Exclusive Recipe from Justine Drake in our MOM & WOW Diaries 2026: Chilli Con Carne

From the MOM & WOW Diaries 2026

Comforting, hearty and most importantly, filling.

This Chilli Con Carne is one of those dependable family dinners that ticks all the boxes: warming, flavour packed, and easy to stretch when you need it to feed a few extra mouths.

It’s brilliant served as bowl food over rice, but just as good spooned into wraps, pita breads or fresh rolls. And if you’d like to make it go even further, simply add dried lentils when you add the mince, or toss in a couple of cans of drained lentils. Budget friendly, fibre rich and still deeply satisfying.

Straight from our MOM & WOW Diaries 2026, this is comfort cooking made simple.

Chilli Con Carne

Serves 6 to 8

Ingredients

Olive and seed oil blend for frying
1 large onion, finely chopped
3 cloves garlic, crushed
2 whole chillies, slit down the middle
1 red pepper, diced (optional)
500 g lean beef mince
2 tsp (10 ml) beef stock powder
2 tsp (10 ml) ground cumin
2 tsp (10 ml) ground coriander
2 tsp (10 ml) smoked paprika
1 to 2 tsp chilli powder (adjust to taste)
1 Tbsp (15 ml) tomato paste
1 can (400 g) chopped tomatoes
1 cup (250 ml) water
1 tsp (5 ml) sugar
Salt and milled pepper to taste
Good few shakes of Worcestershire sauce
1 can (400 g) kidney beans, drained and rinsed
1 can (400 g) corn kernels, rinsed and drained

Method

Heat oil in a large pot over medium heat.

Fry onion until soft, about 3 minutes. Stir in garlic and red pepper and cook for 2 minutes.

Add mince, breaking it apart with a wooden spoon as you stir. Cook until browned, then add stock powder and spices and stir well.

Add tomato paste, chopped tomatoes, water, sugar, seasoning and Worcestershire sauce. Bring to the boil, reduce heat, cover and simmer for 30 minutes, longer if you have the time.

Add beans and corn and simmer for another 20 to 30 minutes.

Serve over bowls of rice or however you prefer, with toppings on the side like sour cream or yoghurt, fresh chilli, pickled jalapeno, chopped avo, coriander or crumbled nachos.

Flavour Notes

I use whole chillies to keep things mild, then serve with fresh chilli for extra kick. If you prefer more heat, add chopped chilli with the garlic.

For extra depth of flavour (and to feel a little cheffy), drop in a block or two of dark chocolate while it simmers.