Vegetarian Chili Recipe (easy to make with lots of veggies)
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I was a vegetarian for 14 years, and during that time, I perfected this vegetarian chili recipe. It’s a one-pot meal that is full of vegetables, made with pantry staple ingredients, and easy to make. I still make it for my family today, and even our non-vegan friends rave about it.
I love sitting down to a big bowl of hearty chili on a cool evening. Although I can no longer call myself a vegetarian, I prefer vegetarian chili to meat-based chili.
When I was 20 years old, I decided to stop eating meat. During those 14 years, I became attached to my meat-free comfort foods. Vegetarian chili is at the top of my list, followed very closely by my coconut lentil curry, one of my most popular recipes. There’s just something about a one-pot meal where all the flavors meld together to become so much more than they could have been on their own.
I’ve been making this homemade chili for so many years that it’s become second nature. Honestly, measuring the ingredients so I could share the recipe with you felt a little funny.
You need to know one thing: I wasn’t joking about this being an easy recipe. Even though I have all the ingredients listed in proper measurements, feel free to eyeball and make substitutions. This is one chili that you cannot mess up.
And if you love your crockpot, I’ve made a Slow Cooker Vegetarian Chili Recipe. It’s basically this recipe with a few tweaks to make it work in a slow cooker.
Key ingredients
This vegetarian chili recipe comes together using pantry-staple ingredients – you probably already have most of the ingredients on hand.
- From the spice rack: Chili powder, ground cumin, oregano, and sea salt bring warming flavor to your vegetarian chili.
- Vegetables: Use some fresh bell peppers, carrots, celery stalks, and frozen corn in your vegetarian chili.
- Canned goodies: Grab two cans of whole tomatoes and two cans of beans – I like kidney and white beans!
Tip ⇢ The one thing you need to know about this (or any) vegetarian chili recipe is that you want to salt it well. Salt helps bring out the flavor and create a feeling of depth that can sometimes be lacking in vegetarian recipes. Don’t be shy with the salt shaker.
Vegetarian Chili Toppings
While it’s delicious on its own, I love this chili with some toppings. They make it feel extra special. My favorites are:
- Grated cheddar cheese or sour Cream
- Corn chips (bonus if they’re nacho flavored!)
- Sliced green onions
- Diced avocado (amazing!)
- Pickled red onions. This is the recipe that I LOVE!
Serving suggestions
Most of the time time I serve this with a topping or two and call it dinner. But sometimes it’s fun to add a side. My favorite chili sides are garlic bread and zucchini cornbread. And while this is a vegetable loaded chili, a side caesar salad goes nicely!
Store and reheat
Store: Let the chili cool completely, then transfer it to a sealed container, keep it in the fridge, and eat it within one week.
Reheat: I like to reheat this in a pot over medium-low heat, but a microwave also works.
Freeze: This chili freezes very well! Make extras and store some in freezer bags for a quick meal. It will keep for at least 6 months in the freezer.
Vegetarian Chili Recipe (easy to make with lots of veggies)
Ingredients
- 2 tablespoons cooking oil
- 1 large onion (diced)
- 4 cloves garlic (finely minced)
- 1-3 tablespoons chili powder (more will be spicier)
- 2 tablespoons ground cumin
- 1 teaspoon oregano
- ¼ – 2 teaspoons chili flakes (the more chili flakes the spicier it will be)
- 2 medium bell peppers (diced)
- 2 medium carrots (diced)
- 3 medium celery stalks (diced)
- 2 28-ounce cans of whole tomatoes and their juice (use your hands to roughly crush the tomatoes)
- 2 15-ounce cans of beans (drained and rinsed – like kidney and white beans)
- 2 cups frozen corn (you could use fresh but frozen is easy and works great)
- Sea salt (to taste -I like about 2 teaspoons)
- Optional toppings: sour cream, cheddar cheese, cilantro, diced avocados, or green onion
Instructions
- Heat the oil in a large pot over medium-high heat. Add the onion and sauté for about 3 minutes. Add the garlic and sauté for 1 minute more. Add the chili powder, cumin, oregano, and chili flakes and stir.2 tablespoons cooking oil, 1 large onion, 4 cloves garlic, 1-3 tablespoons chili powder, 2 tablespoons ground cumin, 1 teaspoon oregano, ¼ – 2 teaspoons chili flakes
- Add the peppers, carrots, and celery and cook for about 5 minutes, or until they just start to soften. Add the tomatoes and their juice and bring to a simmer. Once the chili begins to simmer, reduce the heat to medium-low. You want the chili to be at a low simmer with the lid off.2 medium bell peppers, 2 medium carrots, 3 medium celery stalks, 2 28-ounce cans of whole tomatoes and their juice
- Continue to cook the chili, stirring occasionally, for 20 minutes. Add beans and corn and let the chili return to a simmer. Cook for 5 more minutes or until the corn and beans have heated through. Season generously with sea salt.2 15-ounce cans of beans, 2 cups frozen corn, Sea salt
- Serve on its own or topped with one (or all!) of the delicious toppings. Enjoy!Optional toppings: sour cream, cheddar cheese, cilantro, diced avocados, or green onion
Video
Notes
Nutrition
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I made it for dinner tonight. It’s delicious!
That’s wonderful to hear, Lynelle!
I made this delicious chili for an informal Christmas party and it was a huge hit! Everyone loved it!! Thank you for a quick hearty vegan meal!
You’re very welcome, Susan!
Last Christmas I made this.
Very delicious and easy to make for the whole family.
Thanks for sharing
You’re very welcome!
Yum!! Made this tonight and served with pica de Gallo, brown rice, avo, some corn chips for scrunch and sour cream and it was delicious. I only added half the Chili recommended and that was enough spice for me. Delicious recipe and will be trying more of your creations.
Awesome! So happy you like the recipe!
Very good!! We’re cutting down on meat in general, and I stumbled on this recipe. Everyone loved it, and my 17 yr old son was shocked when I pointed out that there was no meat in it! I used the food processor on the onion, carrots, celery, and pepper. I think that made it look like meat, once the seasonings soaked into them. I also added cubed/diced butternut squash, and it was delicious!
That makes me so happy to hear! Hooray!
Brilliantly simple recepie big on flavour really enjoyed making this, so adaptable as well.
Thanks so much, will definitely make again and check out your other recepies.
That makes me so happy to hear! Hooray!
I wish that you could but she stopped blogging years ago. I hope she takes it up one day again as she’s a great cook!
Love this recipe
I used 1/2 chipotle powder and 1/2 New Mexico Anaheim chili powder WOW
Good call on the spices! Yum!
I’ve been making a vegetarian chili for a few years now – similar ingredients except one big difference is that I put in a good amount of quartered mushrooms. They add a lot of flavor and heartiness to the chili. You can even cook the mushrooms before you put them in to give them a richer flavor. Kind of replaces the meat for the depth of flavor and is added protein. First time I made it was for a potluck chili cookoff at work to provide a vegetarian option. I was surprised that it got quite a few votes for the best chili – in a group of burly meat eating men. Sometimes I’ll add some butternut squash – which is really good if you have some around.
That’s so wonderful to hear! Hooray!!
I love to cook and I’m always looking for new recipes for my menu, which makes me always interested in my work. Today’s my lucky day, Vegetarian Chili Recipe recipe is great, just follow the instructions and everything is easy, I like it. Thanks for your sharing
I’m so happy to hear it was a hit!
I thought this was pretty good but lacking a little bite or something. I added 3 tablespoons of dry red wine and it was perfect. I served it over brown rice. Yum!carolyn
A little wine never hurts!
We love this recipe! My 17yo daughter is a vegetarian, and this is a recipe we all enjoy! My question is if it will freeze well? Can’t decide what I think. Thanks.
So happy to hear the recipe was a hit. And yes, it freezes very well! I freeze it in plastic freezer bags. 🙂
I’m new to vegetarianism and this recipe absolutely blew my mind. I can’t believe how good it tastes. I served it over rice and ate it with tortilla chips. Amazing.
Yay! Love hearing that you enjoyed the recipe!
So delicious. I added butternut squash. My son and daughter-in-law loved. Best of all my 2.5 year old grandson had 2 helpings!! Definitely making again. Fun to add different veggies❤️
Good call on the butternut squash. So great when kids gobble up their dinners, isn’t it?
Turned out great. I can’t do spicy so I eased up on the chili a bit. Added soy meatless crumbles and a little water as it was very thick. I will ease up on the salt next time too as it was a bit too salty. Great vegan meal. Topped with green onions and cilantro.
So happy to hear the recipe was a hit!
I’ve cooked this before and I’m cooking it again! I’m vegan and my meat eating family really enjoys this. I omit the celery and use half the bell pepper since I’m not a fan of either. I add the beyond meat and crumble it into the chili for extra protein and a nice meaty flavor! Tastes great thank you!
That’s wonderful to hear! So happy to know that your whole family likes this recipe!