Veggie and Beef Chili
This Veggie and Beef Chili can be customized to feature seasonal vegetables and any protein. Enjoy for dinner and save leftovers for lunch!
Ingredients
The ingredients in this chili are super flexible—here are some ideas of possible options.
- Ground beef: You could use ground pork, turkey, or other proteins. You could also try vegetarian/vegan substitutes, thought I have not tried those myself.
- Beans: Red kidney beans are most often used in chili, but you could use any cooked bean or dried quick-cooking legumes such as lentils.
- Veggies: Use whatever vegetables are in season! For harder veggies like carrots, celery, kale/chard/broccoli/cabbage stems, winter squash, (sweet) potatoes, and frozen vegetables, add them at/near the beginning of cooking. Tender veggies like leafy greens and peas can be added near the end of cooking. Of course, adjust based on how crisp/soft you want your veggies to be.
- Cayenne: Without the cayenne, the chili isn’t very spicy. For extra spice, add hot sauce, more chili flakes, or fresh hot chilis.
- Toppings: I usually serve this with cilantro and cornbread/rice. Check out the recipe for other toppings.
Tips
- Adjust the chili consistency at the end of cooking. I like my chili on the thicker side and it’s perfect for dipping tortilla chips into or spooning onto bread. Thin out the chili with stock/water and eat it with rice or cornbread to soak up the soupy parts.
- This chili reheats well; if it seems dry add a little water before heating it up.
Veggie and Beef Chili
Course: Main DishCuisine: AmericanDifficulty: Easy2-4
servings10
minutes35
minutesIngredients
- Chili Ingredients
½ medium yellow onion (85g or ½ cup), diced
3 cloves garlic (12g or 1½ tsp), minced
225g (½ lb) ground beef
100g (heaping ½ cup) red kidney beans, cooked, or lentils, dry
260g (1 cup) jarred/canned crushed tomatoes
240g (1 cup) water/bean cooking liquid/stock
120g (1 cup) chopped veggies
- Spice Mix
2g (1 tsp) smoked paprika
2g (1 tsp) chili flakes
1g (½ tsp) ground cumin
¼ tsp cayenne powder (optional)
1g (¼-½ tsp) garlic powder
1g (¼-½ tsp) onion powder
4g (1 tsp) salt and more to taste
less than 1g (¼ tsp) black pepper
- Toppings (optional)
cilantro, scallions, sour cream, cheese, lime, avocado, chopped jalapeño, cornbread/tortillas, bread, rice, cheese crackers, etc
Directions
- Add ground beef to a large pot and cook over medium heat until fat renders and beef starts to brown.
- Add the onion and garlic and continue to sauté until the beef is fully browned and the onion turns translucent. If you’re using hard/frozen vegetables (carrots, celery, cruciferous veggies), now is the time to add them.
- Add beans/lentils (no liquid yet), spice mix, and diced tomatoes to the pot. Stir until well combined.
- Add bean cooking liquid until the chili doesn’t look dry anymore. Place a lid on the pot and allow it to simmer over a low flame for at least 30 minutes, stirring occasionally (the flavor gets better the longer it simmers). Add more liquid as needed. Add in any tender veggies around 5 minutes before the chili is done (or however long they need to cook). Cook until the lentils are softened.
- Give the chili one final taste, adjust seasonings/consistency if needed, then serve hot with toppings.
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