Chili Chicken Soft Tacos

Chili is the icon Tex-Mex dish in the US. It is a dish that is considered so comforting that many crave and yearn for it often. It is one of those unique, addictive dishes that keep you going back for more but, not only the taste is excellent, it is so fast, lean and easy to make.

When I had my delicatessen in London, chili con carne was my best-selling food, no matter how much I cooked of it, the pot was gone by the end of the afternoon. This chicken chili is simpler, faster and dry, easily consumed in a taco.

It is truly a winning, pure, mouth-watering and hearty dish, that is the perfect option when feeding a crowd or running on little time. It is easy to prepare, scrummy and is very cost-effective, especially when you increase the amount of beans in it.

Hot and spicy is the traditional version, but hay that is only for the strong at heart. One can adjust the heat and spices to their liking and enjoy it in a soft tortilla topped with salsa pico di gallo, sour cream and guacamole or even coleslaw.

You can serve it accompanied with steamed rice or with roast sweet potatoes (as in my vegetarian chili recipe). My favourite way of enjoying this chili, is with plenty of ripped crusty country bread and of course extra chilies.

This recipe is diabetic friendly if you reduce the amount of beans by half.

Servings: 5

Preparation Time: 3 minutes

Start to finish: 15 minutes

Ingredients:

400 grams ground chicken

250 grams kidney beans, cooked

1/4 green pepper

1 onion

1 teaspoon cumin

1 teaspoon coriander powder

1 teaspoon black pepper

1/2 teaspoon paprika

4 tablespoons tomato paste

1 teaspoon garlic powder

2 tablespoons olive oil

1 tablespoon salt

1/4 cup water

Red chilli pepper (optional)

Handful of chopped coriander

Method:

· Dice the onion and green peppers and sauté with olive oil in a pan of high heat for one minute.

· Stir in the chicken, salt, cumin, coriander powder and garlic powder and mix for a few minutes until the chicken is no longer pink.

· Add tomato paste, paprika, black pepper, the water and the drained kidney beans and cook for a further 5 to 8 minutes. The minced chicken hardly takes time to cook.

· Adjust the salt to your liking and add the chopped coriander.

· Serve with flour tortilla, sour cream, avocado or guacamole, salsa pico di gallo, shredded lettuce and lime.

Notes:

· Any minced meat can be used.

· Can be frozen in a sealed container up to 3 months.

· May be consumed with rice or country bread instead of the soft tortilla.

· If you are diabetic, reduce the beans by half.

Per Serving for the chicken chili: 316 Calories; 13g Fat (37.6% calories from fat); 30g Protein; 19g Carbohydrate; 5g Dietary Fiber; 75mg Cholesterol; 1459mg Sodium.