And the secret ingredient is…….chocolate! A colleague at the office who knows I love tasty food brought me this recipe – it was from an issue of Gourmet Traveller.

Serves 6

180g dried kidney beans, soaked overnight
¼ cup olive oil
1kg minced beef
2 chorizo, cut into 1cm pieces
500g pork shoulder, diced
1 onion, finely chopped
2 cloves garlic, finely chopped
1-2 fresh green jalapenos, thinly sliced
500ml beef stock
400g canned tomatoes
50g dark chocolate (70% cocoa) coarsely chopped
60ml malt vinegar
2 tbs dried oregano
1 cinnamon quill
1 tbs coriander seeds, toasted and finely ground
3 tsp cumin seeds, toasted and finely ground
1 tsp cayenne pepper
Ground chilli powder, to taste
½ cup coriander leaves
Soft tortillas, warmed, to serve
Sour cream, guacamole and lime wedges, to serve

Place kidney beans in a saucepan, cover with cold water, bring to the boil and cook for 20 minutes or until tender. Drain and set aside.

Heat 1 tbs olive oil in a large heavy-based saucepan over medium heat and cook mince, breaking up with the back of a spoon, for 5 mins or until brown, transfer to a plate. Add 1 tbs oil to saucepan, add chorizo and cook for 2 minutes or until starting to brown, add pork shoulder and cook for a further 5 minutes or until brown, then add to mince. Add remaining oil to pan, add onions, garlic and jalapenos and cook for 5 mins or until soft. Return meat to pan with stock, tomatoes, chocolate, vinegar, oregano and spices, season to taste with sea salt, freshly ground black pepper and ground chilli. Bring to the boil, reduce heat and simmer for 2 hours, stirring occasionally until pork is tender. Add beans and cook for another 20 minutes or until sauce is thick. Adjust seasoning and chilli to taste.

Serve scattered with coriander leaves, accompanied by guacamole, tortillas, sour cream and lime wedges.

Apologies for the crappy photo, which doesn’t actually look all that appetising…..forgot to take a pic before we ate it, so all I had was the leftovers in the pot. Trust me, this is a Memorable Meal.