Happy Meatless Monday, friends!
Since soup season seems to be in full swing lately, I thought it would be apropos to kick the week off with one of my favorite recipes that just so happens to be meatless, vegan, gluten-free, super-easy to make, and wonderfully warm and comforting for chilly fall nights — my Slow Cooker Vegetarian Chili!
This recipe is admittedly a riff on my Slow Cooker Chili recipe that’s usually made with ground beef. But I’ve been making it meatless for my vegetarian and vegan friends for years, adding in some farro (not gluten-free) or quinoa (gluten-free) for extra protein. And let’s just say, it is always a hit with vegetarians, vegans and meat-lovers alike. My friends love this chili!!!
If you’re in a hurry, it’s easy to whip up in about 30-ish minutes on the stove (see instructions below). But for anyone who loves coming home to a delicious meal simmering in the Crock Pot, I think it’s hard to beat the ease of letting your slow cooker do all of the work with this one. Whatever method you choose, I think you’re going to love this one too. :)
As I said before, I love adding in some extra grains to this vegetarian chili recipe to thicken it up and add some extra protein. About half the time I go with quinoa, which is a great gluten-free option that people seem to enjoy. But my favorite option is to actually use farro, which isn’t gluten-free but does add a deliciously chewy texture and nutty flavor to the chili. That said, you could also sub in barley or rice or other grains that you’d like, or just nix adding extra grains entirely. The choice is yours.
To make the chili in the slow cooker, simply toss all of your ingredients in the Crock Pot and stir to combine. Then cook on low for 6-8 hours, or on high for 3-4 hours until everything is cooked through. So easy!
Or, if you’d like to make this chili on the stovetop, saute your onions in a tablespoon of oil until soft. Then add all of your remaining ingredients (minus the vegetable stock and quinoa or farro) and cook on high until the chili reaches a simmer. Meanwhile in a separate pot, simmer the quinoa or farro in the vegetable stock until it is cooked through. Then add that entire pot (including the extra broth) to the chili mixture, and stir to combine.
Then it’s time to ladle up that chili!
You can either serve it plain…
…or load it up with any of your desired toppings. I went with (vegan) avocado, cilantro, green and red onions. But you could also add in some shredded cheese and/or sour cream if you’re making this vegetarian. Whatever sounds good to you sounds good to me. :)
Hope that you enjoy, and have a happy chili season!
Slow Cooker Vegetarian Chili
Ingredients
- 1 cup uncooked farro* or quinoa**
- 1 medium red or yellow onion, peeled and diced
- 4 cloves of garlic, minced
- 1 chipotle chili in adobo sauce***, chopped
- 2 (15 ounce) cans dark red kidney beans, rinsed and drained (**see below for substitution ideas)
- 2 (15 ounce) cans tomato sauce
- 2 (14 ounce) cans diced tomatoes
- 1 (15 ounce) can light red kidney beans, rinsed and drained
- 1 (4 ounce) can chopped green chiles
- 4 cups vegetable stock
- 1 cup beer (or you can just add extra vegetable broth)
- 2 Tablespoons chili powder
- 1 Tablespoon ground cumin
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 1 teaspoon sugar
- 1/2 teaspoon black pepper
- (Optional toppings: shredded cheddar cheese, crushed tortilla chips or strips, thinly-sliced green onions, sour cream, salsa, etc.)
Instructions
Slow Cooker Method:
- Add all ingredients to a slow cooker and stir thoroughly to combine. Cook on high for 3-4 hours or on low for 6-8 hours until the chili is cooked through. Taste, and season with additional salt and pepper or seasonings if need be.
- Serve immediately, garnished with extra toppings if desired. Or refrigerate in a sealed container for up to 3 days, or freeze for up to 3 months.
Stovetop Method:
- In a small pot, cook the farro or quinoa in the vegetable stock according to package directions until it is cooked through. (There will be extra vegetable stock — don’t worry, you’ll add everything to the chili once the farro/quinoa is cooked.)
- Meanwhile as the farro/quinoa are cooking,heat 1 Tablespoon olive oil in a separate large stockpot over medium-high heat. Add your diced onions and saute for 4-5 minutes until soft and translucent. Add all of your remaining ingredients minus the vegetable stock and farro (or quinoa), and stir to combine. Continue cooking until the chili reaches a simmer, then reduce heat to medium-low and simmer for 10 minutes. Once the quinoa/farro is cooked, add it (along with any extra vegetable stock) to the chili and stir to combine. Taste, and season with additional salt and pepper or seasonings if need be.
- Serve immediately, garnished with extra toppings if desired. Or refrigerate in a sealed container for up to 3 days, or freeze for up to 3 months.
Notes
Did you make this?Let me know how it turned out in the comments below!If you love chili, be sure to also check out these other favorite chili recipes on the blog!
My crockpot was not big enough to hold all the ingredients.
It bubbled over and leaked all over the kitchen counter. I don’t know how I was supposed to have also fit a cup of beer in there. (I ended up leaving it out.)
I could not for the life of me find a chipotle chile in adobo sauce, so I used chipotle adobo sauce. Unsure of how much to use, I unloaded most of it, and this chili turned out SPICY. Thankfully, my boyfriend loves extra spicy food.
Overall, it was a success, but I cannot make the recipe again because it will overflow again, and I can’t find the right chile.
BEST Vegetarian Chili I’ve made to date (and I’ve tried several!) Subbed the farro for 1/4 cup quinoa and 1/4 lentils (aka what I had in my pantry), left out the pepper, and it turned out great. Very chunky too, which I like.
Oops. I didn’t read all the directions and threw it all in the crockpot. Let’s hope the liquid evaporates! Or I may have to put in a big stock pot at the end.
I’ve made this a couple times an d we love it. I used beer once and this time just the veggie broth. It’s watery in the beginning, but I just let it cook down until it’s not watery. My husband, who is a meat eater loves it too. I only Use 3/ 8 oz. cans of tomato sauce instead of what it recommended.
I tried this recipe last night and it was delicious! The only thing that bothered me was that as soon as the 4 hours on high were done, I checked it and the onions were still super crunchy – yuck! So my onions didn’t soften until about 5 hours cooked on high heat. I would suggest to sauté the onions first until they become soft and transparent… then put them in. Topped it off with cheese and plain greek yogurt and voila! Delicious!
Some of my other modifications:
-I only used 1 can of tomato sauce and instead used 4 cans of diced tomatoes and 6 cups of veggies stock. I added more diced tomatoes because I love the chunkiness of them. And 6 cups of veggie stock to make up for no beer and no extra tomato sauce. It still came out to be a thick, yummy chili.
-I used a 4 oz can of diced jalapeños instead of the chipotle chili AND the 4 oz can of diced green peppers (the store was out of those) It came out with just the right flavor and spice
Hello!
I just made it and taste it…..OMG! I’m in heaven. Can’t wait to eat it tomorrow with my family. Thanks for the recipe!
P.S.: I used 2 cans of kidney beans, 1 can of black beans, 3/4 cup of red lentils ( dried, not soaked overnight!) For a little heat I used jalapenos, red chilli flakes and lime chilli seasoning, but just a little, because of the kids.
Since I became vegetarian, I’ve never found a chili recipe that I loved as much as my meat chili…until now. This is, BY FAR, the best vegetarian chili I’ve ever had. Maybe even the best chili, period. I make it in my Instant Pot using dried beans. Cooking it on high pressure for 1 hour (using unsoaked beans) turns out perfectly.
GREAT RECIPE!!
Made this today and it was over-the-top delicious. I added a few mushrooms and chopped sweet red peppers. Also, I sautéed the onion, garlic and peppers for a few minutes before adding to the slow cooker. Yum Yum!
Just made this! LOVE the flavor the chipotle in adobo adds. Mine turned out a bit soupy, might need to use 1/2 a cup less or so of the veggie stock (I used an extra cup of stock instead of beer). But otherwise SO excited to eat this for this rest of the week :)
This looks amazing! I can’t wait to try it! Question: can you use dried beans instead of canned beans if using the slow cooker option? Thanks!