Baby Led Weaning Recipe: Chilli Con Carne

A baby led weaning chilli recipe, finally! Chilli con carne. It’s one of my go-to meals regardless of the time of year; it’s easy to make, filling, healthy and freezes like a dream. Best of all, it tastes even better re-heated when the flavours have had time to mingle even more. This chilli con carne recipe makes a great baby led weaning meal that’s also suitable for the entire family. We call it chilli but it’s more about the flavour than it being spicy, you can control that yourself with the heat level of the chilli powder. The addition of beans mean that it’s a really filling meal and packed full of good energy to get your child through the day… and you of course!

recipe chilli con carne

The recipe below includes ingredients that will add flavour if you’re serving it to all members of the household. If you’re intending to serve this to your baby as part of their baby led weaning journey then you may wish to remove the bacon and replace the stock cubes and baked beans with low salt/low sugar versions or remove them entirely.

This recipe shows beef but the mince can easily be swapped for turkey mince which gives a slightly chunkier texture for little hands, or for quorn if you’re looking for a vegetarian option.

Related post: Read our review of the Cosatto Noodle Supa Highchair

Baby Led Weaning: Chilli Con Carne

Chilli Con Carne (Feeds 4 adults)

You will need:

  • 500g lean mince (turkey or beef)
  • 4 rashers of bacon, roughly chopped*
  • One chopped onion
  • One tin of chopped tomatoes
  • One tin of kidney beans (drained and washed)
  • One tin of baked beans*
  • Two beef stock cubes*
  • One pint boiling water
  • 1 tsp chopped garlic/garlic puree
  • 1 tbsp tomato puree
  • 1 tbsp chilli powder
  • 1 tbsp Worcestershire sauce
  • Seasoning
  • Fry-light

To serve (for adults!):

  • Rice/Baked potato
  • Sour cream/Crème fraîche

Recipe:

  1. Spray pan with fry-light and brown off mince, breaking it into small chunks as you stir
  2. Once lightly browned, add the onion and bacon. Crumble one of the stock cubes over the top, stirring at regular intervals to prevent catching
  3. When both onion and bacon looks lightly cooked, mix the remaining stock cube with the pint of boiling water and pour the water into the pan
  4. Add all remaining ingredients and stir well
  5. Bring the pan to the boil before reducing the heat and allowing to simmer for 40-50 minutes, stirring occasionally to prevent burning
  6. If you’re planning to re-heat or freeze the mixture, leave it with a little excess liquid as this will cook off upon reheating. If you’re planning to eat it immediately, continue to cook until the liquid is reduced to a thick gravy consistency. You can always add additional hot water if required.
  7. Once thickened sufficiently, remove from heat and serve.
  8. Best served for babies with a small amount of rice and for adults with a side of rice or over a jacket potato and a generous dollop of sour cream/crème fraîche to stir through.

To freeze this dish, allow to cool completely prior to freezing. When re-heating, you can always ‘pad out’ the recipe by adding extra tins of tomatoes, beans and stock then allowing it to simmer down until thickened again.

For more baby led weaning recipes, you can find our favourites here! 

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Quick, tasty chilli con carne that's perfect as a family meal or for baby led weaning. Low fat, slimming world friendly and freezes well. Beef or turkey mince that's ideal for weaning babies, toddlers or just a midweek dinner idea. Also known as cowboy mince!

10 Comments

  • Jasmin N 4th April 2017 at 8:40 pm

    Great recipe! I’ll be definitely saving this for later use 🙂 thank you for sharing!

  • Nicole - thelittlestdarlings 4th April 2017 at 10:30 pm

    We’ve just started baby led weaning! Well a mixture of baby led and purée and this seems like a great recipe. I don’t like chilli but want to make sure that she eats things I don’t like too! Thank you!

  • That Mummy Blog 4th April 2017 at 10:55 pm

    Oooh, this looks scrummy! Love a good chilli con carne!

  • Isabella 5th April 2017 at 12:29 pm

    Love this! have been trying to find a baby friendly version of it as its one of our family favourite meals. Thank you for sharing! X

  • David Elliott 5th April 2017 at 6:35 pm

    This is a great recipe. My daughter loved chili even when she was a little girl. She still loves chili now and I am sure this would be great.

  • OddHogg 7th April 2017 at 10:34 pm

    Piglet loves chilli! I never thought someone so young would enjoy such strong flavours but I was so wrong. Thanks so much for linking up at #KCACOLS. Hope you come back again next Sunday

  • Alana - Burnished Chaos 13th April 2017 at 8:46 pm

    This looks great. I think my youngest would love this, I’ll have to give it a go. Thanks so much for linking up at #KCACOLS. Hope you come back again next Sunday

    • DevonMamaOnline 15th April 2017 at 3:54 pm

      It’s delicious! Let me know if you give it a go! x

  • Tracey Bowden 14th April 2017 at 8:39 pm

    I’ve not had chilli for years. But this recipe sounds like something I would enjoy so I should really make it one day soon for a different meal. #kcacols

  • Five Weaning Recipes - Foodies 100 21st June 2021 at 8:49 pm

    […] Chilli con carne is Hayley at Devon Mama’s suggestion for a weaning recipe. This is a great batch recipe, ideal for making, storing and serving when needed. […]

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