Quick & Easy Vegetarian Chili : Memories from a “Veg-Head”
Homemade vegetarian chili is extra flavorful with fresh roasted chilies. It’s actually a vegan chili too because there’s no dairy. But if you don’t have time do this, an 8 0z can of diced green chilies will be tasty too. It’s a satisfying bowl of plant based chili and loaded with flavor. It you’re looking for a vegan chili recipe, you found it! This chili recipe was originally published in 2012. It’s an oldie but goodie! We added a video and some new step-by-step photos in the recipe box.
Inspiration for Vegetarian Chili Recipe
Memories from my vegetarian days were coming back and reminded me of my college years. In fact, my days of being vegetarian lasted from 1990 until 2009. For 19 years, I lived a meatless life where I nourished my days with vegetables, tofu, legumes and occasional dairy products. Then I stumbled upon what was called a “food blog” and I slowly started eating meat again, leaving behind my nearly two decades of eating meat free.
I’ve been missing those vegetarian days, where I was often called a “veg head” by my circle of carnivores and herbivores. It never bothered me one bit when I was surrounded by meat and my choice back in college to start being a vegetarian wasn’t for political, social or religious reasons. I just didn’t like eating meat any more. Vegetables, legumes and whole grains satisfied me and nourished me completely. I was a happy eater and that was all that mattered.
Video: Easy Vegetarian Chili in 30 Min. (Vegan)
Easy Meatless Chili (Vegan Chili Recipe)
Recently we’ve been craving meatless dishes more often and turning to beans and tofu has put our bodies back in balance. This chili recipe is hearty and loaded with vegetables. In fact, it’s a vegan chili recipe with no cheese on it. If you decide to add cheese on top, then it’s a vegetarian chili.
Recipes from my vegetarian past keep coming back to me and I always remember how much I loved and now miss eating a hearty bowl of chili. A rich collage of meaty beans, scents of cumin and garlic always brought a huge, hungry smile to my face. My version of chili always had extra vegetables and a zest of fresh chili. I always love me some spice and if it’s roasted or charred to bring out that earthy flavor, I’ll have second or even third helping.
Tips on How To Make Vegetarian (Vegan) Chili
- Make sure to dice all vegetables to be about the same size. This will ensure that they’ll be cooked around the same time. The only exception are carrots because they take a little longer to cook. So cut the carrots a little smaller than the rest of the veggies.
- Also when it comes to the carrots, we cook them first alongside the onions and fresh garlic. This will allow the carrots to cook a little longer and become more tender.
- If you don’t have fresh garlic you can certainly use garlic powder.
- We love adding some chopped kale in our chili sometimes if we happen to have some in the fridge. It adds a nice green and leafy texture to each bite. Chopped spinach works great too.
- We like adding soy sauce for extra umami flavor. You can also use vegetarian worcestershire or liquid amino acids. Don’t skip this ingredient. It adds so much flavor!
- All vegan chili recipe details are in the recipe box below.
Types of Green Chiles: Canned or Fresh
When it comes to making vegetarian chili, I sometimes go the extra step by roasting fresh green chilies. The zest of spice and depth of roasted flavor always make my chili extra flavorful. I never, ever miss the meat part. And if you don’t have time to roast fresh chilies, canned green chopped chilies will be tasty too. Most of the time I don’t have time to roast chilies and am always happy with the results when i end up using a can of chopped green chilies.
Extra Vegetables for Plant Based Chili Recipe
Sometimes chili recipes have more meat than beans, but in my case, I’ve replaced the meat with hearty vegetables and extra helpings of spice. Each bowl has a happy bite of vegetables, beans and flavor. I’ve added sweet bell peppers, celery, carrots and onion. But here’s more vegetable options to add in this vegan plant based chili:
- Chopped kale
- Cauliflower or broccoli
- Diced fresh green beans
- Sugar snap peas or snow peas
- mushrooms
- chopped tofu or seitan
Vegetarian Chili Recipe with Green Chilies
Ingredients
- 1-2 fresh anaheim chilis , or 4 oz. (113g) canned diced green chiles
- 1 Tablespoon (15 ml) olive oil
- 1 small onion , small dice, about 1 cup
- 4 cloves garlic , finely minced (or about 1 teaspoon garlic powder)
- 1 large carrot , small dice, about 1/2 cup
- 2 stalks celery , cleaned & ends trimmed. Small dice, about 1/2 cup
- 1 red bell pepper , small dice, about 1 cup
- 15 oz (425 g) canned beans (red, black, pinto) , drained and rinsed
- 15 oz (425 g) canned crushed tomatoes
- 1 cup (240 ml) water , or more if needed
- 2 teaspoons (10 ml) soy sauce , or vegetarian Worcestershire sauce
- 2 teaspoons (10 ml) ground cumin
- 1 Tablespoon (15 ml) chili powder
- 1/2 teaspoon (2.5 ml) kosher salt , or to taste
Instructions
- Cut all the vegetables, chop the garlic and set aside.
- In heated medium saucepan, add 1 Tablespoon (15ml) olive oil. Then add onion, garlic, and carrots and cook until they are soft and fragrant, about 2-3 minutes.
- Add celery, red bell peppers, diced anaheim (green) chilis, 15 oz. (425g) canned beans (drained), 15 oz. (425g) crushed tomatoes, 1 cup (240ml) water, 2 teaspoons (10ml) soy sauce, 2 teaspoons (10ml) cumin, 1 Tablespoon (15ml) chili powder, and 1/2 teaspoon (2.5ml) salt. Stir pot well and let simmer on low heat for about 15-20 minutes or until vegetables are tender.
- We like our chili on the thick side. But add more water if needed to get the chili to your preferred liking. For best flavor, the chili tastes better the next day, once the beans absorbs all the spices. Add more water if it thickened too much overnight (wait until after is is heated to determine thickness).
For Roasting Fresh Chilies
- For Roasting Fresh Chilis: Preheat oven to 450°F (230°C). Wash chili pepper, pat dry all outside moisture. Rub with bit of olive oil to coat the chili pepper. Put on sheet pan and roast in oven for about 10-15 minutes, turning occasionally for even roast. Roast chili pepper until the skin starts to bubble and char.
- Then remove pepper from oven and place in plastic bag for about 15 minutes. The steam will release the skin from the meat of the pepper. Using gloves, remove skin and seeds, discard. Dice the chili pepper, set aside.
The flavors in this chili were so great. I loved that all the choices in veggies. Really great job.
Extremely tasty veggie chili dish that is neither too tomatoey nor acidic!! Bravo, I am going to use hatch chilis the next time I make this recipe (in lieu of canned ones) because in Colorado, we have fresh Hatch chilis. Also, I tossed in some chipotle powder to amp up the heat and it was fantastic!! Great, easy recipe….
Thanks Stephen! So glad you enjoyed the recipe.
Diane, I’m coming to this recipe a bit late, but so glad I saw it. It looks delicious. I am intrigued by your addition of soy sauce and will have to try that — also your use of vegetable broth to add extra flavor. I have some homemade vegetable broth in my freezer and will have to use it for this. This is very similar to a chili I make but with a dash of cloves added. I have also used garam masala, for adding a nice warmth to the flavor (which the cloves do too). Both also add to the intriguing scent — I just love the smell of chili gently simmering on the stove, don’t you?
I tried this this evening. I couldn’t find an appropriate chili on short notice (looked so good I decided to make it a few hours before dinner time) and it was still delicious. I tried to compensate for lack of chili with some extra spices which kinda over did it so mine was a tad spicy. I know for next time! Thanks for this recipe.
Great looking chili recipe. I’m making some veggie chili for a potluck tomorrow, so I’m scouring the web for ideas. I was mostly vegetarian while in college as well, and lately I’ve been thinking that I need to work more vegetarian meals back into my diet (and my husband’s). I have a three-month-old son, and by the time he starts eating “real” food and able to understand more about what mom and dad are eating, I’d like to be eating more sustainably and healthy. I’ll probably never be meat free again, but I’d like to get my meat from local, sustainable sources.
this is great ! my husband will definitely love this ๐