin with water and add it to the pan. Add the bouillon powder and bay leaf, and stir. Bring to the boil, reduce the heat and cover. Simmer for 20 minutes, stirring occasionally – it should be rich and saucy once done.
step 4
Meanwhile, bring a large pan of water to the boil and heat the oven to 200C/fan 180C/gas 6. Add the potatoes to the pan and cook for 15 minutes until tender. Drain well, add back to the pan and mash until smooth, seasoning well.
step 5
Add the mince to a 20cm x 27cm pie dish, removing the bay leaf. Top with the sweet potato mash, smoothing out evenly. Decorate the surface with a fork, if you like. Bake for 25-30 minutes or until slightly golden and the mince is bubbling. Serve scattered with the coriander.