Bored of regular chilli? Then turn it into a pasta bake, with this delicious Mexican Pasta Bake - yum!!
You love chilli right? and you love a pasta bake? Well this Mexican Pasta Bake is just for you.
Rich tomatoey beef chilli with kidney beans (or black beans if you prefer), mixed with pasta and topped with cheese and then baked in the oven till it is all melted - delicious!!
Great served with a mixed salad or some vegetables of your choice. Hey if you are really hungry you could even make some Perfect Chips
This would also be delicious with some sour cream on top. Have I ever mentioned I LOVE sour cream. Especially with Mexican food.
If you want a vegetarian version of this, you can swap out the ground beef for lentils or a meat substitute, or instead use my Sweet Potato, Vegetable and Lentil Chilli
This dish is perfect for freezing and suitable for those who are gluten free if you use a gluten free pasta.
When we have this as a family meal, I serve in the middle of the table with some chopped tomatoes and low fat sour cream. But you can save the calories by using a fat free greek yoghurt seasoned with some salt and a little fresh lime juice. It would also be great with some avocado or guacamole for an additional few calories too.
So many great ways to serve this Mexican Pasta Bake. How will you enjoy yours?
Recipe Card
Mexican Pasta Bake
This recipe is gluten free, vegetarian Weight Watchers friendly
WW Smart Points - 15
Ingredients
- 450g (1lb) of extra lean ground beef
- 1 small onion, finely chopped
- 2 cloves of garlic, crushed
- 1 red pepper, chopped
- 1 orange pepper, finely chopped
- 1 tin of kidney beans (or black beans), drained
- 360ml (1.5 cups) of passata
- 480ml (2 cups) of stock (vegetable or chicken)
- 2 tablespoons of tomato paste
- 1 tablespoon of chilli powder
- 2 teaspoon of cumin powder
- 1 teaspoon of oregano
- 1 teaspoon of paprika
- ½ teaspoon of cayenne pepper (add more of less depending on how much heat you prefer)
- 250g (9oz) of pasta of your choice (I used fusilli), gluten free pasta can be used
- 120g (4oz) of cheddar (4xHEa's), grated
- salt and black pepper
- olive oil spray
Instructions
- Spray a pan over a medium high heat with olive oil spray
- Add onion and fry till softened.
- Add ground beef and garlic and cook until browned.
- Add in the chopped peppers, passata, stock, tomato paste, spices, herbs and bring to a boil. Reduce heat and simmer for 30mins until sauce thickens. Season as needed with salt and black pepper.
- Stir in black beans and remove from heat.
- Preheat oven to 180c or 350f (gas mark 4)
- Cook pasta in boiling hot water until al dente, drain and mix together with the Mexican beef mix.
- Place in a oven proof dish and top with the grated cheddar.
- Bake in oven till cheese has melted and is golden, approx 30 mins.
Notes
Please see below for full nutritional info and additional details about recipe:
- Calories - scroll down to nutritional info box
- WW Points and other Slimming or Weight Loss programs - due to plans regularly changing and updating, we recommend calculating with the official tools you get as a member to those plans to ensure accuracy of values.
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Nutrition Information
Serving Size 1 SERVINGAmount Per Serving Calories 586Total Fat 12gSaturated Fat 6gCholesterol 33.6mgSodium 803.7mgCarbohydrates 79.4gFiber 11.1gSugar 6.4gProtein 25g
Karen Sanger says
This recipe is sooooo nice, had it with a glass of wine, really hit the spot!! 🙂
Chrissy says
Gorgeous and very filling 🙂
Carlie says
Mads this wednesday was delicious even my 14 year old loved it will be making it again.☺☺
Shevy (Slimming Eats) says
So happy to hear that Carlie 🙂
Gems says
This recipe is so fab, it really doesn't taste like it should be a 'healthy' chilli recipe!! Such a big hit in my house, I love your recipes!!
Dawn says
So yummy , I've got enough for tomorrow nights dinner too
Jenny says
Just made this for dinner and it was absolutely delicious! Both my husband and me devoured our portions and there's more left for dinner another time, yay 🙂 Thanks for the brilliant recipe, I'll definitely make this again!!
Shevy (Slimming Eats) says
so glad it was a hit for you and your husband Jenny.
Tina says
What a yummy recipe!!
Can this be frozen?
Shevy (Slimming Eats) says
Hi Tina, Pasta is always best eaten once cooked for that al dente texture, that said I freeze pasta bakes all the time with no problem. I don’t mind a little bit of overcooked Pasta
Mary says
Had this for dinner tonight and it was absolutely delicious. Very tasty and satisfying. Loved it.
Wendy Marlane says
Our family go to favorite, just delish! and It freezes great 🙂
Jackie Pickering says
Sooo tasty this will be a regular meal for us Would not let me rate 5/5
Heidi says
This was absolutely delicious 2 days into SlimmingWorld and was feeling quite hungry filled me up will definitely be making this again
Heidi xx
Shevy (Slimming Eats) says
Hey Heidi - so happy to hear you enjoyed it. Thanks for stopping by to comment.
Indie says
Dying to try this! When sustituting the beef for lentils, how would you recommend I cook them? Thanks
Shevy (Slimming Eats) says
Hi Indie - If using canned lentils, you can follow the recipe straight from the browning the ground beef step of the recipe. If using dried lentils, I recommend cooking the lentils first as per package instructions and then following from that step. Hope that helps 🙂
Jacquie says
Absolutely delicious. The chilli is really flavourful. I followed the recipe exactly (apart from adding tinned chopped tomatoes instead of pasata and added an extra teaspoon of hot chilli powder as we like our chilli quite hot). It’s the first time I have mixed chilli with pasta but it works perfectly - especially with the grated cheese on top. I think I prefer this to my usual chilli and rice recipe and this will now become a regular meal in our house.
Shevy (Slimming Eats) says
Hi Jacquie. I am so glad you enjoyed this recipe and you can totally adjust the heat level to your taste. My kids don't like too spicy, so I tend to keep things mild for them. A pinch of cayenne or two is always great for upping the heat. Thank you so much for coming back and leaving a comment, it's really appreciated.
Marie says
This was delicious - just as expected. Very flavoursome & filling. I chopped some jalapeño peppers & scattered over the top with a dollop of creme fraiche on each serving.
Shevy (Slimming Eats) says
Sounds like a delicious addition. Thanks for sharing.
Marian says
This has been one of my all time favourites!! Unfortunately I cannot eat much pasta now, but wondering how to adjust the liquid for this recipe so I can make it without the pasta? All our meals are now Slimming Eats - Thank You!!!
Marian says
This has been one of my all time favourites!! Unfortunately I cannot eat much pasta now, but wondering how to adjust the liquid for this recipe so I can make it without the pasta? All our meals are now Slimming Eats – Thank You!!!
Margaret says
Hello you say 2 tablespoons of tomato paste. Do you mean tomato puree?
Shevy (Slimming Eats) says
Yes tomato puree is called tomato paste here in Canada and the US 🙂
Leanne says
I made this last night, unfortunately I didn’t get a look in, but I did have a little taste & I have to say it was LUSH! It fed 4 hungry men and it was thoroughly enjoyed by all of them & the portions were huge. Thanks again for another amazing recipe.
Hannah says
Firm favourite with me and my husband! I make it too spicy for our girls to eat. So any leftovers go into the freezer for my husband to take to work when he’s on nights.
I have cooked it using kidney beans but I wasn’t keen on them (even though I like them in a chilli) so each time I’ve made it since I’ve used black beans and I love it!
Thank you for sharing this recipe with us 🙂
Shevy (Slimming Eats) says
you are welcome - happy to hear it is a hit.
Irene henning says
I make this every week,really enjoy it,I’m not much of a cook but can follow all your recipes,don’t make them because I’m slimming,i
Debbie Gordon says
This has been a regular since the first time I made it there are only two of us so I still make it for four and freeze half for a quick meal another day ❤️
Amber says
Made this and it was absolutely delicious?
I do have 1 question, what is the typical serving size in weight so I can work out calories in it?
Siobhan (Slimming Eats) says
glad you enjoyed it Amber. As for serving size, if you look to the recipe box of all the recipes, it will tell you how many people it serves, this is 4 servings, so slice into 4 servings and you have a serving.
Sarah Ozigi says
That was absolutely delicious and the portion was generous. I used mozzarella cheese instead so I can have more cheese
Derek says
Hi I have never made a comment on any site before but this recipe is so nice I had to.
absolutely delicious only 2 of us so we have it tomorrow as well
My partner and I Love it
Thank you so much!!
Nikki says
Delicious. Made tonight