One-Pot Mexican Beef Pasta
Here the pasta cooks directly in the sauce, together with the beef mince, tomatoes and spices. It takes on the flavours of cumin, paprika and oregano as it simmers, and at the end there’s only one pan to wash.
The base is Fody Arrabbiata Sauce, made from nothing more than tomatoes, olive oil, salt and chilli flakes. The flavour that onions would usually add comes from spring onion greens instead.
Method
- Heat the garlic-infused oil over a medium-high heat in a large, deep frying pan with a lid. Add the mince and brown it, breaking it up with a wooden spoon.
- When the meat is almost cooked, add the spring onion greens and ¼ tsp salt and fry for another 3 to 4 minutes, until the greens have softened.
- Stir in the paprika, chilli, cumin and oregano and toast for 1 minute.
- Add the tomato sauce, water and pasta, season with salt and pepper and bring to the boil. Turn down the heat, cover and simmer for 10 to 12 minutes, stirring now and then, until the pasta is al dente.
- Scatter the Cheddar over the top, put the lid back on and take the pan off the heat. After 2 to 3 minutes the cheese will have melted. If your pan is ovenproof, you can also brown the top briefly under the grill.
- Serve with soured cream and chopped coriander or parsley.
Tips
- Ready-made chilli and taco seasoning mixes often contain garlic or onion powder. Use single spices, or Fody Taco Seasoning, which contains chilli, paprika, cumin and oregano. It’s already salted, so leave any extra salt until the end.
- Gluten-free pasta releases a lot of starch and catches easily on the bottom of the pan. Stir regularly and add a splash of water if the sauce gets too thick.
