This healthy vegan 3 bean chili makes the perfect quick and easy weeknight meal or meal prep and is ready in 35 minutes with simple ingredients all in one pot.
About the Recipe
If you’re looking for a quick, weeknight meal, you’ll love this chili. All you have to do is chop a few veggies, open some cans of beans, simmer it all up and it’s ready to enjoy! Here’s why you’ll love it:
- Quick & Easy: This recipe is ready in 35 minutes in one pot. Perfect for busy weeknights!
- Budget-friendly and freezes well, so great for batch cooking and meal prep.
- Made with simple, everyday pantry ingredients.
- High in protein and fiber.
- Perfect for a healthy lunch, dinner or meal prep idea.
- Easy to customize with different vegetables, spices or protein of choice.
- Vegan (dairy-free, vegetarian), gluten-free and can be oil-free.
For more chili recipes, this Chipotle Butternut Squash Chili with Black Beans and Vegan Slow Cooker Red Lentil Chili are excellent.
Ingredients & Substitutions
- Onion: White or yellow onion is suitable.
- Bell Pepper: Use any variety such as red, orange or green. Any combination of colors works. Only have green peppers? Totally fine!
- Spices: You’ll need chili powder, cumin and smoked paprika. Other spices you can experiment with are taco seasoning, oregano and for heat, red pepper flakes or cayenne.
- Tomato Paste: Use a small 6-oz can of thick tomato paste. In a pinch, you can substitute any plain tomato sauce.
- Beans: Use 3 different types of canned beans such as pinto beans, chickpeas, kidney beans, black beans, white kidney beans or black eye beans. Lentils would also work!
- Broth: Any broth or stock you enjoy works. I like to use Better than Bouillon.
This list is not complete. Please see the recipe card at the end of the post for the complete ingredient list with measurements and detailed instructions.
Adjustments
- Love spicy chili? This recipe isn’t spicy as is but you can easily turn up the heat by adding 1 tsp cayenne pepper, red chili flakes or 1 chopped chipotle pepper in adobo to spice this recipe up!
- Add more protein. If you want to add ground meat or sausage, cook it separately and stir it in at the end.
- Veggies: Other veggies that work well are corn or zucchini.
Step-by-Step Instructions
1. Chop up the garlic, onion, carrots, bell peppers and jalapeno so you’re already to go once you start cooking.
Quick Tip: Wash and de-seed the jalapeno pepper before dicing then make sure you give your hands a good wash right away.
2. Heat the oil in a large pot or Dutch oven over medium heat. Add the onion, bell peppers, carrots and garlic to a large soup pot or Dutch oven with 2 tbsp olive oil and a pinch of salt and pepper.
Cook these up for 6-7 minutes until soft and fragrant, stirring often.
3. Add the spices and jalapeno, stir well and cook another 2-3 minutes, stirring often.
4. The final step is to add the beans, tomato paste and vegetable broth and simmer until the carrots are tender. This should take about 15-20 minutes.
Serve your chili right away with your favorite toppings like tortilla chips, avocado, sour cream and green onion.
If you’re making it in advance, transfer it to a storage container or individual containers and let cool then store in the fridge or freezer.
How to Thicken Chili
This recipe is thick on its own but here are a few tips for thickening chili:
- Add refried beans. You can stir up to 1/2 cup refried beans of choice into chili to give it a thick texture.
- Mash chili. You can use a wooden spoon or potato masher to make up some of the chili for a thicker texture. Alternatively, you can use an immersion blender in the pot or transfer a few scoops to a blender and then pouring it back into the pot.
- Add tortilla or tortilla chips. Try adding a handful of crushed tortilla chips or even a whole corn or wheat tortilla to your chili.
- Add cauliflower rice or a grain. You can add up to 1 cup cooked grains such as rice or quinoa, or cauliflower rice for a low-carb option.
FAQs
Yes. To make this recipe oil-free, use water or broth instead of oil to saute the onion and garlic.
You can use just about any variety of bean to make a vegetarian chili. Try kidney beans, pinto beans, black beans, cannellini beans, navy beans, black eyed peas or great northern beans.
Yes. If you’re using canned beans in this recipe, drain and rinse them well before adding to the recipe.
Let chili cool completely before storing. Fridge: Store 3 bean chili in the fridge in a sealed container for up to 5 days.
Freezer: Store in an air-tight container or a heavy duty freezer bag for up to 6 months. This can be done in individual servings or one large batch. Thaw in the fridge before reheating.
Reheating: You can reheat chili on the stovetop in a saucepan or microwave, stirring occasionally, until heated through.
Instant Pot Instructions
- Use the Saute function to cook for onions and garlic in olive oil for a few minutes.
- Add the tomato paste, peppers, carrot and spices and cook for a few more minutes then press Cancel.
- Add the rest of the ingredients, seal the lid and make sure the valve is set to “Sealing”.
- Press “Pressure Cook” and set the timer for 2 minutes.
- Let the pressure release naturally for 10-15 minutes then release any remaining pressure before carefully opening the lid.
Did you try this recipe? I’d love to hear about it! Scroll down to comment section below to leave your star rating and review.
⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
- 2 tbsp olive oil, substitute water or broth for oil-free
- 1 medium white onion, diced (approx. 2 cups)
- 2 cups chopped carrots, thinly sliced, approx. 3 large or 5 small
- 3 bell peppers, any colour, diced (approx. 3 cups)
- 4 cloves garlic, minced
- 2 tbsp chili powder
- 1 tsp cumin
- 1/2 tsp smoked paprika
- 1 small jalapeno, seeds removed and minced
- 1 can (6 oz.) tomato paste
- 3 cans (14 oz) various beans, chickpeas, kidney beans, black beans, pinto beans, etc, drained and well-rinsed
- 2 cups vegetable broth
- salt and pepper, to taste
Prevent your screen from going dark
-
Heat the olive oil in a large pot or Dutch oven over medium heat.
-
Add the onion, carrot, bell peppers and garlic and cook for 6-7 minutes, stirring often.
-
Add the chili powder, cumin, paprika and jalapeno and cook for 2-3 minutes, stirring often.
-
Add the tomato paste, beans and vegetable broth and stir to combine. Simmer uncovered, stirring occasionally, until the carrots are tender, approximately 15-20 minutes.
-
Season with salt and pepper, if needed, and serve right away with optional toppings like green onion, vegan sour cream, avocado, cilantro or crushed tortilla chips.
For beans, choose from chickpeas, fava beans, white kidney beans, black beans, pinto beans, lima beans, black-eye peas or kidney beans.
For spicy chili, add up to 1 tsp red pepper flakes or cayenne pepper.
Serving: 2cups, Calories: 272kcal, Carbohydrates: 51g, Protein: 15g, Fat: 3g, Sodium: 672mg, Potassium: 1082mg, Fiber: 16g, Sugar: 11g, Vitamin A: 507IU, Vitamin C: 87mg, Calcium: 135mg, Iron: 5mg
This recipe was originally published December 3, 2013.
