Disclosure: This post may contain affiliate links. I may earn a small commission for my endorsement, recommendation, testimonial, and/or link to any products or services from this website.
This Easy Vegan Chili Recipe is healthy, hearty, and a perfect cozy meal for chilly days! It’s packed with protein and fiber thanks to beans & veggies.
What’s your go-to cozy rainy day food? For me it’s chili. There’s nothing quite like a steamy, chunky, meaty bowl of chili to satisfy your cravings (and keep you full!). This Easy Vegan Chili is my fuss-free, plant-based twist on the classic chili. Vegans, vegetarians, and even meat-eaters will enjoy it.
This vegan chili is a perfect weeknight or weekend meal! It’d be perfect for game day or entertaining a large crowd, but it’s also easy enough to make for meal prep for a busy week, too.
INGREDIENTS FOR VEGAN CHILI
Not only is this Chili super easy to make, but it’s also full of plant-based protein and fiber to keep you full and satisfied for hours and hours. Plus, you only need 11 healthy ingredients to make it! And I’m betting you already have most of them sitting around in your pantry too…
There are a lot of different ways to make chili, but I decided to stick with the classic flavors for this one. This Vegan Chili is a moderately-spiced, tomato-y stew loaded with chunks of celery, onion, green bell pepper, and carrot. Spices like ancho chili powder, cumin, oregano, garlic, and cayenne pepper add some body to the chili, while kidney beans and pinto beans give a hearty and creamy texture. Once everything simmers together and of those yummy flavors combine, you’ll be left with a chunky and thick chili that has a surprisingly meaty texture. No need to add any animal protein here!
HOW TO MAKE VEGETARIAN & VEGAN CHILI
Did I mention that this chili comes together in only 30 minutes? It’s the perfect fuss-free dinner that’s simple, but still delicious.
- Sauté the base veggies (onion, celery, peppers) and spices to create great flavor.
- Stir in the beans, tomatoes, and vegetable broth, then simmer until all the flavors combine.
- Top as desired, then serve and enjoy!
But wait! We can’t talk about Chili without talking about toppings…that’s like, almost the best part.
WAYS TO SERVE CHILI
I love to top my vegan chili with freshly sliced green onions for a little bite, as well as some nutritional yeast for a “cheesy” taste. I also enjoy a large dollop of vegan sour cream (or thinned out vegan cream cheese) on top of a steamy bowl, but that’s not a deal-breaker in my opinion.You can also top your chili with shredded vegan cheese, avocado, cilantro, and/or tortilla chips for more of a Southwestern flavor!
But most importantly, don’t forget the side of Easy Vegan Cornbread. You can also serve this vegan chili over roasted sweet potatoes or rice for an even heartier main!
COOKING TIPS + FAQ:
- How can I make this chili even “meatier”? If you’re looking for an extra hearty meal, you can always toss in a package of imitation ground “beef” or some chopped vegan sausage – see the recipe notes for more info.
- How long does vegan chili last in the fridge? Freshly made chili will keep in the refrigerator for up to 5 days.
- Can I freeze chili? Yes! Store it in an airtight freezer-safe baggie for up to 2 months. You can also pre-portion your chili for easy-to-reheat meals.
- Canned Beans: I like to make my chili with canned beans out of convenience. If you don’t have any digestion issues, try draining your beans but not rinsing them – this makes the chili have an even creamier texture
If you’re looking for more Vegan Chili Recipes, you’ll also love this Butternut Squash & White Bean Chili and this Slow Cooker Bean & Quinoa Chili! And don’t forget to serve it all up with a side of some EasyVegan Cornbread for good measure.
Finally, if you make this recipe and decide to share it on Facebook or Instagram, don’t forget to tag me @FromMyBowl + #FromMyBowl! I love seeing your delicious recreations 🙂
PrintEasy Vegan Chili Recipe
This easy Vegan Chili Recipe is healthy, hearty, and a perfect cozy meal for chilly days! It’s packed with protein and fiber thanks to beans & veggies.
- Prep Time: 10 Minutes
- Cook Time: 30 Minutes
- Total Time: 40 minutes
- Yield: 6-8 Servings 1x
- Category: Main
- Method: Stovetop
- Cuisine: American
- Diet: Vegan
Ingredients
- 1 small yellow onion, diced
- 2 green bell peppers, diced
- 3 ribs celery, diced
- 3 cloves garlic, minced
- 3 small carrots, thinly sliced
- 4 tablespoons ancho chili powder*
- 1 tablespoon ground cumin
- 1 teaspoon dried oregano
- ½ teaspoon cayenne pepper (Optional)
- 1 teaspoon sea salt
- 2 15-ounce (425 g) cans red kidney beans, drained
- 2 15-ounce (425 g) cans pinto beans, drained
- 2 28-ounce (793 g) cans crushed tomatoes
- 1 cup (235 ml) low-sodium vegetable broth (or water)
- Optional Toppings: green onions, nutritional yeast, vegan sour cream, etc.
Instructions
- Base Flavor: Warm a large pot or dutch oven over medium-high heat. Add 1/3 cup (80 ml) of water (see notes for oil version) to the pot and add the onion, celery, and green pepper to a large nonstick pot. Cook until all the water evaporates, stirring occasionally. Once the pot is “dry” and the vegetables start to turn golden brown, deglaze the pot with an additional 1/4 cup (60 ml) of water. This process should take around 10 minutes total.
- Spices: Reduce to medium heat and add the garlic, and carrots to the pot along with the chili powder, cumin, oregano, salt and optional cayenne pepper. Sauté for an additional 2-3 minutes, adding a small splash of water if things start to stick.
- Simmer: Finally, add the kidney beans, pinto beans, crushed tomatoes, and the vegetable broth to the pot. Bring everything to a boil over high heat, then reduce the heat to create a simmer. Cover and cook for 10 minutes. Remove the lid from the pot and cook uncovered for 5 to 7 additional minutes, until the carrots are tender and the chili reaches your desired thickness. Stir this mixture occasionally, to make sure nothing sticks to the bottom of the pot.
- Serve: Serve warm, and top as desired. Leftovers can be store in the refrigerator in an airtight container for up to 5 days and reheated on the stovetop or in the microwave. You can also store this vegan chili in the freezer for up to one month.
Notes
- Chili Powder: Your chili powder should be pure ancho chili powder for better flavor, not a “blend” of various spices and salt. If you use a spice blend with salt, reduce the salt to 1/2 teaspoon, adding more as necessary.
- Beans: You can swap out the pinto beans or kidney beans for black beans, if you’d like. Or check out my Chipotle Black Bean Chili!
- Oil Version: Sauté the onion, celery, and green pepper in 1 tablespoon of oil, stirring only occasionally so they stick to the bottom of the pan. Deglaze with the 1/4 cup of water as instructed in step one, scraping the bottom of the pan as necessary. Continue with the recipe as written.
- Make it Meaty: sauté the vegan “ground” or chopped sausage along with the garlic and spices in step 2.
Keywords: Vegan chili, easy vegan chili, vegetarian chili recipe, healthy vegetarian chili, gluten free chili
Want to save this Easy Vegan Chili Recipe for later? Pin the recipe to your Pinterest boards:
This chili was so easy to whip up and so tasty! I loved the level of spice in it with the cayenne. I dressed mine up with some tortilla chips and vegan cheddar. Definitely recommend!
Glad you enjoyed it, Lauren!
What an excellent chili recipe! Especially on this cold and rainy winter day. It’s just two of us so I expect after eating this for dinner for a couple days that we’ll have a little bit of leftovers to freeze… Yay! 🙂 I made cashew sour cream in my blender which complements the chili perfectly, and garnished with some of the green onions. We love ‘frito chili pie’ so it’s too bad I don’t have fritos to serve with it, but our health is better off without adding chips to such a healthy, already-delicious meal!
★★★★★
Thank you so much for the lovely review, Katelin! So happy you enjoyed it.
A classic winter warmer!
★★★★★
Perfect for an easy meal on a cold night! I had all the ingredients already in my kitchen and it all came together super easily and quickly….AND it was delicious! 😋 It’s got a little bit of heat 🔥 but not too much…just enough to make it interesting. Thanks for another great recipe!
– Alicia from Portland
★★★★★
You’re so welcome, Alicia! Happy you enjoyed it!
This chili was so tasty!! I used fire-roasted crushed tomatoes and regular chili powder. Paired with Siete dip chips, and my husband went back for THIRDS!! Definitely bookmarking this to make again!
★★★★★
Amazing! Thank you so much, Rachel!
Big hit at our house!
I did have to substitute some ingredients since I did not have them in hand but it still came out super tasty. I am trying to add as many veggies to my meals so I included many hidden gems 🤣. I didn’t have any of the beans suggested so I substituted them with green and red lentils. I also added some zucchini, TJ’s Holiday Hash and some Impossible Burger crumbles. I serve this up with some corn muffins.
This recipe was easy to follow and very flavorful. This will definitely go in my recipe box.
★★★★★
Glad you enjoyed it, Patricia! Thank you so much for leaving a review.
I love a lot of Caitlin’s recipes more than this one, which is the only reason I am giving 4 stars instead of 5.
Pros: very easy to make, includes pantry staples/findable ingredients, feel-good healthy recipe with lots of protein and benefits, filling, good for leftovers
Cons: maybe I just don’t love chili? The taste is not one that I’ll crave, but as far as chili goes, this one is as good as a lot of others. I might try to sub black beans for one of the others next time because I just like that flavor a smidge more
I’ll still eat all my leftovers and feel good about the nutritional content!
★★★★
We appreciate your feedback, Joanie! Glad you still liked it.
This chili is DYNOMITE, ideal for hygge season. When you’re done eating, make sure to loaf on the couch in cozy sweats and chillin’. Great for leftovers — who needs to cook more than necessary when you could be snuggling?? Sour cream is nice for texture and creaminess, and don’t you dare skip out on the green onions. Pairs perfectly with a sourdough loaf. Yum yum yum!
Thank you so much for the review, Dominic!
I don’t have ancho chili powder, but do have dried ancho chili’s. How would I sub those for the powder?
Hi Louwana! You can substitute ancho chili powder with dried ancho chilies. To do this, remove the stems and seeds from the dried chilies, toast them briefly, and grind them into a powder. Adjust the quantity based on flavor preference. Use the ground ancho chilies in the recipe at the same stage where ancho chili powder is called for. The substitution adds an authentic ancho chili flavor to the chili, enhancing its richness.
My husband loved this recipe so much that he wants it for his birthday. He’s a meat eater, I’m not. Thanks
Thank you for making it, Gay!
Very flavorful and yummy but super spicy for those sensitive to spice!
Glad you liked it, Devon. You can adjust the spiciness, too.
Stellar recipe! Added a sweet potato and it was fire! 🔥
Thanks for all your great content Caitlin!
★★★★★
You’re so welcome, Jen!
This chili is the best! I only added some small bits of cut mushrooms for a meaty texture. Will be making this again!
That sounds delicious, Judy!
I made the vegan chilly.Slight adjustments especially the chilly powder
In Australia we are not used to so much chilly.
But yum,yum over boiled potatoes steamed veg.
It’s a meal prep f
Glad you find it yummy, Mary!
Thank you so much for sharing this amazing vegan chili recipe! I can’t wait to give it a try. It looks so flavorful and hearty, perfect for a cozy rainy day meal. I love that it’s easy to make and only requires a few simple ingredients. I also appreciate that you included some tips and suggestions for how to customize the recipe and serve it with different toppings. This is definitely a recipe that I’ll be coming back to again and again. Thank you again for sharing!
★★★★★
Thank you for your lovely comment Rodney, my pleasure!
This chilli is amazing. But how many calories are in this dish?
I have not provided nutrition info for this recipe, but feel free to plug the ingredients into any online nutrition calculator 🙂
You should add “oil free vegan chili” to your keywords. That is a MAJOR bonus for WFPB folks.
★★★★★
Thanks for the recommendation, Steve!
This is so delicious and makes so much! Entire family and friends who are meat eaters love this too!
★★★★★
Happy to hear that!
Love this recipe! I make it regularly in the fall/winter! Sometimes I use can diced tomatoes instead of crushed for a chunkier chili but the recipe is great both ways 😊 we like to serve it over french fries – the perfect filling meal!
Glad you like it, Elizabeth!
Love this delicious Easy Vegan Chili Recipe, super excited to try these with us, will love to try this one.
★★★★★
Awesome!
★★★★★
This Easy Vegan Chili Recipe seems super delicious , super excited to try this unique recipe. Thanks for sharing this one , always excited to try this one.
★★★★★
We’re excited you’re trying it, Rose! Let us know how it went!
Super excited to try this Easy Vegan Chili Recipe, this one seems amazing and unique, super excited to try this one , thanks for sharing with us.
★★★★★
Love this Easy Vegan Chili Recipe, never tried this before . Super excited to try this unique recipe. Thanks for sharing this one with us .
★★★★★
You’re welcome, Rafael!
What’s the calories for one serving a cup? I love this I turned vegan this is mainly what I eat now:)
One serving of this chili could contain 300-450 calories per serving, if the recipe makes 6-8 servings. Keep in mind that this is just an estimate and the actual calorie count may vary. To get a more accurate calorie count, I would recommend consulting a calorie tracking website or app.
Love this Easy Vegan Chili Recipe, this one seems super delicious and unique. Will love to try this delicious one , thanks for sharing this recipe with us . Super excited to try this one .
★★★★★
Loved this recipe added tofu smart ground and green beans, everyone enjoyed. Thank you
★★★★★
Sounds delicious! I’m glad you all enjoyed the Chili, Pat 🙂