Don't be chilly - warm up with a chili

Vegetarian chili with grilled polenta

Why should meat-eaters have all the fun? Get the kick of chili spices and rich sauce, just without the beef. The vegetables soak up the flavours and make a lighter but just as tasty alternative.

Prep Time: 40 minutes
Cooking Time: 1 1/2 hours (includes making and grilling the polenta)

2 tbsp vegetable oil
1 large red onion, roughly chopped
2 cloves garlic, chopped
2 tbsp ground cumin
1 tbsp chilli powder, or less, depending on taste
2 tspn ground coriander
pinch of ground allspice
2 tbsp dried oregano
2 400g tins chopped tomatoes
400ml vegetable stock (best made with a dark vegetable concentrate)
1 tbsp tomato puree
2 celery stalks, chopped in 1cm chunks
2 courgettes, halved lengthways and cut in 1cm chunks
1 red pepper, deseeded and roughly chopped
1 green pepper, deseeded and roughly chopped
200g mushrooms, quartered
1 400g (240g drained weight) mixed beans, drained and rinsed
salt

For the grilled polenta:
425ml vegetable stock
100g polenta
75g grated Cheddar cheese
salt and pepper
2 tbsp chopped fresh chives
oil

First make the polenta. Bring the stock to a boil in a medium saucepan and slowly stir in the polenta. Bring back to the boil, stir continuously until it becomes quite thick, about one minute. Remove from the heat and season with salt and pepper, stir in the cheese and chives.

Lay a sheet of cling film on a baking tray or small roasting tin and brush lightly with oil. Spread the polenta evenly over the cling film, about 1cm thick and set aside to cool.

For the chili, heat the oil in a large saucepan and fry the onion over a medium heat until soft and just beginning to colour, about 10 minutes. Add the garlic and fry another minute or so. Add the cumin, chilli powder, coriander, allspice and oregano and fry for one minute, then add the tomatoes, stock and puree. Bring to a boil, then simmer, uncovered for 20 minutes until slightly reduced.

Add all the vegetables, cover and cook another 30 minutes, stirring occasionally, until the vegetables are tender. Add the beans and cook another 5 minutes, taste for seasoning and add salt if necessary.

Turn the polenta over onto a cutting board, remove the cling film and cut into triangles, about 5-7cm each side. Heat a ridged grill pan or frying pan. Brush the polenta triangles with a little oil and fry until golden on both sides and completely heated through. Serve with the chili.

As always, this chili can be served on white or brown rice.