Super Easy Vegetarian Chili

Best Chili Recipes & Crockpot Recipes

This vegetarian chili recipe is one of the tastiest chili recipes you'll ever make. And crockpot recipes like this are super easy too.

Credit: Nathan Wells/Flickr

There are almost endless ways to make chili, of course. And what is chili to one person is not to another. Seems to me there are very personal tastes when it comes to chili recipes. I, myself, grew up on a very labor-intensive chili and made it that way for my family for quite a few years too.

But then, in the early 90s, I was a hard working single mom with 2 young daughters. We all loved chili, but I just didn't have time to make it the way I had before, which involved overnight soaking of dried beans and then cooking them for an hour or two... BEFORE the chili preparation proper even began.

Also, my kids were balking at the standard ground beef ingredient. So, one day I got inspired and came up with a mostly canned goods based chili, using my crockpot. Turned out we liked it every bit as much as my original recipe!

So, here it is...

Easy Vegetarian Chili

Ingredients:

1 can black beans
1 can pinto beans (no sauce)
1 can Great Northern white beans
1 bag veggie crumbles
2 to 3 cups beef broth or water

1 can seasoned chopped tomatoes
2 to 3 cloves garlic, minced
1 onion, chopped
Joe's Stuff to taste

Directions:

Open the cans of beans and drain them. I rinse them too, to help with "gas control." Dump all the beans into the crockpot. Open the can of tomatoes and add to the crockpot. Chop the onion and garlic and add it in. Crumble the veggie crumbles into the pot too.

Add seasonings to taste. I love Joe's Stuff, a Cajun seasoning mix I picked up in New Orleans on a vacation, but any Cajun seasoning will do. Mix everything together and then pour as much liquid over as you like. (I use beef bouillon to add taste to the veggie-based chili, but water is OK too. Turn the crockpot on and cook for 4 to 8 hours.

Make the chili before you leave for work in the morning, and when you come home, your house will be filled with the wonderful aroma of well-blended chili. We serve ours with shredded taco cheese on top. I like a bit of sour cream as well. Great with saltines or hard rolls!

Variations

Use ground turkey, shredded beef or pork, chopped chorizo or ground beef in place of the veggie crumbles
Add other veggies, such as green peppers, mushrooms, potatoes, or corn
Substitute other types of beans, such as garbanzos, kidney beans, or lentils<
Use different seasonings, such as chili powder, coriander, cumin, etc.
Use chicken and no tomatoes for a "white" chili
Make your chili thicker like a stew, rather than the soupy version I prefer

After you try this recipe, please vote on it... tell me what you think: