My new Under $25 recipe is inspired by a naked burrito dish you can get from most Mexican joints. Essentially, it’s a deconstructed burrito with paleo friendly substitutes like sweet potato instead of rice and beans. I roasted sweet potatoes with cumin and sweet paprika and made a salsa salad with roasted red peppers and cucumber as well as tomatoes.

The idea behind my Under $25 series is to provide recipes for substantial meals that can feed four people or two people with lunch leftovers. All of the recipes are calculated based on the amount of each ingredient used and the assumption that you will already have some basic seasoning. Check out these Under $25 recipes for Chicken Artichoke Tagine and Beef & Porcini Shepherds Pie. Full cost breakdown is below the recipe, please note that the cost will differ depending on your location so use this as a guide only.

IngredientsFor Mexican chili beef

• 650-700gm beef mince, grass fed if possible
• 1 medium white onion, diced
• 1 long red chili, diced with seeds
• 1 can diced tomatoes or tomato passata, about 400gm
• 4 garlic cloves, finely diced
• 1 1/2 tsp sweet paprika
• 2 tsp cumin powder (you can grind whole cumin seeds)
• 1 tsp coriander seeds powder (you can grind whole coriander seeds)
• 1 tsp turmeric powder
• 1 tbsp ghee
• 1-2 tsp Celtic salt or sea salt (I used 2 tsp but if you need to cut back on salt due to hypertension or whatever other reason, please use just 1 teaspoon)

For roasted sweet potatoes

• 2 large sweet potatoes, cut in cubes
• 1 tsp smoked or sweet paprika, I used smoked paprika
• 1/2 tsp cumin powder
• A good pinch of black paper
• A good pinch of sea salt
• 2 tbsp olive oil
  
  

For salsa salad

• 2 tomatoes, cut in quarters, seeds scooped out
• 2/3 cup diced roasted red peppers ( I used marinated roasted red peppers from a jar, which I rinsed before dicing. I like the acidity they bring to the dish and I save time by not having to roast them myself but feel free to make your own if time permits)
  
  
• 1 medium cucumber, diced
• 1/2 cup diced spring/green onion, about 2-3 springs
• 1/2 cup chopped coriander, leaves and stalks
• 1/2 lime, juice only
• 1 small garlic clove, finely chopped
• 1 small red chili chopped or chili flakes to your heat taste
• 2 tbsp olive oil
• A pinch of sea salt

Instructions

1. Heat 1 tabslepoon of ghee in a large, deep frying pan or a casserole dish. Sautee onion until soft and golden. At the same time turn the oven to 200C (390F).
2. Bring the heat back to high and add beef mince in small chunks. Stir and cook until browned on all sides, about 5-7 minutes. At this time I peel and cut the sweet potatoe – it’s all about efficiency. Remember to stir and break the beef apart regularly at the same time.
3. Add spices, garlic, salt and chili to the beef and cook for a couple of minutes. Add diced tomatoes and a little water, about half a cup, stir and bring to boil. Then turn to low-medium heat and cook for 25 minutes, stirring occasionally.
4. Once beef is under way, mix sweet potato cubes with sweet paprika, cumin and olive oil and scatter in a large baking tray. Bake for 15 minutes at 190C.  Take out of the oven, sprinkle with a generous pinch of sea salt and pepper, toss around and put back in the oven for a further 5 minutes.
5. Final step is to prepare the salsa salad. Dice tomatoes, cucumbers and red peppers, add chopped coriander, garlic, spring onion and chili and season with lime juice, sea salt and olive oil. Mix together well and set side until serving.
6. Cut avocado into quarters and drizzle with some lime juice to prevent  discolouration. Once everything is ready, divide between four bowls and serve with a quarter avocado each.

Preparation time: 15 minutes

Cooking time: 30 minutes

Number of servings : 4

Cost breakdown

700gm beef mince $8-9 ($12-14 per 1kg), 2 sweet potatoes $2, 1 can diced tomatoes $1, 2 fresh tomatoes $2, 1  medium cucumber $1, 2 small roasted red peppers $1 (full jar $), 1/2 cup fresh coriander $0.5, 1/2 cup spring onion $0.5, garlic $0.3, onion $0.5, chili $0.5, 1 lime $0.8, olive oil $1, ghee $0.3, spices $2.5 (loosely based on amount used), 1 x avocado $2.Total: $25-ish

Source:
http://eatdrinkpaleo.com.au/under-25-mexican-naked-burrito/ 

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