Growing up, my mother struggled to get me to eat my greens, and if anything had even the slightest fleck of spice or herb, a food tantrum would ensue.  Over the years, I've managed to introduce so many vegetables and flavours into my diet that I'll now happily eat meals that contain purely vegetables without complaint.

This dish here is made with a whole host of leftover vegetables but the main star of this dish is the dried pinto beans which are a good staple to keep in stock for bulking out meat free dishes into cheap, nutritious and protein filled dinners.

INGREDIENTS

• 200g pinto beans
• 1 onion diced
• 2 x garlic cloves crushed
• 6 x mushrooms chopped
•  1 x carrot diced
• 1 x red pepper
• 400g tinned tomatoes
• 1x green birds eye chillies
• 1 tbsp oil
• 1-2 tsp chilli powder
• 2 tsp cumin
• 2 tsp ground coriander
• 300 ml veg stock
• 1 tsp oregano
• 1 bay leaf
• Sugar
• Salt and pepper

METHOD

Soak beans overnight & cook according to the packet instructions.

Meanwhile cook the onion and garlic for 2 mins before adding the spices and chilli and continuing to fry for a further 2 minutes

Add all of the other ingredients and cook for 2 mins before adding the vegetable stock. Stir well and scrape all of the spices off the bottom of pan.

Finally add the tomatoes, oregano and bay leaf, bring to boil, reduce heat and simmer for 10 minutes.