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This Vegan Pumpkin Chili is hearty, smoky, and packed with cozy flavors! It’s super easy to make in a hurry and perfect for cold-weather meal prep. Gluten-Free with an Oil-Free option.
As the weather gets colder all I start to crave is cozy, hearty, food. This Pumpkin Chili is the perfect recipe for those days when you want some hug-in-a-bowl goodness that’s veggie-packed and won’t take up too much of your time in the kitchen.
INGREDIENTS FOR VEGAN PUMPKIN CHILI
This smoky and hearty chili gets its flavor from creamy pumpkin, warming spices, and finely diced mushrooms (which also add a little oomph in the texture department!).
- Beans: There’s no need for meat to make a good chili! Beans serve as the perfect hearty and plant protein-packed replacement. I love the creamy texture of pinto beans in this chili, but black beans or white beans will also work in a pinch
- Yummy Veggie Blend: Cremini Mushrooms, Red Onion, Red Bell Pepper, and Diced Tomatoes add a variety of textures and tasty flavors.
- Pumpkin Puree: Nothing says fall like pumpkin, so we’re using canned pumpkin puree to give this chili fall flavor and deliciously creamy texture. Be sure to get plain pumpkin puree, not the pumpkin pie puree that comes pre-seasoned!
- Warming Spice Blend: Garlic, Cumin, Chipotle, Thyme, and a bit of salt make this chili warm and savory with every bite.
- Vegetable Broth: I used my Homemade Veggie Broth recipe made from leftover veggie scraps, but store-bought will work just fine for this recipe if you don’t have any veggie scraps on hand.
HOW TO MAKE VEGAN PUMPKIN CHILI
Chili is one of the best cold-weather recipes because it’s so hearty and filling, but takes so little time and effort to make. It’s a whole meal in just one bowl, making it perfect for those days when you want to feel satiated without going through all the trouble of preparing both a main dish and sides.
- Pulse your mushrooms in a food processor until finely ground, then set aside.
- Add the onion and bell pepper to a pot and sauté until onion is translucent. Add the diced mushrooms, garlic, cumin, chipotle, thyme, and salt to the pot and mix. Sauté until the spices become fragrant.
- Add the diced tomatoes, pumpkin, beans, and veggie broth to the pot and stir well. Cover and bring to a boil, then reduce heat and simmer.
- Optional: Blend about 1/4 of the chili using an immersion or upright blender to make a thicker, heartier base.
- Top as desired and enjoy warm!
The warm and cozy feeling this Pumpkin Chili brings makes me feel so much more okay with saying farewell to the warm weather days and welcoming in the comfy sweater-weather months. I think it’s important to have meals that make you look forward to the season ahead. This hearty, smoky chili is definitely that meal for me!
I served my Pumpkin Chili with some freshly chopped chives, thyme, and a few slices of creamy avocado. I also think this would be great with tortilla chips or crusty bread on the side…or if you’re feeling extra cozy, some melty dairy-free cheese on top. Store any leftovers in the fridge for up to 5 days. You can also portion off servings and freeze your leftovers for convenient meal-prep for up to two months.
If you’re looking for more hug-in-a-bowl chili recipes like this one, you’ll also love this Vegan White Bean Chili with Jackfruit, this Hearty Vegan Chorizo Chili, and this Slow Cooker Vegan Bean & Quinoa Chili!
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 🙂
PrintCozy Vegan Pumpkin Chili
This Vegan Pumpkin Chili is hearty, smoky, and packed with cozy flavors! It’s super easy to make in a hurry and perfect for cold-weather meal prep. Gluten-Free with an Oil-Free option.
- Prep Time: 10 Minutes
- Cook Time: 30 Minutes
- Total Time: 40 minutes
- Yield: Serves 4 to 6 1x
- Category: Main
- Method: Stovetop
- Cuisine: American
- Diet: Vegan
Ingredients
- 8 ounces cremini mushrooms, quartered
- 1 tablespoon avocado oil (Optional)
- 1 small red onion, diced
- 1 red bell pepper, diced
- 3 cloves garlic, minced
- 1 teaspoon ground cumin
- 1/2 – 1 teaspoon chipotle powder (reduce if sensitive to heat)
- 1 teaspoon fresh thyme leaves
- 1/2 teaspoon smoked paprika
- 1/2 teaspoon salt, plus more to taste
- 1 14.5 ounce (410 g) can diced tomatoes
- 1 15 ounce can (425 g) pumpkin puree (not pie mix)
- 2 15.5 ounce (440 g) cans pinto beans, drained and rinsed well
- 1 1/2 cups (350 ml) vegetable broth (store-bought or homemade)
- Optional, for serving: chopped chives, avocado, dairy-free cheese, etc.
Instructions
- Prep: Add the quartered mushrooms to a food processor and pulse until finely ground; you can also dice the mushrooms with a knife, but this will take a lot longer. Set aside. Add the avocado oil to a large pot over medium-high heat and allow to warm.
- Sauté: Add the onion and bell pepper to the pot and sauté for 3 to 5 minutes, until the onion is translucent. Add the diced mushrooms, garlic, cumin, chipotle, thyme, paprika, and salt to the pot and mix well; sauté for an additional 3 to 5 minutes, until the spices become fragrant and the mushrooms reduce in volume.
- Make it Saucy: add the tomatoes, pumpkin, beans, and vegetable broth to the pot and stir well. Cover the pot and bring the mixture to a boil over high heat; once boiling, remove the lid, reduce the heat to medium-low, and simmer for 10-12 minutes.
- Blend (Optional): For a creamier chili, take an immersion blender and blend approximately 1/4 to 1/3 of the mixture, to make a thicker, heartier base. You can also carefully transfer 2 cups of the chili into an upright blender, process until smooth, and return to the pot.
- Serve: warm, and as desired; leftovers will keep in the fridge for up to 5 days, or can be frozen for up to 2 months.
Notes
- Oil-Free: Use 1/4 cup (60ml) vegetable broth to sauté the vegetables instead of the oil in step 1. Add additional broth as needed while the vegetables are sautéing, to ensure nothing sticks to the bottom of the pan.
- Substitutions: pumpkin puree can be replaced with homemade puree or mashed sweet potato. Pinto beans can be swapped for another bean, such as black beans or white beans.
Keywords: vegan chili, vegan pumpkin chili, pumpkin chili, healthy pumpkin chili, vegan chili healthy
Can’t wait to try this! How much dried thyme should I use in place of fresh?
I would recommend around 1/2 teaspoon of dried thyme as I find the flavor to be less intense than fresh!
This was so good! I used extra garlic and spices but other than that, followed the recipe. My meat eating boyfriend liked it too. He topped his with cheese to make it non-vegan. But I’m calling it a win lol Thanks for the great addition to my fall recipe roster ❤️❤️❤️
You’re so welcome, Molly! Happy you enjoyed it!
Another delicious weeknight meal! The mushrooms gave it a really nice texture. I chopped the pepper, onion, mushrooms, and garlic all in the food processor so no chopping required!
★★★★★
Excellent, healthy and easy! Loved it 🎉
★★★★★
This was delish! We skipped the oil & salt used postassium chloride instead. Oh and I didn’t have chipotle on hand so we just used more smoked paprika and it was still excellent. My 3 youngers who don’t like mushrooms or soups or chilis etc. all ate a nice big bowl!
★★★★★
I’m so happy to hear that, Tish!
My new favorite fall recipe—so cozy and SO delicious. I tend to prefer bolder flavor so I bumped up all the spices, seasonings, and herbs and added in a bit of garam masala, curry powder, and powdered coriander seed. It was still absolutely 10/10 without the additions, though!
So happy you enjoy it, Spencer!
Thank you so much for this great recipe – it is just perfect for this time of the year. This curry is so good and tastes even better the next day. I am definitely going to make this many times this winter!
★★★★★
I’m glad you loved it, Carlin! Thank you so much for the feedback!
Followed the recipe exactly as written and turned out amazing!! It was a touch spicy for me with the chipotle but you can add or take out to your liking!.
★★★★★
So yummy! I’ve already made this twice this month and my little boys love it too!
★★★★★
So glad you can all enjoy them together!
I was reluctant to add the pumpkin. But wow!! Quite the unique taste. Merci beaucoup!!
★★★★★
Glad you tried it out!
This chili was a 10/10!! Absolutely delicious! Can’t wait to make again!
-Madi xo
★★★★★
Thanks for making it!
Wow! This is by far the best chili I’ve ever had!! My boyfriend and I loved it!!
Greetings from Luxemburg 🙂
★★★★★
Thanks so much! Glad you two enjoyed it!
My husband and I loved this recipe! We made it for our family members who are not vegan and they loved it too! Thanks for the great and EASY recipe!
★★★★★
Always love hearing when non vegans love a vegan recipe!
excellent! loved it!
★★★★★
Thank you!!
Caitlin this was amazing! I was a bit skeptical of the mushrooms, but there was zero mushroom taste and it gave it a meaty texture. I have never made a recipe from you that wasn’t amazing!
That’s so kind of you! Glad you made it with the mushrooms even when you were feeling skeptical!
This was great!
★★★★★
Thanks so much!
Excited to make this! Can I substitute chipotle powder with regular chili powder?
Sure! Although chipotle powder has a pretty distinct smoky flavor so you will be missing that element. If you ever get a hold of some, chipotle powder for chili makes a big difference!