Chilli Con Crumpet

If pressed, this might be Crumpetman’s all-time favourite.

 

The freshness of the salsa and peppers complements the richness of the chilli and bacon, with the toasty crumpet providing the ultimate platform.

Given the effort involved, it's worth doing a fair quantity of the chilli, if you have friends or a freezer.

 

Preparation: 30 mins Serves: 18 crumpets
Cooking: 3 hours Cold-buttered crumpets
Ingredients Quantity (metric) Quantity (imperial)
Chilli
Minced beef (10% fat) 1 kg 2.2 lb
Medium white onions (finely chopped) 2 2
Celery stalks (finely chopped) 3 3
Large red chillis (de-seeded and finely chopped) 4 4
Olive oil 2 tbsp 2 tbsp
Ground coriander 1 tsp 1 tsp
Ground cumin 1.5 tsp 1.5 tsp
Oregano (dried is fine) 2 tbsp 2 tbsp
Hot chilli powder 1 tbsp 1 tbsp
Soft dark brown sugar 2 tsp 2 tsp
Salt and pepper Plenty Plenty
Tomato puree 2 tbsp 2 tbsp
Worcestershire sauce 2 tbsp 2 tbsp
Chopped tomatoes (tinned) 800g 1.75 lb
Kidney beans 400g 14 oz
Borlotti beans 400 g 14 oz
Haricot beans 400 g 14 oz
Beef stock 300 ml 10.5 floz
Fresh coriander (finely chopped) 30 g 1 oz
Salsa
Tomato (de-seeded and finely chopped) 4 4
Avocado (cored, peeled and finely chopped) 2 2
Red onion (peeled and finely chopped) 1 1
Large red chilli (de-seeded and finely chopped) 2 2
Fresh coriander (finely chopped) 30 g 1 oz
Lime juice 1 lime 1 lime
Salt and pepper Plenty Plenty
Accompaniments
Crispy streaky smoked free-range bacon 12-18 rashers 12-18 rashers
Red or yellow pepper (chopped) 1 1
Cheese (grated or sliced) Plenty Plenty

METHOD

      The chilli

      1. Put the olive oil in a large non-stick casserole pan and gently fry the onions, celery and chillis for about 10 minutes, until soft.
      2. Add the mince, turn up the heat and fry until the beef is browned off and the liquid has been absorbed, mixing well along the way. This can take about 30 minutes: be patient as the chilli will be much nicer if you see this through.
      3. Add in the ground coriander, cumin, oregano, hot chilli powder, sugar, salt and pepper and tomato puree, and mix well.
      4. Then add the Worcestershire Sauce, chopped tomatoes and beef stock, bring to the boil, cover with a lid, then simmer for about 2 hours.
      5. Rinse the beans thoroughly in cold water, using a colander, and add them to the mix about 30 minutes before the end, to allow them to warm up and absorb the flavours.
      6. Sprinkle over the fresh coriander immediately before serving.

      The salsa

      1. Mix together the salsa ingredients, adding the lime immediately after the avocado to stop the avocado browning.
      2. The salsa benefits from its own company for a few minutes before serving.

      The crumpets

      1. The toppings have plenty of moisture, so unbuttered crumpets work equally well, but hot bacon on cold butter is particularly lovely.
      2. Our preferred order of assembly is: bacon, salsa, chilli, peppers, cheese.
      3. The topping are obviously a matter of personal preference. Pimp your heart out.

OTHER NOTES

Don't forget to use bacon from happy pigs, or karma might come to bite you on the arse.

Helen Browning smoked streaky bacon is probably our number one.