The Best Beefy Vegan Chili
The best beefy vegan chili you'll ever have. Layers of spices, aromatics, and umami mixed with beefy crumbles and beans. The perfect chilly Sunday dinner.
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Servings: 8
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: 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.
Did you make this recipe?We’d love for you to leave a review on the website! You can also share a photo on IG and tag @sarahsvegankitchen_ or #sarahsvegankitchen.