Hidden Veggie Chipotle Taco Meat
By: Natalie (Perrys...
Published: Thursday, November 4, 2010 - 4:43pm

Ingredients




1 pound ground beef (grass-fed and organic, if possible)
1 red bell pepper, minced
1 small zucchini, minced
2 tablespoons dried minced onion (or ½ cup fresh chopped onion)
8 oz tomato sauce
1/2 teaspoon chipotle chile powder or 1- 2 chopped (seeds removed) chipot
4 oz can diced green chiles
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon coarsely ground black pepper
15 oz can black beans, drained and rinsed
1 cup frozen corn
1/2 cup chopped fresh cilantro

Preparation

1 Brown ground beef in a large skillet over medium-high heat. 2 Meanwhile, mince vegetables (food processor is really nice for this). When the beef is almost cooked through, add the minced pepper and zucchini. Cook for 3-4 more minutes until some of the liquid cooks out and the beef is cooked through. 3 Add diced onion, tomato sauce, chipotle powder, diced green chiles, salt, pepper, beans, corn, and 1/2 cup water. Cook another 4-5 minutes until about half of the liquid has cooked out and mixture is nice and saucy. 4 Stir in cilantro and keep warm until ready to serve.

About


1. You can substitute 1 T chili powder for chipotle powder if you don't have it or worry about it being too spicy.
2. You can substitute any number of vegetables for the bell pepper and zucchini, as long as they're minced very small. I used what I had on hand. Cauliflower, yellow squash, fresh spinach, grated carrots, cabbage, or even broccoli would work nicely. You would need about 2 cups of minced vegetables, total.
3. Frozen peas would sub well for the frozen corn.