You might like these recipes for vegan chili fries and vegan no-oil crockpot chili. On days when I crave comfort and health for dinner but don’t want to spend too much time or effort cooking, I cook up a pot of my smoky and quick Vegan Chili. It’s also easy to make and it has a full-bodied flavor that takes away any need for meat or even meat substitutes. I love that most of the ingredients come from cans– the pinto and black beans and the fire-roasted tomatoes. The fire-roasted tomatoes, the cumin and the smoked paprika pack a triple hit of smokiness and flavor that take this chili from amazing to divine. Use them all for the best results. And the herbs only make all of this goodness even better. On top of the chili, for even more great flavor and texture, goes a smooth, silky avocado crema flavored with cilantro, lime and jalapeno. It’s a really simple recipe to pull together and it adds to the deliciousness of an already delicious recipe.

Top tips

To make this recipe come together fast, make sure you have your beans and other ingredients on hand. I use canned pinto and black beans for the quickest turnaround. If you want to cook your own beans from scratch, that’s fine too. There are three ingredients in this recipe that give it that richness and smokiness I so love: smoked paprika, fire roasted tomatoes and cumin. Use them all for the best flavor. I do recommend letting the chili cook for 45 minutes after all the ingredients have been added for the best flavor, but if you are running short on time, you can pull it off the stove in 30 minutes. That said, this chili tastes best when left to stand overnight. Use both oregano and thyme (dried is good) for maximum flavor. You can also sub with rosemary or sage. I love adding sage to this sometimes because it adds to the smokiness. You don’t have to make the avocado crema, but if you can, do. It tastes amazing with this stew and I guarantee you’ll be in love. What can you eat with this chili? It makes a great meal by itself, but if you want to, serve it with quinoa or with a crusty bread. It’s also great to scoop up with tortilla chips or drizzle over French fries, like these guilt-free Air Fryer French Fries.

Ingredients

Black beans Pinto beans Vegetable oil (I usually use avocado) Leeks Garlic Carrot Green bell pepper (another color bell pepper is fine) Frozen corn kernels Fire roasted tomatoes Cumin Paprika Oregano Thyme Vegetable stock (for best flavor) Salt Ground black pepper Avocados Jalapeno pepper Cilantro Lime

Most of these are probably in your pantry. If you try this vegan chili with avocado crema, be sure to come back and let me know! Check to get new recipe updates by email.

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Recipe card

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