I love a good chilli & this plant-based one is so tasty, meat-eaters will hardly notice the difference! Healthy, vegan, gluten-free, inexpensive, quick to make & deliciously satisfying. This chilli freezes really well too; I often double up the recipe with the idea of freezing some for another week.
This recipe is enriched with chia seeds to add omega-3s, protein & fibre. To make a creamier sauce, I love to add protein powder (soya bean, pea or whey varieties work well), but this is optional. As this chilli contains carbs in the beans & sweet potato, I often enjoy eating this as a meal in its own right, but you can serve it with quinoa, cauliflower rice , wholegrain rice or a simple side salad if preferred.
Serves: 4
Preparation: 10-12 mins
Cooking time: 20-26 mins
Ingredients:
- 2 red onions
- 250g sweet potato
- 3 plump garlic cloves
- 1 tbsp coconut oil
- 2 tsp ground cumin
- 2 tsp ground coriander
- 1 tsp dried oregano
- 2 fresh chillies or 1-2 tsp hot chilli powder (to taste)
- 1 red pepper, diced
- 1 can (400g) of chopped tomatoes
- 250ml stock (I use vegetable bouillon powder)
- 2 X 400g cans of beans of choice, drained: kidney, chickpeas, butter beans, pinto beans, cannellini beans, black beans all work well. (In the photos I have used kidney beans & chick peas
- 1.5 tbsp tomato purée
- 1 tbsp soya sauce or tamari
- 1 tsp honey or agave
- 100g mushrooms, chopped
- 4 tbsp chia seeds
- Optional: 2 tbsp protein powder (pea, soya bean or whey work well).
Method:
- Peel the red onion & sweet potato & roughly cut into chunks. Place in a food processor or blender along with 3 peeled cloves of garlic. Whizz to coarsely chop. (This gives great texture to the chilli).
- Melt coconut oil in a deep pan. Gently brown the chopped onion, garlic sweet potato mixture for about 3-4 mins.
- Then add the spices, oregano, fresh or dried chilli & stir for a 2 mins until the aromas of the spices fill the air (be careful not to burn them though as this will impart a bitter flavour).
- Then add the diced red pepper, chopped tomatoes, stock, beans of choice, tomato purée, soya sauce, honey or agave & chopped mushrooms. Cook for about 15-20 mins until the sauce thickens.
- Then stir in the chia seeds & protein powder. Mix well to thicken up & serve.
- I love to serve this chilli with parmesan (vegan if required) or nutritional yeast, a wedge of lime and a healthy portion of home-made guacamole.
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