It’s chili season and today I have The Best Vegan Chili Recipe for you! It’s super thick and loaded with tons of beans and veggies! It’s the perfect cozy meal this fall and winter season!
It’s chili season! I actually eat chili all year round because I love it so much, but since it’s so warm and cozy it’s perfect for the colder seasons. I’ve made a lot of chili recipes but this one I’m sharing with you today really is The Best Vegan Chili Recipe!
There are a few things I’m picky about when it comes to chili: I don’t like it to be super tomato-y and I love it when it’s really thick.
In my opinion, if it’s not super thick it’s more like soup. And, while bean soup is good, it’s not chili 🙂 In the past I’ve always added an entire can of tomato paste to my chili and a can of crushed tomatoes, usually with the juice. As much as I love tomatoes, for this version I decided to go lighter on the tomato flavor and use something else to help thicken it.
I decided to go with refried beans and it worked like a charm! I added 2 tablespoons of tomato paste and then half a cup of refried beans and this Best Vegan Chili Recipe is so thick and delicious! I also added some bell peppers, onion and fresh tomatoes to balance it out a little bit.
When it comes to chili I’m also all about the toppings! I need to have some fresh herbs, onion and something crunchy. I don’t eat Fritos very often, but they go so well with chili I have to give in sometimes 🙂 Crackers are great too!
Recipe tips for The Best Vegan Chili Recipe:
- I like my chili super beany but if you aren’t as much of a fan I would suggest using two cans instead of three cans.
- You can use whatever kind of beans you like! I like a variety so I usually use pinto, kidney and black but you could use all one kind if you prefer.
- As I said above, I love super thick chili so I only added two cups of broth to mine, but if you prefer a soupier consistency you can add three cups.
- I like to use my Le Creuset pot for soups like this!
The Best Vegan Chili Recipe
Prep Time: 20 mins- Cook Time: 30 mins
- Total Time: 50 minutes
- Yield: 4-6 1x
- Category: Soup, Vegan, Gluten Free
- Method: Stovetop
- Cuisine: American
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Pin RecipeDescription
This Vegan Chili is thick and delicious! Load it up with your favorite toppings for an easy and hearty weeknight meal!
Ingredients
- 2 teaspoons olive oil
- 1/2 yellow onion, diced (or one whole onion if small)
- 2 cloves garlic, minced
- 1 red bell pepper, diced
- 1 green bell pepper, diced
- 1 cup diced tomato, or one 15 oz can diced tomatoes, drained
- 3 (15 oz) cans beans, drained and rinsed (I used black, pinto and kidney) If you don’t like a ton of beans in your chili you can use 2 cans.
- 1/2 cup refried beans
- 2 tablespoons tomato paste
- 2 teaspoons ground cumin
- 1 teaspoon paprika
- 1 teaspoon chili powder
- 1 teaspoon garlic powder
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 1/2 teaspoon onion powder
- 1/2 teaspoon Italian seasoning
- 1/2 teaspoon black pepper
- 2–3 cups vegetable broth (I used 2 cups because I like a thick chili but you can use 3 if you like a more brothy chili)
Instructions
- Heat large pot over medium heat and add olive oil and onion. Cook until soft, 2-3 minutes, and then add garlic and bell peppers. Cook for another 5 minutes.
- Add the beans, tomatoes, refried beans, tomato paste and all the seasonings. Mix until combined and then add the broth and mix again.
- Cover chili, bring to a simmer and cook until thickened, at least 15 minutes but you can cook longer if you like.
- Serve hot with your favorite chili toppings!
Nutrition
- Serving Size: 1/4 of the chili
- Calories: 418
- Sugar: 10 g
- Sodium: 835 mg
- Fat: 6 g
- Saturated Fat: 0 g
- Carbohydrates: 71 g
- Fiber: 25 g
- Protein: 24 g
- Cholesterol: 0 mg
*Nutrition Facts are calculated by using MyFitnessPal.com, they may differ depending on what brand of ingredient you use.
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Cathy says
November 12, 2018 at 6:53 pmThis is the best veggie chili I have made. Thank you.
★★★★★
She Likes Food says
November 12, 2018 at 10:37 pmYah! That’s so great to hear and I’m glad you liked it! 🙂
Julie says
November 19, 2018 at 11:05 amCan you make it in a crock pot?
She Likes Food says
November 19, 2018 at 11:12 pmYou definitely can, but I don’t have a crock pot so unfortunately I can’t tell you about temperature and time.
Cindy says
February 3, 2019 at 9:31 pmI made this Chili for a family chili cook off.
There were a total of 5 entries, mine was the only nonmeat chili. In a blind taste testing mine won! I won a $100 gift card! Thanks for the recipe! A wonderful chili!
★★★★★
She Likes Food says
March 6, 2019 at 9:37 pmThat’s awesome!! I’m so happy to hear that!
Laura Wedemeyer says
November 5, 2019 at 10:31 amGoing to make this for our chili cook-off next week! let’s see what happens!
She Likes Food says
November 18, 2019 at 4:49 pmAwesome! I hope it went well!!
jason says
November 12, 2019 at 5:40 pmMade it last night for may family + a friend. Hands down best chili I’ve ever had. I added jalipeno and vegan sour cream and tortillas on the side for dipping.
She Likes Food says
November 18, 2019 at 4:36 pmThank you SO much!! I’m so glad you enjoyed it! 🙂
T says
November 13, 2019 at 7:50 pmMade it tonight….. delicious!!
She Likes Food says
November 18, 2019 at 4:32 pmYah! So glad you enjoyed it!
Janet Osborne says
November 20, 2019 at 9:34 pmWe love this chili! My son was sick with respiratory bug and this chili cured him! Warm and spicey, perfect. I gave the recipie to my younger son who isn’t vegan. I think he will love it. Thank you for a great vegan dish!
★★★★★
She Likes Food says
November 21, 2019 at 4:08 pmThat’s so nice to hear!! And glad your son is feeling better 🙂
Suzy says
November 23, 2019 at 11:24 amI have failed countless times making chili, but this was perfect! Thank you for the recipe!
She Likes Food says
November 29, 2019 at 8:21 pmThat’s so nice to hear!!
Chinon says
November 23, 2019 at 10:18 pmI made it tonight and my kids love it thank you 😊
★★★★★
She Likes Food says
November 29, 2019 at 8:17 pmYah!!
Kathy May says
November 25, 2019 at 10:29 pmI was pleasantly surprised by this totally satisfying dish. I used smoked paprika and added chopped jalapeño pepper to the sautéed veggies for added punch. Garnished with vegan cheddar shreds and sliced avocado…Ta-DOW!
★★★★★
She Likes Food says
November 29, 2019 at 7:50 pmSo glad you enjoyed it!!
Kathy May says
November 26, 2019 at 1:43 amGreat recipe! I used smoked paprika and added a jalapeño pepper to the sautéed veggies for an added punch. Garnished with vegan cheddar shreds and sliced avocado…Ta-DOW!
★★★★★
She Likes Food says
November 29, 2019 at 7:45 pmSounds delicious!! So glad you enjoyed it!
Chad says
November 28, 2019 at 10:36 amLove this recipe. I’m trying to change my diet for my health and this will likely be a staple in my new eating habits. Also making this to take to family Thanksgiving today!
★★★★★
She Likes Food says
November 29, 2019 at 7:46 pmYah! So glad you enjoyed it!
Julie says
December 1, 2019 at 10:26 pmFantastic! I added faux beef crumbles and elbow macaroni to my version. Super easy to make and tasty!
★★★★★
She Likes Food says
December 2, 2019 at 3:24 pmYum!!!
Lourdes S Townsend says
December 10, 2019 at 8:16 amTried your recipe this past weekend, for my vegan hubby. Had no tomato paste, so doubled the tomatoes, and refried beans, and I also added 2 home-grown jalapenos and half bag of frozen corn I had on hand. It was so delicious, and my hubby LOVED it. Also added some pasta on side–perfection. Thank you for a terrific recipe.
She Likes Food says
December 16, 2019 at 7:09 pmAwesome!! So glad you both enjoyed it!
Brigit says
December 17, 2019 at 7:23 pmI loved this chili and I surprised myself. I normally would add more spices, but stuck to the recipe and it was wonderful.
★★★★★
She Likes Food says
December 18, 2019 at 5:18 pmAwesome!! So glad you enjoyed it!
JR Brown says
December 28, 2019 at 5:59 pmI absolutely love this recipe. I make it for me and my football buddies who come over on Sunday. My wife isn’t hot on it though. I also added jalapeños, sweet corn and minced garlic also.
I have also ate it for breakfast with over easy eggs overtop of it. Wow.
She Likes Food says
January 7, 2020 at 6:11 pmI’m so glad you like it!!
Rachel says
January 3, 2020 at 8:01 amDo you think this could be adapted to the instant pot?
She Likes Food says
January 7, 2020 at 6:06 pmDefinitely! I’d probably just cook it for 8 or so minutes
Brooke says
January 19, 2020 at 5:38 pmYou know refried beans are not vegan right? They are not even vegetarian.
She Likes Food says
January 21, 2020 at 3:47 pmYou can actually buy vegetarian refried beans that also happen to be vegan.
Ami H says
January 24, 2020 at 11:13 amI am going to give this a try this weekend! Would it be weird of me to add a cut up and peeled potato in place of one of the cans of beans? Kidney, Black and then the potato instead of the pinto? I’ll throw a potato into anything I can get my hands on but wasn’t sure if the starch would change the consistency? Thanks!
She Likes Food says
January 30, 2020 at 5:25 pmhaha, I think that would work great!
Jenni says
January 25, 2020 at 6:05 pmI love this chili! I used almost the full can of tomato paste. I didn’t use the refried beans. I used three cups of broth. I will make this over and over again!
★★★★★
She Likes Food says
January 30, 2020 at 5:22 pmThat’s so nice to hear!!
Nikki says
February 6, 2020 at 10:46 amMade this for dinner last night! Even my pickiest eaters ate this and gave it a thumbs up! We added a dollop of non dairy sour cream and dayia cheddar cheese shreds!! Served with vegan cornbread!!! This was the perfect mix!!!
★★★★★
Nikki says
February 6, 2020 at 10:47 amWe also used vegetarian refried beans!!
She Likes Food says
February 10, 2020 at 1:45 pmThat sounds awesome!! So glad you all enjoyed it!
JJ says
February 13, 2020 at 7:16 pmThis was indeed delicious. I only had 1 bell pepper, so added 2 thinly sliced small carrots. Not sure why in my mind that equaled things? But it was fabulous. I dont think you need to add anything- vegan sour cream, cheese, nothing. So amazing by itself. Yum! And thanks.
She Likes Food says
February 24, 2020 at 6:38 pmYah! So glad you enjoyed it!!
Viv says
March 11, 2020 at 1:59 pmI’ve made this recipe 5 times now for both Vegans and Carnivores alike. We LOVE it! It gets tweaked here and there with whatever beans or veggies I happen to have that week & everyone likes adding their toppings. Thank you so much!
★★★★★
She Likes Food says
April 6, 2020 at 7:18 pmThat’s so nice to hear!!
Marcene says
March 18, 2020 at 6:58 pmI’ve made this recipe a good 4 times, at least, since I found it. It’s my fav chili recipe ever! The spices are perfect. Best of all, this recipe is literally fool-proof! I think eachTime I’ve made it the ingredients have varied just based on what I had on hand at the time and it’s ALWAYS a winner! Thank you!
★★★★★
She Likes Food says
April 6, 2020 at 7:15 pmYah!! That’s so nice to hear!