How to Make Chilli Beef Pasta Bake

My Chilli Beef Pasta Bake is proper comfort food and is a great dish to make for friends.

 Yummy spicy beef with pasta and melty cheese.....

 

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To Serve 4 you will need:

250g of cooked pasta - I used Tortiglioni

a good amount of grated Cheddar cheese

6 or so big spoonfuls of natural yogurt

also:

1 large onion - chopped

2 cloves garlic - finely chopped

1 red chilli - finely chopped - seeds left in

2 sprigs of thyme, leaves picked and roughly chopped

olive oil, for frying

500g good quality low fat minced beef

1 teaspoon ground cumin

2 teaspoon sweet paprika

1 teaspoon dried oregano

1 teaspoon of chilli powder

a pinch of crushed dried red chillies

400g can of good quality chopped tomatoes

100ml chicken stock made for a Knorr cube

a good amount of tomato puree - say 2 to 3 tablespoons

1 cinnamon stick

1 bay leaf

400g kidney beans, drained and rinsed

a good splash of balsamic vinegar

salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste

How to do it:

Preheat your oven to 200C/400F/Gas 6

In a large frying pan, brown the mince in a teeny bit of oil. In a separate smaller pan, cook the onion, garlic, chilli and thyme in a couple of glugs of oil.

Add the dried spices to the onion mixture and cook until it smells lovely.

Stir in the tomato puree and cook for another minute. Now add the browned beef and give it all a good stir.

Pour in the tin of tomatoes including the juice, and leave to cook down a little for about 5 to 10 minutes.

Pour in the chicken stock and throw in the cinnamon stick and bay leaf in then bring to the boil and then leave to simmer.

Once the sauce is beginning to thicken up nicely add the kidney beans and the balsamic vinegar. Leave to cook for another 5-10 minutes.

Have a taste and add salt and pepper to season, then remove the cinnamon and bay leave.

Add a quarter of the cooked pasta and give it a stir to coat with the meat sauce.

Tip the lot into a baking dish - mine was about 9x9 inches square.

Top with the rest of the pasta and dollop some natural yoghurt in a few places.

Sprinkle with grated cheddar cheese and loosely cover with kitchen foil.  Bake in the oven for about 30 minutes and then remove the foil.

Continue to bake for another 10 minutes of until it is nicely heated though.