Bean and Lentil Chili Recipe (Vegan)

The weather is gloomy and the leaves are slowly falling off the trees. Guys, it’s November. When did this happen? I’m still in denial that it’s no longer summer and the year is almost over. However, one good thing about colder weather is cuddling up to a warming bowl of vegetarian chili. Chili is such an easy and budget-friendly meal to make for the whole family. Plus, it can easily be put in the freezer if you want to meal prep or save some for one of those too-busy weeks. This Lentil Chili was made with three different beans and Bob’s Red Mill lentils, which means it’s jammed with nutrition, it’s seriously one of my fav vegan lentil recipes.

❤️ Why You’ll Love Lentil Chili

• Quick: There is only 15 minutes of prep time for this recipe, the rest is just cooking it up and letting all the flavors marinate together 
• Healthy & Filling: The health benefits of the beans combined with the lentils not only make this dish healthy but very filling 
• Comforting: Is there anything better in the colder months than a big bowl of steaming hot chili? I think not!
• Versatile: The best part about chili is it’s pretty hard to screw it up. Experiment with the beans you have on hand for different textures and deliciousness 

🍲 Ingredients

Beans: For this Lentil Chili recipe I used three different kinds of beans, however, the best part about chili is that it’s so versatile you can throw in whatever vegetables and beans you want or have in the cupboard. Beans are packed with protein which is incredibly beneficial in a plant-based diet. First off, beans are high in amino acids which are the building blocks of protein. Secondly, they are high in folate which can help with weakness, fatigue, heart palpitations, loss of appetite, and irritability.

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Lentils: Lentils range in colors from green, brown, black, coral, orange, and the list goes on. Bob’s Red Mill sells both green and red lentils, and you can use either in this recipe. Lentils are loaded with nutrients and health benefits like protein, fiber, iron, zinc, and the list goes on.

👩‍🍳 How to Make Lentil Chili

1. Into a large pot, sauté the onion on medium heat for around 5 minutes or until translucent.
2. Add in your finely chopped pepper and sauté for another 5 minutes or until soft.
3. Now add your seasoning, jalapeno pepper, spices and garlic. Cook for another minute and give it all a good stir.
4. Next add the canned tomatoes (with juice), vegetable stock and tomato paste. You want to stir this till well combined then increase your heat to high.
5. Lastly, add your beans and reduce heat to medium. Cook till thickened for another 30-40 minutes. Stir frequently to avoid burning.
6. Garnish with cilantro and green onion.

🪄 Tips and Tricks

• Dried beans contain nearly double the folate than canned beans
• Double the batch and freeze half of it for easy, healthy meals
• Top with meltable cheese, green onions, tortilla chips, or sour cream

🗒 Substitutions

• Spice: If you don’t like spice you can skip the jalapeno and go easy on the chili powder
• Beans: Use your fav combination of beans in this recipe, there really is no preference when it comes to chili
• Meat: If you aren’t vegetarian or vegan, add in your favorite ground meat to this recipe

🗒 Best served with

• Cornbread Salad
• Shredded Brussels Sprout Salad
• Dutch Oven Bread

👝 How to Store Leftovers

Store in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 4 days or freeze. To freeze, put it into a tightly sealed container once completely cooled, and when you’re ready to reheat, thaw it out and warm it up in a pot. 

🤔 Common Questions

Bean and Lentil Chili Recipe (Vegan)

4.56 from 9 votes

This simple Lentil Chili recipe is plant-based, easy-to-make, and perfect to warm you from the inside out during the winter months.

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Prep Time 15 minutes mins

Cook Time 50 minutes mins

Total Time 1 hour hr 5 minutes mins

Course Main

Cuisine Vegan

Servings 6 -8

Calories 166 kcal

Ingredients

  

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• 2 tbsp. extra virgin olive oil
• 1 cup sweet white onion finely chopped
• 1 cup red pepper finely chopped
• 1 medium jalapeno seeded, finely chopped 2 tbsp. chili powder
• 1 tbsp. oregano dried
• 1 tbsp. cumin powder
• 1 tsp. smoked paprika
• dash of cinnamon
• 1/8 tsp. cayenne pepper
• 2 cloves garlic pressed
• 3 cups canned roma tomatoes unsalted
• 2 cups vegetable stock – unsalted
• 1 tbsp. tomato paste
• 1 398 mL can red kidney beans, drained and rinsed
• 1 398 mL can of romano beans, drained and rinsed
• 1 398mL can black bean, drained and rinsed
• 1 cup cooked green lentils I used Bob’s Red Mill
• Garnish with: Cilantro chopped Green onion

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Instructions

 

• Into a large pot, sauté the onion on medium heat for around 5 minutes or until translucent.
• Add in your finely chopped pepper and sauté for another 5 minutes or until soft.
• Now add your seasoning, jalapeno pepper, spices and garlic. Cook for another minute and give it all a good stir.
• Next add the canned tomatoes (with juice), vegetable stock and tomato paste. You want to stir this till well combined then increase your heat to high.
• Lastly, add your beans and reduce heat to medium. Cook till thickened for another 30-40 minutes. Stir frequently to avoid burning.
• Garnish with cilantro and green onion.
• Enjoy hot! Tip: if you have some vegan meltable cheese on hand, then this is where you spice things up!

Notes

Freezer friendly.  To freeze, let the chili completely cool before transferring into a tight sealed container and place into your freezer.  To reheat simply thaw and transfer to a pot and cook till hot throughout.

Nutrition

Serving: 8 | Calories: 166kcal | Carbohydrates: 49.5g | Protein: 16.3g | Fat: 6.5g | Saturated Fat: 1.1g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 1.7g | Sodium: 597.8mg | Fiber: 15.7g | Sugar: 5g

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