Homemade Vegetarian Chili
This simple vegetarian chili recipe tastes incredible! It's easy to make with basic pantry ingredients, vegetables and spices. Gluten free and easily vegan.
Updated by Kathryne Taylor on October 3, 2024
It’s freezing cold outside, and has been for days. All I want to eat is cozy comfort food like this vegetarian chili recipe. It’s my favorite, and leftovers taste even better the next day.
This chili is perfect for watching football games with a crowd, since it’s a hearty meatless option that carnivores will enjoy. Plus, it can be vegan and gluten free if you choose your toppings carefully. This chili will satisfy everyone.
I originally published this recipe four years ago. Since then, it’s become your favorite chili recipe as well (four-hundred reviews and counting).
I’ve cheered when you’ve told me that it won your chili competition, and love hearing that it’s become a staple recipe in your kitchen. Hooray!
How to Make the Best Vegetarian Chili
While the ingredients in this chili recipe are super basic, the flavor is anything but. Simple ingredients can taste exceptional when they start off with aromatics like onion, carrot, celery and garlic.
I added traditional chili spices and some smoked paprika for an extra-savory, smoky note. Canned beans and tomatoes contribute delicious plant-based protein and heft.
Blending a small portion of the chili makes it look and taste like a chili that has been cooking all morning long, but it only needs about 30 minutes of simmering. That’s a little trick that I learned from my lentil soup, which is another cozy option for cold days.
Finishing off the chili with a little splash of sherry vinegar (or lime juice) and fresh cilantro makes it taste vibrant and fresh. The vinegar offers a little acidity and complexity, and it makes all the difference.
Watch How to Make Vegetarian Chili
Chili Toppings
This chili is dairy-free and vegan as written. You can keep it that way by choosing vegan toppings like sliced avocado and tortilla chips.
Here’s a full list of options:
- Grated cheddar cheese
- Sour cream or crème fraîche
- Sliced or diced avocado
- Tortilla chips (crumbled if desired)
- Additional cilantro
- Lime wedges
Leftover Chili?
This chili makes great leftovers, which keep well for four days in the refrigerator. Reheat your chili in a bowl, and it’s good to go.
You can also serve this chili as a protein-rich topping on nachos, baked potatoes or oven-baked fries. Stuff your burritos or quesadillas with chili. Why not?
Please let me know how this chili turns out in the comments! I always love to hear from you.
Stay warm out there, and if you love this hearty soup, be sure to check out the soup recipes in my cookbook.
Homemade Vegetarian Chili
The smoky, complex flavor of this simple vegetarian chili comes from basic pantry ingredients, vegetables and spices! It makes great leftovers, too. Recipe yields 4 large or 6 moderate servings of chili.
Ingredients
- 2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
- 1 medium red onion, chopped
- 1 large red bell pepper, chopped
- 2 medium carrots, chopped
- 2 ribs celery, chopped
- ½ teaspoon salt, divided
- 4 cloves garlic, pressed or minced
- 2 tablespoons chili powder*
- 2 teaspoons ground cumin
- 1 ½ teaspoons smoked paprika*
- 1 teaspoon dried oregano
- 1 large can (28 ounces) or 2 small cans (15 ounces each) diced tomatoes**, with their juices
- 2 cans (15 ounces each) black beans, rinsed and drained
- 1 can (15 ounces) pinto beans, rinsed and drained
- 2 cups vegetable broth or water
- 1 bay leaf
- 2 tablespoons chopped fresh cilantro, plus more for garnishing
- 1 to 2 teaspoons sherry vinegar or red wine vinegar or lime juice, to taste
- Garnishes: chopped cilantro, sliced avocado, tortilla chips, sour cream or crème fraîche, grated cheddar cheese, etc.
Instructions
- In a large Dutch oven or heavy-bottomed pot over medium heat, warm the olive oil until shimmering. Add the chopped onion, bell pepper, carrot, celery and ¼ teaspoon of the salt. Stir to combine and cook, stirring occasionally, until the vegetables are tender and the onion is translucent, about 7 to 10 minutes.
- Add the garlic, chili powder, cumin, smoked paprika and oregano. Cook until fragrant while stirring constantly, about 1 minute.
- Add the diced tomatoes and their juices, the drained black beans and pinto beans, vegetable broth and bay leaf. Stir to combine and let the mixture come to a simmer. Continue cooking, stirring occasionally and reducing heat as necessary to maintain a gentle simmer, for 30 minutes.
- Remove the chili from the heat and discard the bay leaf. For the best texture and flavor, transfer 1 ½ cups of the chili to a blender, making sure to get some of the liquid portion. Securely fasten the lid and blend until smooth (watch out for hot steam), then pour the blended mixture back into the pot. (Or, you can blend the chili briefly with an immersion blender, or mash the chili with a potato masher until it reaches a thicker, more chili-like consistency.)
- Add the chopped cilantro, stir to combine, and then mix in the vinegar, to taste. Add salt to taste, too—I added ¼ teaspoon more at this point. Divide the mixture into individual bowls and serve with garnishes of your choice. This chili will keep well in the refrigerator for about 4 days or you can freeze it for longer-term storage.
Notes
Recipes consulted during the making of this recipe: vegetarian chili with winter vegetables (The New York Times), vegetarian chili (Saveur) and winter vegetable chili (Food and Wine).
Make it vegan/dairy free: This chili recipe is vegan as written. Just be sure to choose vegan/dairy free toppings, such as avocado and tortilla chips.
If you love this recipe: You’ll also love my butternut squash chipotle chili and sweet potato chili. You might also enjoy my hearty lentil soup and black bean soup.
*Spice note: If you are sensitive to spice or using particularly potent spices (I hear that chili powder purchased outside of the U.S. can be very hot), you might want to scale back on the spice here. Start with half of the amounts listed and add more to taste. That said, I enjoy spicy food and found this chili to be well-balanced as written.
**Canned tomatoes note: I recommend Muir Glen brand—they have the best flavor and their cans are BPA-free!
Nutrition
The information shown is an estimate provided by an online nutrition calculator. It should not be considered a substitute for a professional nutritionist’s advice. See our full nutrition disclosure here.
I’ve been searching for a good chili recipe to make without vegetarian meet analogs and I think I’ve found my standard. It got rave reviews from my art group when I served it in hollowed out corn muffins with avocado and sour cream on the side. I added fresh corn and a half teaspoon of Ancho pepper to the simmering pot but otherwise, stuck to the recipe spice blend – such a great depth of flavor and not too spicy. I almost forgot the touch of lime but It was delightful. I’m a third generation vegetarian and I’m subscribing to this blog based on this one delicious recipe.
Belated thank you for your comment, Joni! Your version sounds amazing. Such a great idea to serve inside corn muffins. Delicious! Thank you for subscribing.
Made this tonight during major east coast snowstorm. When we shopped at local whole foods they were TOTALLY out of fresh vegetables in advance of snowstorm threat. So I had to substitute fresh carrots and celery for 2 cups of frozen vegetable medley. Still really delicious – loved it!
Jane, so glad the chili worked out well for you! Stay warm!
I just finished making (and eating!) this on this snowy Boston night. It was so good! Seriously, the best chili I’ve ever made. I’m all warmed up now. Thank you for yet another AMAZING recipe! I will definitely make it again. I just moved to the east coast from California and I was really nervous about the winters, but I think with cozy recipes like this I’ll be just fine!
Thank you, Shannon! Hope you are staying warm up there!
I made this today and it was excellent! I am a vegan and have been looking for something like this. Highly recommended. I added a little more of the veggies, Ro-Tel canned tomatoes with green chilis, and bought canned seasoned beans. It was just excellent. By far the spiciest dish I have ever made.
Thank you very much for sharing!
Your friend for life in KCMO!
Thank you, Jeffrey! So glad you enjoyed it! Nice to know it’s been made in another kitchen here in KC. :)
Kate! I’m amazed by your blog!! love it so much! just wanted to ask… the recipe quantities are for one person or 4 or 2? Thank you!
Hi Sandra! Thank you for saying hello. This chili makes 4 to 6 servings, depending on the portions. My recipes vary in servings, but I try to always specify the number of servings in the recipe header, above the ingredients. Hope you love it!
I am making this for a party because of the rave reviews! But I’d like to double the recipe to serve more people. Do you think I should just double all the ingredients but not the spices? Thanks.
Hey Roxie! You could double all of the ingredients, unless you or your guests are sensitive to spice.
BEST chili I’ve ever had. I usually need to add cheese and sour cream because I find a lot of chilis boring, but I loved this plain. I gave myself a stomach ache the first night because I ate so much!
This is absolutely fabulous!!! I can’t wait to make it again!!
Really satisfying, you will not miss the meat at all.
I forgot to give it a five star rating!
I made this chili for the Super bowl. Honestly, my husband is not a chili fan but he was a sport and ate it anyway. He couldn’t stop eating it! Hands down the best veggie chili recipe! Thank you!!
I am actually eating a bowl of this as I type. It is so good! The blender trick is genius. I doubled the recipe to have extras and I have no regrets. I look forward to eating this for the rest of the week!
This recipe was great! But 2 tbsp chili powder is crazy hot, so the second time I made it I only put around 2 tsp. Thanks Kate!
I have just gotten around to making this chili although it’s been on my list for awhile. Wish I had made it sooner! It was hearty but not heavy, very flavorful and made great leftovers for a few days. The sweet potato really complements the beans, and if I did eat meat I sure wouldn’t miss it here. Thanks, and I am really looking forward to your cookbook!
I made this for my family last night and it is now my new go-to chili recipe, vegetarian or otherwise! I have tried so many chili recipes over the years and they’ve always fall short, but not this one! The spice combination was just right, it had just the right level of heat, plus the trick about blending some of the soup to give it that real chili texture was brilliant. Thanks for another great recipe, Kate!
I have a big pot of this bubbling on the stove as we speak :) I’m not a huge chili maker normally but I woke up this morning with a huge craving and this was the recipe that spoke to me. I couldn’t find black beans in the supermarket (I’m in England) but I have used pinto, black eyed and kidney beans. I sprinkled a little sugar in because I always do with tomato based sauces – I hope I haven’t thrown off the balance!
Anyway, thank you for the inspiration, I enjoy your site.
The chili is AWESOME. Extremely flavorful, yet mild. We loved it.
Hi Kate! I made this tonight for my daughters, who both love chili, and it was a hit! They didn’t even miss the meat, which seems to be giving my oldest daughter tummy trouble, so I’m thrilled to have an alternative. Thanks for all your recipes, you’ve become a go-to site for me because I know I can rely on a great outcome.
My first ever veggie chili – Amazing!
I used kidney beans and chickpeas as that’s all I had in my cupboard.
The blending trick made the consistency of the dish just perfect.
I served it with cheese sweet potatoe fries which complimented the dish nicely.
Huge thank you for this tasty recipe. This chili will definitely be made in my kitchen again (Boyfriend approved!)
I made this tonight and it was very good. I did leave out the carrots and instead put in green onions. I can’t stand carrots but I can never get enough onions. This makes enough until I go to the grocery store at the end of the week too. Thank you very much for this. I’m going to check out your other recipes too.
I made this chili last week, it’s one of the nicest veggie recipes I’ve ever tasted! The blending tip makes all the difference. My husband loved the flavours (he said that he preferred this recipe over a traditional meat one, I was amazed!). Thanks for sharing x
I took a double batch to a pot luck dinner, just in case their were GF and/or Vegetarians eating with us, planning to have some left over for a Tuesday night Baked Potato madness but so such luck. People were scraping the big slow cooker clean to take some home for family members! Went to town to get ingredients for another batch. This recipe is really good – but I am adding ONE jalapeno to the next batch.
As other said the blending a portion of the batch is a great trick, and the red wine vinegar at the end is perfect.
Hey Kate!
I just made this dish! Its delicious! Thank you for sharing!
This was very good and very easy. I’ve also used your trick of putting some ingredients into the blender and pouring it back in minestrone and mushroom barley It’s a great idea.
Was a little plain but I just added stout beer instead of the vinegar and some curry, cayenne, cinnamon, and sugar seemed to also help. Prepare in cast iron if possible!
We’ll it’s the first day of spring but in the northeast it stil feels like winter so I’m making this chili right now. It looks and smells amazing! Thanks for all your great recipes Kate
This recipe is awesome, I made it last week and it was dankk!!
Easily the best veggie chili I’ve tasted in my life. Thank you!
I also threw in some veggie ground beef and kidney beans and then added more veggie broth to balance it, and it turned out great!
I have some vegan co-workers that were feeling a little left out of our upcoming company chili cook-off. So I will be making a batch of this for our competition on Thursday. Each category of chili is voted on by the public so I will let you know how it does in the competition. Thanks for the recipe… it looks delicious.
Absolutely loved this! I made it today. I garnished with an avocado slice. Fantastic!
This is an excellent chili recipe. I brought some to a friend who was rehabilitating from surgery. She liked it so well, so asked for the recipe. That is the true sign a person genuinely liked it. This will be in our regular rotation. I served it with warm, hearty rolls.
I just made this to sort out packed lunch for the week. I’m a few months new to being vegetarian and have struggled to make things im used to without having to use substitutes like Quorn.
This – ABSOLUTELY BRILLIANT. I’ve just made like 6 helpings out of this recipe, it tastes awesome and was relatively simple. You’re advice about the quick blend – total dream. It was as if it had been simmering all day.
THANK YOU COOKIE AND KATE.
This was amazing! I added ginger to mine and it smells and tastes incredible. Thank you!
Delicious. Everytime I make chili I try a different online recipe as I haven’t been able to find the perfect one…..until now that is! Thanks, I can’t wait to try more of your recipes:)
Hooray!!! Thank you so much, Dee.
Kate, this was delicious! What kind of chili powder do you use? I had cayenne – I used 2 teaspoons which was plenty – pretty spicy!
Your vegetarian chilli is through the roof excellent. Thank you for sharing!!
My grandson is actually vegan, but this chili recipe sounds delicious, I’m always trying to find something special for him. Thank you. I’ll make this for him and his girlfriend
Excellent and easy recipe! I added jalapeno and mushrooms for extra flavor. Blending was a great tip, thanks!
Hi Kate, thought I’d let you know that I just made this tonight and it was delicious! The absence of meat didn’t even bother my meat-eating brothers! I (almost) followed the recipe to the letter (very rare!), with the only exception of the beans, which I changed to red kidney beans and green lentils – worked really well too! – and some extra black pepper. I also really liked your blending tip! I used an immersion blender, and it really pulled the whole thing together nicely. Thanks for sharing this recipe, really can’t wait to get a copy of your book!! Lydia x
This chili was lovely and perfect for chilly nights in Melbourne. What would you suggest to punch it up? We like a bit more spice.
This chili was so delicious. It was so creamy and tasty. Definitely making this again!!! 5 stars!!
This was a lovely dish! So happy to have found your site – so many yummy and delicious food all in one spot. I modified the chili recipe to reflect what I had on hand. I added button mushrooms and orange pepper, substituted the black and pinto beans for chickpeas, navy beans, and kidney beans, and used white wine vinegar to add “zing”. I actually discovered halfway through cooking that I hardly had any chili powder, so my dish was more a hearty garden vegetable stew – but oh so yummy. I love the versatility of this dish and the idea of pureeing a small portion. The pureeing really added to the rich, lovely texture. Thank so much for this great inspiration!!
I made this yesterday. It was too hot so I added sugar (I’d only got hot chilli powder). My kids loved it and my husband said it was the best thing I’d ever made and wants to finish it off today. Praise indeed!
Delicious chili recipe. I substituted red kidney beans for pintos. Highly recommended.
The recipe is highly recommended I mean, not necessarily the substitution. Pintos could be great as well.
My wife and I made this today and both our picky eaters (daughter 8 and son 10) emptied their bowls with happy bellies.
Thank you. We all loved it and have some saved for later!
Next, per my son’s request, your vegetarian chili . . .
This is DELICIOUS!!! Made exactly as recipe states. Minus the bell pepper as I’m allergic. Used lime juice over the vinegar.
Will definitely be making again. Will a little more spice though. We like chili a little hotter.
Can this be made in a slow cooker? Would I need to add extra liquid if so?
Can’t stop making this veg chilli. Added the vest from a grated lime please give it a try . Many thanks for the nutrious recipe. Respect from Beth x
I made this today, actually I wanted to take it to work tomorrow, but I already ate two bowls!! It is so good!!!
Hooray! Thank you, Frances.
This veggie chili is AMAZING! I usually don’t like spicy foods but it has the perfect amount of kick to it. I”ve gotten a lot of compliments on it as well. Thanks so much!
This is the best chili I’ve ever had! I make it every week! I use 1/2 vegetable broth and 1/2 water and add no salt at the end to decrease the sodium a bit, and unlike other low-sodium soups, you don’t even miss the salt! I like using oyster crackers as a topping to this chili, because I like the added crunch, but you could top it with whatever you want! I hope you give this recipe a try!
I love this recipe! I sub the broth for tomato juice and add a few drops of hot sauce for a little extra heat. So delicious!
This turned out amazing and my kiddos absolutely loved it!!!
If i could make a suggestion though…exercise caution using a blending stick. It’s hard to gauge how much you have blended. One quick go around the pot and i think it blended about half of it :(. Should have used the blender instead….
Still was amazing and thank you for the recipe!!