This Beefy Vegan Chili is an absolute winner. I’ve always made chili lots of different ways but it wasn’t until recently that I realized that my preference is a simple beef and bean combo. Different varieties like three-bean chili and veggie chili are also delicious, but to me, nothing beats beef and beans.
I spent a ton of time perfecting this recipe in order to achieve the deepest flavor profile I could, and I can safely say that I think I cracked the code.
What Makes this Beefy Vegan Chili So Killer
- Balanced flavors. It’s spicy, savory, umami, you name it. All of the aromatics and spices cook down and create so many deep layers of flavors.
- Great for meal prep. Chili tastes even better the next day, since the flavors just keep developing in the fridge. Even if you’re not meal prepping, the leftovers make for another great meal.
- A one-pot recipe. It does need to cook for awhile, but everything comes together in one big pot and most of the cook time is hands-off. You can totally make it in the crockpot too.
Ingredients for The Best Vegan Chili
- Olive oil.
- Onion, bell pepper, jalapeños & garlic. Swap out jalapeños for green bell pepper if your spice tolerance is low.
- Tomato paste. Adds a concentrated tomato flavor and also helps to thicken the chili.
- Vegetable broth. Use a beef-style veggie bouillon (like the one from Edward & Sons or Better Than Bouillon) if you want to make this taste extra-savory.
- Vegan beef. I’m a fan of the realistic vegan meats such as Beyond and Impossible. But feel free to use any brand you like! Or even TVP or crumbled tofu!
- Beans. I like to use dark red kidney beans and pinto beans in my chili but you can use any two varieties you like.
- Crushed tomatoes. I highly recommend buying a brand that doesn’t add citric acid to the tomatoes, which can make your chili taste sour. Cento and Mutti are two options.
- Cumin, chili powder & smoked paprika. Classic chili spices.
- Oregano & bay leaves.
- Cocoa powder. If you’ve never tried it, you may be skeptical, but don’t worry! It won’t taste like chocolate; it just adds an incredible depth of flavor and extra richness.
- Brown sugar. Just a touch of sweetness balances out the spice. Can use maple syrup too.
- Soy sauce. For a little extra umami without an overwhelming soy sauce flavor. You can sub liquid aminos or even some beef-style veggie bouillon paste.
- Canned chipotle peppers in adobo. These are spicy and smoky! Add as much or as little as you like to suit your spice tolerance. You might want to skip them altogether if you don’t like spicy food at all.
- Salt & pepper.
How to Make The Ultimate Vegan Chili
- In a large, heavy pot, cook your vegan beef in olive oil. Crumble it up and cook until browned.
- Add in and sauté onion, bell pepper, jalapeño, and garlic until everything starts to soften and brown.
- Add in tomato paste and break up with spoon. Cook until tomato paste turns a deep, rusty red.
- Add in all remaining ingredients and stir to combine.
- Bring chili to a boil, reduce to a simmer, and let cook for at least 30 minutes. I like letting it slow cook for up to 2 hours to really let the flavors develop. It’s worth it.
- Taste for salt and adjust to preference.
- Serve and garnish with vegan sour cream, vegan cheddar shreds, avocado, or sliced scallions.
Serving Suggestions
My personal favorite way to serve this chili is with a little shake of habanero flakes (I’m crazy, I understand this) plus a dollop of vegan sour cream to balance out the heat. And you can never go wrong with some cheddar shreds on there also. And tortilla chips for dipping. Always tortilla chips.
You can also garnish with a squeeze of lime juice, some cilantro (Sarah’s absolute favorite), and sliced red onion.
A side of fluffy cornbread is always a winner. The sweetness is a nice counterpoint to all the rich savory flavor of the chili.
Frequently Asked Questions
You can skip this ingredient if you want to; the chili will still be very tasty. But I definitely recommend adding it if you can! It will not make your chili taste like chocolate; it’s there to add depth of flavor and complexity, and it emphasizes the flavor of the chilis in the recipe.
Yes, feel free to mix-and-match the beans, as long as you use 2 cans. You can make an all black bean or all pinto bean chili if you like. You can even get creative and use canned lentils, chickpeas, navy beans, etc.
For a milder spice, remove the seeds and ribs from the jalapeños before dicing. Skip the canned chipotle peppers and the sauce, or add only 1 chipotle pepper to start.
For no spice at all, swap out the jalapeños for half of a green bell pepper. Don’t add any canned chipotle peppers or sauce because they pack quite a bit of heat. You can increase the smoked paprika by an extra 1/2 teaspoon if you like, to replace the smokiness of the chipotle peppers.
There are so many ways to boost the spice! Swap the jalapeños out for a spicier pepper variety (such as serranos), or increase the amount of chipotle peppers and their sauce. You can also add cayenne pepper to easily manipulate the spice level.
I haven’t personally tested this, but you should have no issue combining all ingredients in your crockpot and cooking 4-5 hours on high or 6-7 hours on low. I would just brown the beef first.
I do think the stovetop version would be a little tastier because of the extra step of browning the onions and toasting the spices and tomato paste, but I think the slow cooker version would be a great option if you need something super hands-off.
More Vegan Soups and Stews
The Best Beefy Vegan Chili
Equipment
- large pot or Dutch oven
Ingredients
- 2 tablespoons olive oil
- 1 medium onion diced
- 1 red bell pepper seeded and diced
- 1-2 jalapeños diced, see notes to adjust spice level
- 4-6 cloves garlic minced
- 1/4 cup tomato paste
- 2 cups vegetable broth
- 16 oz vegan beef such as Beyond or Impossible
- 1 (15 oz) can pinto beans drained and rinsed
- 1 (15 oz) can kidney beans drained and rinsed
- 1 (28 oz) can crushed tomatoes ideally with no citric acid added, such as Cento or Mutti — see notes
- 3 tablespoons chili powder
- 2 teaspoons ground cumin
- 1 teaspoon smoked paprika
- 2 teaspoons oregano
- 2 bay leaves
- 1 tablespoon cocoa powder
- 1 tablespoon brown sugar or maple syrup
- 1 tablespoon soy sauce or liquid aminos
- 2 canned chipotle peppers chopped; omit to reduce spice
- 1-2 tablespoons adobo sauce from canned chipotle peppers omit to reduce spice
- 1 teaspoon kosher salt more to preference
- black pepper to taste
To Garnish (as many as you like)
- fresh cilantro
- fresh lime wedges
- minced red onion or sliced scallions
- sliced avocado
- vegan cheddar-style shreds I like Violife or Follow Your Heart
- vegan sour cream I like Simple Truth or Forager brand
Instructions
- Brown vegan beef. In a heavy pot or Dutch oven, heat olive oil over medium heat. When oil shimmers, add in vegan beef. Using a wooden spoon, break it up and stir, cooking until it's cooked through and browned, about 5-8 minutes.
- Sauté aromatics: Add diced onion, diced bell pepper, diced jalapeño, and minced garlic. Sauté another 5-8 minutes, until onions start to brown.
- Cook tomato paste: Add in the tomato paste. Break it up with your spoon and stir to coat the aromatics. Keep cooking for 1-2 minutes, stirring constantly, until the tomato paste changes from a bright red to a deeper rusty color.
- Bloom spices: Add in chili powder, ground cumin, smoked paprika, black pepper, and oregano. Stir continuously for about 1 minute to prevent them from burning.
- Add remaining ingredients: Add in the vegetable broth, the beans (pinto and kidney), crushed tomatoes, bay leaves, cocoa powder, brown sugar, and soy sauce. Lastly, if you are making a spicy chili, add in the chopped chipotle peppers and 1-2 tablespoons of the adobo sauce from the can. You can add more of these if you like it extra spicy.
- Simmer: Bring the chili up to a boil, then reduce heat to establish a simmer. Simmer for at least 30 minutes, but preferably for a full 1 hour (or even longer) for the best flavor development. Stir occasionally to keep the chili from sticking to the pot.
- Adjust: Taste and adjust salt to preference. If you want to thicken the chili slightly, you can blitz it a few times with an immersion blender.
- Serve: Serve the chili with any of your favorite garnishes. Fresh cilantro, lime and red/green onion add a lovely freshness/brightness. Vegan sour cream will cool/balance the spice. I love to serve this chili with homemade cornbread or warm flour tortillas.
Notes
- Less spicy: Remove the seeds and ribs from the jalapeños to reduce to the spice. Skip the canned chipotle peppers and the sauce, or add only 1 chipotle pepper to start.
- Zero spice: Swap out the jalapeños for half of a green bell pepper. Don’t add any canned chipotle peppers or sauce. You can increase the smoked paprika by an extra 1/2 teaspoon if you like, to replace the smokiness of the chipotle peppers.
- Extra spicy: Swap the jalapeños for a spicier pepper, such as serranos. Increase the amount of canned chipotle peppers and sauce to preference. You can also add in cayenne pepper to easily increase the spice level.
- Vegan beef:Â Any brand will work in this recipe. I prefer the more realistic ones like Beyond or Impossible.
- Crushed tomatoes: I highly recommend buying canned tomatoes with no added citric acid — this can make your chili taste sour and unpleasant. Cento and Mutti are two good options that contain only tomatoes. If you have to use a brand with citric acid, you may wish to add a pinch or two of baking soda at the end of the cook time to neutralize the sourness.
- Beans: You can mix-and-match the beans as you like, as long as you use 2 cans. Chickpeas and white beans can be used too.
- Extra umami: Swap out the soy sauce for 1 cube of beef-style veggie bouillon, or 1 tablespoon of beef-style veggie bouillon paste. You can also try adding in 1 tablespoon of nutritional yeast, and/or about 1/8 teaspoon MSG.
I made this yesterday and it was absolutely delicious! I added a can of corn and a tiny bit more chipotle (I like it a little spcier), but I have a feeling I’m going to be making this over and over again.