This vegan chili is every bit as comforting as the meat-filled counterpart, thanks to hearty lentils, beans and vegetables.
| Level: | Easy |
| Total: | 30 min |
| Active: | 20 min |
| Yield: | 4 to 6 servings |
Ingredients
- 2 tablespoons olive oil
- 1 bunch scallions, thinly sliced on the diagonal, light- and dark-green parts separated
- 1 red bell pepper (about 6 ounces), diced
- 1 orange bell pepper (about 6 ounces), diced
- Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper
- 1/4 cup tomato paste
- 3 cloves garlic, minced
- 1 tablespoon ancho chile powder
- 1 tablespoon ground cumin
- 1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
- Two 14.5-ounce cans diced tomatoes with their juices
- 1 cup dried red lentils
- Two 14.5-ounce cans kidney beans, drained and rinsed
- 2 cups frozen diced butternut squash (from a 10-ounce bag)
- 1 tablespoon agave syrup or maple syrup
- Assorted garnishes such as thinly sliced radish and jalapeno, cubed avocado and pepitas, for serving
Instructions
- Heat the olive oil in a large heavy-bottom pot over medium-high heat. Add the light-green scallion parts, both bell peppers, 1/2 teaspoon salt and a few grinds of black pepper and cook, stirring occasionally, until the vegetables have softened, 5 to 6 minutes. Add the tomato paste, garlic, ancho chile powder, cumin and cinnamon and cook, stirring, until the tomato paste darkens in color and the garlic is softened, about 1 minute.
- Add the tomatoes and their juices, lentils, 2 cups water, 1 teaspoon salt and a few grinds of black pepper to the pot and stir to combine. Bring the liquid to a boil, then reduce the temperature and simmer, stirring occasionally, until the lentils have softened, 12 to 15 minutes. Fold in the kidney beans, butternut squash and agave syrup and cook, stirring once or twice, until the squash is heated through, 2 to 3 minutes.
- Serve the chili in bowls and garnish with the radish, jalapeno, avocado, pepitas and dark-green scallion parts as desired.
Nutrition Facts
| Calories | 544 |
| Total Fat | 10 grams |
| Saturated Fat | 1 grams |
| Cholesterol | 0 milligrams |
| Sodium | 1100 milligrams |
| Carbohydrates | 91 grams |
| Dietary Fiber | 27 grams |
| Sugar | 23 grams |
| Protein | 28 grams |
Reviews
Simply Delish!!! I’ve made this twice now and it keeps getting better! this round I used Hot Rotel for one of the cans of tomato,,, even without,,, what amazing flavor!!
This is great. Very tasty and hearty. Good wholesome ingredients. A great healthy alternative to other meat chilis!!
Super recipe but followed the hint of doubling-down on spices, added another teaspoon of smoked paprika and held off the syrup. Quite excellent after the Christmas blowout!
Congrats.
Congrats.
Easy chili to make but if you like it spicy double the spices. It was a little bland on the flavor scale for chili. Plus I added cayenne pepper. I love the mildly sweet flavor and I think the cinnamon gives it a nice taste. Sweet and now spicy. It will definitely be on the menu again.
Delicious vegan chili with a slight sweetness. I substituted sweet potato for the butternut squash since I didn’t have the squash, and it came out great. Fairly quick to make for chili.
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