This dish is a dish that just “isn’t quite”. Isn’t quite good, isn’t quite bad. Like a bootleg chili, 9-37: Ground Meat and Bean Dinner is a Simply Delicious mess of a dish that isn’t quite chili and isn’t quite a casserole. 🌶
Unusual flavors is an understatement. Apples, cloves and cinnamon are a very old school meat and flavor combination. The broadest definition of meat is a solid food so pretty much everything used to be called meat. Merriam Webster Dictionary features an archaic definition of meat: “the edible part of something as distinguished from its covering (as a husk or shell)”. Fruit meat, nut meat, vegetable meat, the fleshy part that provides sustenance is technically a meat under this really old definition.
Using canned bean meats (valid use of the word meat 👍) makes the dish come together quickly. My mother used to soak beans overnight and I do remember they taste differently, but canned beans are just easier.
I count 7 different kinds of meat that go into this dish: Tomato, apple, onion, pinto beans, black beans, red peppers, and turkey.
The one step I really disagree with is to cook the onion and meat at the same time. I tried it in the interest of this recipe, but ultimately it was a failure. The meat came out underdone and the onions didn’t sweat and color properly to gain good flavor. Next time, I would cook them separately, even if the card says to cook together, I will cook them separately.
Add the chopped tomato, apple, and olives (black instead of green).
I think I made a mistake on this step. I added 3 cups water instead of 1/3 cup water and the dish turned into a soup.
The beans were canned so I added them into the soup and cooked it on high heat to reduce the water out. The dish didn’t quite thicken up as expected, but overall it was edible. I strained out the sauce and served the chunky parts for the photo because it looked better that way.
My garnish makes no sense, but it added some color to this final product photo. This dish could use some acid so I did squeeze the lemon over the bowl, but it was not a step recommended by the editors of Simply Delicious. The leftovers of this dish made a hearty lunch for a few days. I’d try this dish again if I was desperate, but I would rather make chili instead.
GRADE: B-
