This sweet potato chili is an hearty and satisfying vegan chili which is full of flavour. Top with cilantro, avocado and lime juice for the ultimate experience.
Welcome to November. You're likely starting to feel the shift in the air as the temperature slowly begins to drop from here on. We're still enjoying bits of sunshine on the Island, however, the weather has definitely taken a turn towards winter. The leaves have fallen and thus begins one final bout of yard chores: raking leaves and turning the garden beds once more before the frosts creep in. I hope you are enjoying the turn of the seasons wherever you are!
This weekend, Steve (my fiance) and I were keen to make something delicious that would last us a few days: Sweet potato chili! There's nothing better than coming home to a meal already prepped and ready to warm, especially on a cold, rainy Monday. The beautiful thing about this chili (and most stews for that matter), is that it takes on a deeper flavour profile by the next day, so it's akin to having the same meal twice, but slightly different, nay, better.
We love to throw as much vegetable in our stews as possible. Yes, we add potato to chili. Anyway, having realized we were out of regular potato varieties, my husband ended up tossing in sweet potato much to our delight. It was a nice touch of contrast to the heat of the chili spice and smokey cumin. I loved it so much I decided to steal my fiance's recipe and blog all about it.
There are hundreds of chili recipes out there, one for any mood you're in. And whenever we make chili at home, it always ends up different from the last. One constant remains though, it's a wonderful cold weather meal. It also a great recipe to use up any left over vegetables or maybe even those home canned tomatoes from your summer hauls...we never really get around to canning tomatoes as they get eaten straight from the garden, still warm from the sun.
You say you're not a sweet potato fan? No problem! You can easily use whatever potato variety you have on hand. But I do urge you to give this a try with sweet potato.
Hearty Vegan Sweet Potato Chili
Ingredients
- 2 tablespoon olive oil
- ½ large yellow onion, diced
- 4 crimini mushrooms, sliced
- 2 cloves garlic, finely diced
- 2 medium carrots, peeled and diced
- ½ large sweet potato, peeled and cubed into 1 inch pieces
- 2 celery stalks, diced
- 1 small yellow pepper, diced
- 1 cup cauliflower florets
- 1 tablespoon chili powder
- 1 teaspoon ground cumin
- ¼ - ½ teaspoon chili flakes
- 4 cups organic diced tomatoes
- 3 tablespoon organic tomato paste
- 1 ⅓ cups vegetable broth
- 1 can (398 ml) kidney beans, drained
- 1 can (398 ml) black Beans, drained
- 1 can (398 ml) pinto Beans, drained
- Salt and pepper to taste
For Serving (optional)
- fresh cilantro
- diced avocado
- fresh lime juice
Instructions
- In a large sauce pot heat the olive oil over medium. Add the onion and cook, stirring occasionally until the onions have begun to soften (about 5 minutes). Add in the mushrooms and cook until browned and softened.
- Add the garlic, carrot, sweet potato, diced celery, cauliflower and yellow pepper and continue to cook over medium heat until the vegetables become slightly tender, about 10 minutes.
- Once the vegetables are slightly tender, stir in the chili powder, cumin and chili flakes until fragrant. Add the diced tomatoes, tomato paste, vegetable broth and stir to combine. Cover and simmer for 30 minutes, or until the water has reduced and the chili has thickened.
- Add the canned beans [add as much or as little as you like; I prefer my chili to be thick and thus as add the full amount of beans noted above] and stir to incorporate.
- Using an immersion blender, blend a small portion of the chili (just a few quick pulses); this will help to thicken up the chili. If you don't have an immersion blender, take approx 2 cups of the chili and place it in a blender with a vented top and carefully blend until well blended—add it back to your chili pot and mix until incorporated. Season with salt and pepper to taste.
- Serve immediately with a squeeze of fresh lime juice, diced avocado and chopped cilantro.
Heidi's Notes
Nutrition
This is an approximation of the nutrition offered in this recipe, and is created using a nutrition calculator. I am not a nutritionist and cannot guarantee accuracy. If your health depends on nutrition information, please calculate again with your preferred calculator.
Disclaimer
all recipes on The Simple Green are developed and tested in a Canadian kitchen, at normal elevation, using electric appliances and ingredients available in Canada. Results may vary.