A Mexican twist on a Maltese Favourite

Something that every little Maltese girl is likely to tell you, is that her Nanna (grandmother) makes the world's best Ross Fil-Forn (Maltese for baked rice). This was certainly true for me - my grandmother makes the tastiest, most moist and cheesiest baked rice I've ever eaten. And although Baked Rice was one of the first Maltese dishes that I learnt how to cook when I started university, I've never been able to get anywhere close to replicating Nanna's ability. And even now, I'm put off making this super tasty dish because boyfriend complains about it being boring and rather tasteless. Not something someone who has slaved away in the kitchen all day likes hearing.

So recently I decided that I felt like making Baked Rice but, with these thoughts in mind, I also decided that it needed a distinctly flavourful twist to it. And that's when I came up with the idea of creating a Mexican-style chilli con carne Baked Rice. All the greatness of Maltese cooking, with a spicy Mexican twist.

The recipe below describes how I made this but, if you don't want to follow the Mexican route, you can make the Maltese version of this by simply not putting any of the Chilli spices into the original sauce. But to all you Maltese out there, I definitely recommend giving it a try. It comes delicious!

A Myriad of Spices 

Chilli con Ross Fil-Forn

(see what I did there?)

Chilli con carne sauce:

minced beef

onion

garlic

HP sauce

chocolate powder

mixed herbs

paprika

cayenne pepper

cumin

turmeric

Cinammon & Cayenne Pepper - a miracle combo

ground cinnamon

carrots

kidney beans

chopped tomatoes

chilli peppers

Other ingredients:

white rice

two eggs

grated cheese (cheddar will do)

Method

First make the chilli sauce. Add chopped onions to a hot saucepan with oil in it, and sauté until soft. Add garlic, chilli peppers and then minced beef, stirring until all the mince is browned. Add about a tablespoon of all the spices (a bit less in terms of turmeric and cinnamon). Also add a table spoon of chocolate powder (just do it! trust me!) and a squirt of brown sauce.

Onions, garlic and chillis - the most delightful smell

Mix these all together, then add the carrots and chopped tomatoes. Mix and bring to a boil before letting it simmer for a while. This would be a good point to give it a taste and see if any further spices are needed (I like my chilli to have a powerful depth). Add some seasoning, the kidney beans, stir and allow to cool.

Chilli sauce completed!

While the sauce is cooling, put the rice in a deep baking dish. Add the eggs and whisk, making sure they are fully integrated with the rice. This is important, as the egg causes the dish to solidify, rather than remaining a soggy mess of chilli sauce and rice. 

Rice, with a dash of cinnamon

Rice mixed with egg

After the egg has been mixed in, add some cold water to the dish. This is needed for the rice to cook properly and prevent the dish from drying up.

Looks a bit weird at this point, but needs be done

Finally, add the chilli con carne sauce to the mix, and stir until properly combined. Then grate half the cheese over the dish, stir it in, then grate the rest of the cheese over the top. This is now ready to go in the oven at about 180 degrees celsius.

Sauce all added - beginning to look more consumable!

Pre-oven

After about half an hour, it is recommended that you get the dish out and stir it through again to mix the heat around. It should be solidifying by this point but you should still be able to stir it fairly easily. Leave it in for about an hour total and then allow it to cool slightly before serving up. And trust me, it will be worth the wait!

And after this, boyfriend has never complained about my Ross Fil-Forn again!

An hour later, golden and delicious

Bon Appetito!