Chilli non Carne

Serves 6 people with leftovers for another day or freezing   

Cooking time: 20 minutes plus 2 - 3 hours   

You can serve this with whatever you like, my family tend to like it with sour cream, guacamole, wraps, cheese and salsa and some rice so they can pick and choose! 

Ingredients
1 large onion, chopped
2 red peppers, cut into small chunks (optional)
4 cloves of garlic, chopped finely 
1 red chilli, chopped finely 
2 tsp chipotle chilli flakes 
1 tsp chilli powder 
2 tsp paprika 
4 tbsp tomato puree 
2 tins of tomatoes (chopped or whole) 
1 tsp instant coffee 
1 tsp grated chocolate 
2 tsp sugar 
1 vegetable stock pot or 1 tbsp of vegetable boullion 
500g non-meat mince or 2 tins of jackfruit, drained
Salt and pepper to taste 
1 tin of red kidney beans

Method
Get a large pan on a medium high heat and to the pan add an onion and fry for 2 minutes then add the bell pepper (if using) and cook until the onion is soft and translucent, 3-5 minutes.  Add the garlic and chilli and cook for a minute then add all of the spices and cook for a another minute followed by the tomato puree, stirring for a minute or so to cook out the raw taste.  Add the tinned tomatoes, coffee, grated chocolate, the sugar, stock pot and stir before adding the mince of choice. Taste and adjust the seasoning if needed remembering that the stock will add salt. 

Leave on a lowish heat for a long slow cook.  You want everything to soften and thicken and become unctuous and soft so ideally you want to leave it for a couple of hours, stirring from time to time.

 30 minutes before serving taste the chilli, if it is too sharp then add another tbsp of chocolate and half a tsp of sugar and check again.  Remember, tomatoes are acidic and there are so many different brands all with slightly different acid levels so what you need to add will vary.  Your sauce should not taste too sharp so you want just enough chocolate to take off the edge.  Add the kidney beans and leave for 30 minutes, check the seasoning before serving.