This smoky vegetarian chili is packed with beans and mushrooms, with a few secret ingredients added to the spice combination that add a smoky, umami flavor and create a velvety smooth texture! It’s hard to believe this chili is 100% plant-based and vegan because it’s so packed with flavor, and it’s great to stash in your freezer.
This has to be one of the most hearty and delicious vegan meals I have ever had. Filled with meaty mushrooms and beans, this chili is filling and nutrient-packed, and even meat-lovers will devour it.
It’s cheap to make, and this recipe makes a TON so you can freeze leftovers or a second batch for another meal or two or three or four. And you can even make it go a bit further by serving it with cooked rice, quinoa, or cornbread.
The secret ingredients and spice combination
What really makes this vegetarian chili really stand on its own is the secret spice combination.
It’s smoky from smoked paprika, smooth and velvety from cocoa powder(!!!) and cinnamon, and spicy from chili powder and cayenne.
It’s a mind-blowing combination unlike anything I have ever tried in chili before. The cinnamon is an homage to my Greek roots (the Greeks really like cinnamon with their savory meals, like in manestra and Greek Spaghetti).
And the cayenne pepper gives it just a subtle extra kick.
And the other secret ingredient? Soy sauce! It adds a savory, umami punch that helps compensate for the lack of meat.
I also added just a little bit of honey to help round out everything and add a touch of sweetness. You can leave it out if you want, or use sugar or maple syrup if you need a 100% vegan version.
How to make the best vegetarian chili
Just sauté some peppers, onions, and mushrooms, add the spices, beans, soy sauce, and honey, and cook! Here are some tips for success:
- When you sauté the mushrooms, cook them with a pinch of salt until most of their liquid evaporates and stir them only occasionally. Here’s more on how to sauté perfect mushrooms.
- You only need to cook this for 20 minutes once you have all the ingredients in, but for the best flavor and texture I recommend cooking for 60 minutes. The longer you cook it, the more time the flavors have to develop.
- I recommend adding cilantro to the chili, but it’s optional. If you do choose to use it, I recommend adding the cilantro at the end, since the fresh flavor of the herb will stand out more the less time it has to cook.
What to serve with vegetarian chili
While this chili is delicious on its own, it would also be great topped with fixings, such as:
- sour cream
- sliced onions
- chopped tomatoes
- shredded cheese
- diced avocado
- hot sauce
- pickled jalapeños
I plan on serving this recipe for halloween dinner, along with pumpkin chili. I’m just going to keep it hot in a slow cooker and let guests help themselves, with all the fixings in little bowls.
I love serving chili with cornbread (skillet cornbread or jalapeño cornbread are both great). It’s also delicious served on top of cilantro lime rice or cornbread, or another cooked grain like quinoa, barley, or pasta. For a grain-free alternative, try serving it over spaghetti squash.
Variations
- To make vegetarian chili with no tomatoes, omit the crushed tomatoes and add 1-2 cups more vegetable broth.
- Make it heartier by adding 1/2 cup of rinsed, uncooked quinoa when you add the beans, along with 1 cup more of vegetable broth or water.
- Save some money by cooking up dry beans before making this, instead of using canned.
- Omit some of the spices or change them up, depending on what you have in your pantry!
Can I make it in my slow cooker or instant pot?
Yes! It’s easy to adapt this recipe to make in your crockpot or pressure cooker. Here’s how.
- To make it in your slow cooker, add all the ingredients to your crockpot and cook on low for 6 hours or high for 3 hours. Use only 1 cup of vegetable stock, and if all the ingredients don’t fit, cut the amount of mushrooms and/or beans down.
- To make it in your instant pot, use the sauté function to cook the onions, peppers, garlic, and mushrooms as directed for stovetop. Then, add the remaining ingredients, cover, and set pressure to manual, high for 20 minutes. Allow to naturally release or quick release, waiting until the float valve has depressed before opening the pressure cooker.
Other easy chili recipes
- Slow Cooker White Chicken Chili
- Instant Pot Pumpkin Chili
- Crockpot Turkey and Vegetable Chili
- Instant Pot Chili with Ground Beef and Dry Kidney Beans
Other vegan or vegetarian soups/stews
- Greek Lentil Soup (Fakes Soupa)
- Vegetarian Tortilla Soup
- Vegetarian Spilt Pea Soup with Potatoes
- Irish Potato Leek Soup
Here are all my vegetarian recipes.
Did you make this smoky vegetarian chili recipe? Please click the stars below to comment and Rate this Recipe
Smoky Vegetarian Chili with Beans and Mushrooms
Equipment
Ingredients
- 2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
- 2 bell peppers diced (any color)
- 1 large yellow onion diced
- 4 cloves garlic chopped
- 16 oz. mushrooms roughly chopped
- 6 cups cooked beans such as kidney, black, and/or pinto beans, washed and drained (four 15-oz cans)
- 28 oz. canned crushed tomatoes preferably fire roasted
- 2 cups corn frozen or fresh
- 2 tablespoons chili powder
- 1 teaspoon smoked paprika
- 1 tablespoon cocoa powder
- 1 teaspoon cumin
- 1 teaspoon garlic powder
- 1 teaspoon ground coriander
- 1 teaspoon cinnamon
- 1/4 teaspoon cayenne pepper
- 1 teaspoon kosher salt plus more if needed
- 2 cups vegetable stock or chicken stock, or water
- 1 tablespoon soy sauce
- 1 tablespoon honey or 1/2 tablespoon sugar, optional
- 1/2 cup chopped fresh cilantro optional
Instructions
- Sauté peppers and onion in olive oil (2 tablespoons) until softened and starting to brown over medium-high heat in a large pot (approximately 5 minutes).
- Add garlic; sauté for 30 seconds, or until fragrant.
- Add chopped mushrooms and a pinch of kosher salt; sauté until softened and liquid has evaporated, stirring only occasionally.
- Add remaining ingredients except cilantro; stir to combine. Bring to a boil, cover, and simmer for at least 20 minutes and up to 1 hour.
- Add cilantro during last five minutes of cooking.
- Serve on its own or on top of cooked rice or quinoa, with cornbread, and/or with fixings, such as sour cream, shredded cheese, diced avocado, red onion, and more cilantro.
Notes
- Slow cooker directions: To make in the slow cooker: add all ingredients to slow cooker and cook for 3 hours on high or 6 hours on low. Use only 1 cup of vegetable stock, and if needed, cut amount of mushrooms and beans in half.
- Instant pot directions: I have not tested this myself, but a reader shared that she cooked this in her instant pot for 10 minutes and it came out great!
- Freezer directions: Freeze in an airtight container for up to 6 months. When ready to eat, run hot water on the outside of the container, pop out into a large pot, cover, and heat over medium heat, stirring occasionally until heated through.
- For a no-tomato version, omit the crushed tomatoes and use 1-2 cups more vegetable stock.
- Don't have some of the spices? Don't worry! You can omit a few and still be fine. The most important one is chili powder, and I also recommend trying to keep the cocoa powder and the smoked paprika.
- Money saving tip: cook dry beans instead of buying canned.
Nutrition
Nutrition Information Disclaimer
The provided nutrition information is my best estimate and does not include any added sodium from seasoning to taste, any optional ingredients, and it does not take brands into account. I use an automatic API to calculate this information. Feel free to calculate it yourself using one of these tools:
This recipe first appeared on Bowl of Delicious in May 2014. It has been updated to include an improved recipe, more relevant information in the post, and clearer instructions and photos. The original version did not include tomatoes- feel free to omit them if you prefer!
Ian Roth
Very, very good. A big hit at my Christmas dinner.
I cooked dry beans with a little olive oil and onion in the water; this is better flavored than canned. I also cooked the mushrooms separately to ensure they were browned, and left out the cinnamon and the corn – a personal preference.
Thanks for the recipe!
Elizabeth Lindemann
So glad you liked it!
Jacky
Made this recipe but cooked in instapot for 10 minutes and it came out great. Please include instapot instructions if you can.
Elizabeth Lindemann
Thanks so much for sharing how you did this in the instant pot! I’m going to add a recipe note right now about it. I assume you did the manual high setting for 10 minutes?
Gabriela
Delicious! I love chili and I had mushrooms that I wanted to use and that’s why I found this recipe. It’s just perfect! The only spice I didn’t have was the coriander but still came out super rich, full of flavor. I already added this recipe to my favorites!
Elizabeth Lindemann
So glad you liked it!
Lucy Garrick
This was pretty good. I would cut cinnamon in half or leave out altogether – too dominant a flavor for me. I used the dried soup mix consisting of a variety of lentils and beans (required no soaking). Also added in some left over veges (cherry tomatoes that were getting a little wrinkled and kale stems, I cut off of leaves when I make kale salad) Neither changes the flavor much but is a good way to use of vege odds and ends. I added a little more heat as well in the form of a tiny bit 1/8 tsp of habenero oil.
I think this would make a great base for a vegan tamale pie!
I served the chili topped with shreds of pepper jack cheese, cilantro and finely chopped scallions. Was very filling!
Elizabeth Lindemann
Great idea to add the extra veggies and use other kinds of legumes! I do wonder if the cinnamon didn’t work very will with some of those added veggies. I love the idea of using this for a tamale pie, too!
CJ
I made this recipe for a party where other meat chilis would be served. I knew my one vegetarian friend would be there and just wanted to be sure he had something tasty for supper. This recipe was a huge hit and everyone even knew it was vegetarian. It got devoured. There was none left at the end of the party. I will be making this one again for sure. Thanks for a great recipe!
Elizabeth Lindemann
So glad you liked it, and so kind of you to consider your vegetarian friend in this way! Really happy to hear it was a hit!
Clifford
How big of a crock pot do you need for this recipe..??
Elizabeth Lindemann
I used a 6 quart for this recipe! There was a little extra room but not much, so I wouldn’t go smaller than that unless you cut the ingredients down. Hope that helps!
Steph
Tried this chilli recipe instead of making my usual. I have to say my partner, son, and I absolutely loved it! Such a lovely changed. Will be making it again next week. Firm favorite on the list now. :)
Elizabeth Lindemann
So happy you and your family liked it!
Justin
Not the biggest fan of the way this recipe turned out – the cinnamon and cilantro (which I used half of what was written) overpowered the chili waaaay too much for us. Any suggestions for ingredient swaps to help with this would be appreciated!
Elizabeth Lindemann
Thanks for this feedback! You can absolutely cut the amount of cinnamon and/or cilantro in half, or even just omit both of them if you’re not a fan of their flavors. The chili has a lot of other things going on, so that would be fine! And if you’re not a fan of cilantro, you might want to try parsley, sliced green onions, or chives instead. Hope that helps!
Lori
Great recipe! I made it using only half the amount of beans suggested, and it was delicious! The cocoa powder really added something great! It’s a keeper!
Elizabeth Lindemann
So glad you liked it!
Jennyfer
Quite delicious. I added zucchini and a small can of chilis for a,little more spice.
Elizabeth Lindemann
So glad you liked it! Love the idea of adding zucchini.
Sian
By far the best vegetable chilli I’ve ever tasted. My whole family loved it! I used butternut squash instead of mushrooms (only because I didn’t have any ) and it worked really well too. I made it according to the quantities in recipe and it lasted a few meals. I didn’t get bored of it! Thanks Elizabeth for this wonderful recipe that I’ll be making again and again!
Elizabeth
I’m so happy you liked it! I love the idea of using butternut squash- it’s my favorite vegetable, and I bet its sweetness went really well with the smoky flavors. Thanks for the comment :-)
LB
Made recipe cut in half added canned fire roasted tomatoes and smoked Celtic sea salt. It was a winner!
Elizabeth
Yum love those additions! Thanks for the suggestion and glad you liked it ????
Anthony Chesher
Thanks for this recipe, gonna try it out now. Just for clarification though- veganism is neither a diet or a trend. Being vegan means omitting animal use (and therefore exploitation) from your life, wherever possible. As such, you end up eating a plant-based diet. Sure, some people “go vegan” for trendy or faddy reasons, but that doesn’t affect the core of what being ‘vegan’ is for the rest of us! Thanks again for publishing this recipe and for- indirectly or otherwise- helping people to live more compassionately.
Elizabeth
Hope you like the recipe! And thank you so much for your comments about veganism- I agree wholeheartedly. This is one of those old posts that I desperately need to go back and edit, having learned lots about the food world and food lifestyles throughout my blogging career. Going to work on it now! :-)
Anthony Chesher
Thanks for the reply Elizabeth! I may be worth an edit, just in case others interpret things differently to how you intended- you might find you’re getting lots of vegan traffic; I googled “vegan smokey bean chilli” and you were top or 2nd hit. Kudos to you! My wife and I are opening a cafe in the new year & wanted a smokey bean chilli topping for our loaded nachos, hence the search. Will be sure to give you credit on our menu/website somewhere!
Thanks again for publishing the recipe. Best of luck with all your future endeavours.
Hope you’re enjoying your day!
Peace
Elizabeth
Kudos to you as well- good luck with the cafe opening, and I’m happy you will be able to use the recipe! Yum… smoky loaded nachos… I may have to try that myself soon!
Megan
Thank you so much! I think I’ll use the 2nd option. And I will be sure to let you know how it comes out.
Megan
Instead of beans, I’d like to use lentils and make the crock pot version. I assume I’d use dry lentils. Any tips/suggestions?
Elizabeth
Yum- I bet that will be great! There are two options here. First of all, make sure you use brown/green lentils, as red will fall apart and become mushy. I’d use about 1/2 lb dried lentils. Option 1: soak the lentils, drain and rinse, then cook them beforehand (in the slow cooker or on the stove top) in water, then drain and rinse and add to the chili like you would the beans. Option 2: soak the lentils, drain and rinse, and add directly to the slow cooker in the beginning of cooking with about 3 extra cups of stock. Hope that helps! I’d love to know how it comes out- I think the smoky flavors will go really well with the lentils!
Whit
I’m about to make this soon, is there really no tomato sauce component? Seems crazy but I don’t see it.
Elizabeth
That’s right… I don’t use tomato in it! But I’m sure it would be delicious with it. In fact, now that you say that, I think next time I make it I’ll add some tomato paste, which would help thicken it up as well! This recipe really is very versatile, so you should totally add some tomato sauce, tomato paste, or diced tomatoes if you want to :-) Let me know how it comes out!
JoDee
Elizabeth…I do not like mushrooms…what could I substitute for them?
Elizabeth
You can probably just omit them and use a little less vegetable broth! Or, try sweet potatoes or butternut squash. Just allow to cook for a little longer and add more liquid so they are able to soften!