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.
Hello Kate,
This recipe sounds wonderful! I’d like to make it, but I have one question about chili powder : is it the mix of spices or the ground chili pepper?
Thank you
Hi Cass! It’s the mix of ground spices (with chili pepper being the predominant spice).
Stage 1 of convincing my family that vegetables can taste amazing. Lovey chilli recipe. Easy to do. Filling and very tasty. I will be trying out more of your recipes. Thanks:0)
I make this all the time. Adding sweetcorn makes it amazing too 10/10
That’s a great idea!
Great recipe! I just made this with dried beans so I had to boil them first. Turned out amazingly satisfying
Sending all the love!
Keep doing what you do! You are an inspiration to all of us!
Great recipe! I added a tin of jackfruit as well. Will be making again.
The chilli was fantastic! Just what the doctored ordered for our rainy and cold British weather.
I served it with everything you suggested: nachos, cheese, sour cream, coriander, lime.
Will be making it again, thank you!
I made this in the instant pot. It was delicious but too liquid so I added 1.5 cups of TVP and it was perfect!
How long did you cook in the IP?
I think 15 minutes but honestly 8 would be enough because that’s what I do for spaghetti. Like I said, to be sure I added extra water but I didn’t need it. Thanks to TVP for soaking up the extra liquid!
Awesome! Thanks!
Absolutely love this chili recipe!!! It is SO easy and DELICIOUS!! My husband… is not really a vegetarian… and this is his favorite!! I leave out the cocoa… simply because i didn’t have it… and it’s still so yummy. (I love every recipe I’ve made of Kate’s… and Cookie! lol) Thank you for posting delicious and simple meals for our busy family!
Hey there! I’m getting ready to make this. The “cocoa” intrigues me but I didn’t see it in her recipe? How much would I use?
she misspelled it
Is cocoa powder in this recipe?
It is not :)
This chili was amazing. My first time making vegetarian chili and it came out great. I have never had chili before without meat but this was amazing. 5 stars!
I was on a search to make a vegetarian chilli and I came across this recipe. The pics definitely made the chilli look sooo tasty. So I had to try this recipe.
I made the vegetarian chilli but with a few tweaks. Firstly I only had 1 can of black beans, the recipe states 2 cans. So, I used a can of kidney beans. Secondly I couldn’t find pinto beans so instead I used a can of chickpeas.
I followed the recipe with less red chilli powder. When I added the tomatoes and vegetable broth (I used Knorr Vegetable stock cube). It felt like there was too much liquid in the pot but once it started to simmer it reduced. I then blended 1½ cup of the chilli and added it back to the remaining chilli. I didn’t add any more salt but one thing I did add was a bit of fresh lemon instead of the red wine vinegar/Lime juice.
I made boiled rice to go with it. My partner and I really enjoyed it. It was full of flavour, texture and most definitely tasty.
I would like to say thankyou Kate, for such an amazing recipe. I definitely recommend this recipe to anyone who is willing to try making a vegetarian chilli. It’s perfect.
This chili was good. It has a traditional chili flavor. It’s very flavorful. I thought about skipping blending some of the chili, but it was not that hard with only one pot to clean for the cleanup.
Hello Kate
Thank you for sharing this recipe!
Is it spice mix chili powder or the one from grounded hot chili peppers ?
Hi Cass, it’s chili powder spice blend. I’ve heard that chili powders sold outside of the U.S. can be extra strong, so you may want to scale back initially and add more to taste.
Great recipe. Used Hunt’s diced fire roasted tomatoes w/garlic instead of regular. Followed it to the t otherwise and it was fine.
Only my second time making veggie chili, cooked beef chili for 30+ years. I used what I had in, white and red kidney beans and some wrinkly peppers. First time putting in celery, carrot and paprika. YUM! ate it with shredded cheddar and toast. I’ll make this a again, lots of layered tastes.
Will never go back to a meat chilli ever again. Used less chilli powder than the recipe says but as stated above I think it’s true that chilli powder is a bit spicier outside the U.S. Thank you for another amazing recipe Kate!
We are consciously adding more vegetarian meals to our diet and so I made this chilli last night – wow, it is SO tasty!! The final blend really makes the texture work! An absolute go to recipe from now on, thank you!
Thanks for another great recipe! My children protested at all the veggies going into the pot and then refused to eat it. Upon being forced to at least try, the pot promtply emptied and the extra I’d made for freezing mysterioulsy disappeared before I had a chance freeze it. I can’t think of a bigger compliment!
An extra thank you for the tip about the non-US chili. It saved my pot of chili from becoming inedible.
Excellent! My new favorite chili recipe. Garnished with some sharp cheddar, cilantro, avocado, and pickled jalapeños. This will definitely get made again and soon!
This chili is absolutely amazing! I’m vegetarian but my boyfriend eats meat – I add in the yves, beyond meat, or litelife “ground beef“- and he absolutely loves it! His mom has been making chilli for years and he admitted that this is by far the best- even without any animal products! I add a little cayenne pepper because we both like spice, but the recipe as is is unbelievable! Thank you for sharing this!
Hey, just wondering, how much beyond meet beef do you use?
This is such an incredible chili!! So very good for people that are watching cholesterol and fat. I always use fresh cherry tomatoes in my recipes for soup and chili and this was superb!
Thank you!
Linda Heflin
The blending at the end really seals the deal on this recipe; I find myself returning to it consistently. I find it stores well in the freezer for up to a month. Hearty, healthy, and delicious!
I made this last night and thought it was great! My husband and son went back for seconds, so I think they approved as well. The only thing I didn’t do was mash/blend part of the chili in step 4. I felt it had reduced enough while simmering that it was plenty think. Just personal preference and a bit of laziness on my part.
Best Chili ever. This is my all time Winter meal now onwards.
Dear Kate or anyone reading this review.
My husband found Kate’s recipe online. We made it on Thursday; however we served it up for dinner on Friday. It was a BIG hit!!! By waiting until the the next day to eat the chili, the spices had more time to blend which made the chili so incredible. Everyone raved about the taste, flavor, and texture of the chili. I like this better than a chili with meat. Blending that cup and a half of the chili and stirring it back into the pot of chili is a must do; it really improves the texture. Again, my family loved it, and they want me to make it again!!! Thank you.
Just made this. So amazing!!! The blending step made all the difference! Thank you for this.
Delicious! Tasty, colourful, satisfying – all the good things. Love your site, so inspirational – Thank you
Hi Kate
Great recipe! I made slight adjustments as I was using what I had in the cupboard, so I used red kidney beans and chicken peas. My chilli powder was low so I substituted chilli flakes, phew but the men loved it. I served it with rice to calm it down and grated mature cheddar. Will definitely make it again and again. Thank you
Just made your recipe. This is absolutely the best chili my husband and I have ever tasted!! I’ve been wanting to try a vegetarian chili, since my husband and I are eating more vegetarian these days, and am so glad I tried yours!! I did not do the last step, since I felt the chili was thick enough from simmering. Thank you so much for sharing this fantastic chili recipe!!
Ive made this chili several times now. It is absolutely PERFECT. Do not skip any step, especially the blending and adding vinegar steps. That is what brings this chili over the top. It only gets better as the days go on. I have a special smoked paprika seasoning from Spain, it is the only little special thing I add. Just wow.
Hello, I plan to try my hand at making the vegetarian chili recipe available from your site, but had to ask two things, one being do I leave the bay leaf in? (I understood it was always removed), and two is what makes the sodium level so high? Thank you for your time
Hi Todd! Thanks so much for pointing out that I didn’t provide instructions on the bay leaf. I’ve corrected that now. The sodium level is calculated based on the amount of salt specified in the recipe, plus the sodium in regular canned tomatoes, beans and store-bought broth—which can all be high in sodium. To reduce the sodium content, I’d use no-salt-added tomatoes and beans, use water instead of broth, and be judicious with your added salt. Hope that helps!
Thank you for your reply, I am sure most people would know this anyway… I did three things outside the recipe, and that cost me, but will try again!
I cannot buy this type of blended chilli powder in my country so do I just use a teaspoon of ground chilli or do I need to add other spices to try and replicate the blended chilli taste?
Hi Debra, since this recipe includes additional spices for flavoring, I think your idea will work well. If it’s not spicy enough from 1 teaspoon, you can always add more, to taste.
I made this chili tonight. I made the mistake of using Indian red chili powder. Even using less than half of what the recipe calls for, it is extremely spicy! Had I not made this error, this chili would have been perfect. I look forward to making it again. Thanks for sharing!
This is my go to chilli recipe and have made it many times. It works everytime. I aslo add quorn mince (meat substitute) to it to thicken it up and make it more attractive to the meat eating kids. My eldest loves it
Loved it!
Great to hear, Katty!
This chili is so great and super easy to make! My husband and I both love it and don’t miss the meat at all. This also freezes really well and will be added into our regular rotation of go-to meals. Thanks for this delicious recipe, Kate!
Fantastic .
Im vegetarian.
And i have tried lots of menus on my husband to get him to eat more veg.
Untill tonight when he said .(
YOU know i dont do veg .but this chilli is really nice . ) success .
Thank you . He has no issues with this chilli becoming one of our go to meals
Thats veggie .
This recipe turned out amazing! Blending a cup of the chili made all the difference in texture. So flavorful, I will definitely be making it again.
Great to hear, Jasmine!
My family loved it! My omnivore husband said it’s the best chili he’s ever had! Thanks for another great recipe, Kate!
Made this chili recipe tonight, Wow, it was so delicious! The spices and the blending to create the thicker texture made it so tasty! Topped it with micro cilantro, shredded cheddar, avocado and crushed tortilla chips. So happy to have leftovers and will be saving this recipe! Delicious and healthy! Thank you!!
This vegetarian chili was simply the delicious! I made it for my new daughter in “love” who is vegetarian and she loved it as well. I will make this from now on instead of the beef chili for the whole family.
I did add a plant-based protein starter, Italian style, to the mix.
I am excited to try more of your recipes!
May never make meat chili again! Very good!!! Lots of good veggies, added a few extra, very tasty and filling!
Made this for the Rugby in February, everyone loved it. I did add a few extra veggie aubergine and courgettes.
Hello Kate
This is absolutely the best vegetarian chili I have ever eaten and I make it often. My 21 year old granddaughter is a vegetarian and every time she is home form college,I have to make a batch for her to bring back to the university.Thank you for this recipe.
I am not surprised to see this recipe on cookie and Kate. lately if i am reading recipes and find one i like the looks of, it is more than likely your site. nice going
Hi! Excited to make this chilli after reading all the great comments! Was wondering if I’d be able to add beyond meat to it, and if so, should I add more liquid to the recipe?
Hi Gabi! You could if you like. Of course I like this as is, but you can. The consistency is up to you. You would likely want to add more liquid if you aren’t replacing anything else.
Just found your recipes tried vegetarian chilli everyone loved it and we are not vegetarian
We looooved this chili. It was as good as my mother’s… if not a bit better. I doubled the recipe & then split it, to allow for adding meat to half, for my hubby & son. To their meaty half, I added a pound of ground beef, a tsp cacao powder & 1/2 tsp of marjoram. It turned out wonderful as well… plus they got the benefit of the veggies, which they would not have had, had I simply made a beef chili. So win-win for all- yayyyyy!!
Better than your mothers, that’s a compliment! Thank you for sharing, Jewel.
I changed this up a bit, using what I had. Instead of 2 cans of diced tomatoes. I used one can of diced and a 28oz can of crushed peeled tomatoes. And instead of 3 cans of beans. I used one can of kidney, one can of black, and 2 cups of veggie grounds. Holy smokes, it came out good! The kid even liked it. Thanks!
Made this chilli for supper last night for my son and I. Absolutely delicious and very satisfying. Only tweet was subsisting pinto beans for chickpeas as didn’t have any. Served with nachos, cheese and sour cream. Will be having leftovers for tomorrow night with tacos and salad. Thanks Kate. Will be a firm favourite from now on x
Hello from Dublin Ireland. I’m trying out lots of your wonderful recipes! We are confined to the house. I be just served the Homemade Vegetarian Chilli. Yum yum …..delicious. There’s enough for tomorrow. Can’t wait
Thank you
Hello! I hope you all stay safe and this soup can bring some comfort.
Delicious! The big pot I’ve just made will keep me in dinners for a while in locked-down Berlin.
Versatile and Tasty! I followed everything except I used a combination of chickpeas, black beans, and fava beans (it’s what I had) and it’s super hearty and flavorful.
When we had it for dinner, I added a splash of balsamic and more salt to mine. Someone else only added a dollop of sour cream. It’s refreshing to find a rich and flavorful recipe for chili that is actually spicy and balanced.
I’ve never been disappointed by your recipes! Tonight we’re having the leftovers over top of crispy roast potatoes with a little melted cheese. The little one is super excited about chili “nachos”.
I have been skeptical and have thought vegan chili would be very bland. Now I did use aquafaba instead of the oil and didn’t have fresh cilantro so I used the dried but I really have to say, I think you outdid yourself on this recipe. Or at least that is what my husband told me when I made it. Ash it’s all about pleasing the ones you love/serve. If they hum at the dinner table you know you did a good job.
I’m happy you tried it and loved it, Esther!