Easy vegan chili con carne
This vegan instant pot chili is easy to make and comforting. Full of deep, rich and layered flavors that will keep you warm all winter long. Makes a great one-pot meal. Easy recipe to meal prep and store in the freezer for a satisfying weeknight dinner. High in plant-based protein and includes stove top directions.
If you'd like more easy Southwest recipes, check out these One Pan Black Bean Fajitas and these New Orleans Style Vegan Red Beans and Rice next.
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This hearty, chewy and meaty vegan chili is a great dish to batch cook ahead of time. Most of the ingredients you probably have on hand already.
🍅 Ingredients
- Beyond burgers or Beyond beef - If you can't find these, use whatever vegan ground beef substitute you can find. I also love using TVP (textured vegetable protein) You can also use Beyond sausages. Just DON'T use the frozen Beyond meat crumbles. They don't taste very good.
- Red onion and Garlic - I love a lot of garlic. I used about four large cloves.
- Ro-tel diced tomatoes with chilis - You can also just use whatever canned tomatoes you can find, but I love the Ro-tel tomatoes for chili. Fire-roasted tomatoes are also delicious.
- Spices - I use cumin, chili powder, chipotle chili powder (optional if you don't like spice), oregano and smoked paprika
- Soy sauce - This adds a nice savory flavor to the soup. It's optional but it's a nice depth of flavor.
- Beans - You can use all different types of beans but a mix of black beans and red kidney beans or pinto beans is my favorite. I used canned beans to make this easier.
- Sugar - This helps to balance out the acidity of the tomatoes. You can take this out if you're trying to avoid sugar.
- Vegetable bouillon - This is a lot cheaper than using vegetable broth. I always have bouillon on hand.
- Tomato paste
- Cocoa powder - this adds a nice depth of flavor.
- Spices - I use a mix of chipotle pepper powder, ground cumin, garlic powder, onion powder and chili powder
- Sweetener - I love using either brown sugar or maple syrup. This helps balance out the acidity of the tomatoes but it won't make the chili taste sweet.
↩️ Substitutions
If you don't want to use vegan meat substitutes, use a pound of white button mushrooms instead. Wipe them off with a damp towel and chop them up really small so they resemble ground beef. Mushrooms are my favorite vegan meat substitute.
👩🍳 Recipe tips
- Bloom the spices - After you sauté the onions and garlic, add the spices to the pressure cooker and cook for 30 seconds to a minute. This will bring out their flavors even more and cut down on their bitterness.
- Brown the onions - Cook the onions until they're golden. They will add so much more flavor to the chili.
- If you’re making this for a competition, or for a party, make it the day before. This delicious chili tastes the best the next day, after it’s been refrigerated and sat for a while.
🔪 Directions
- Chop up all your onions, garlic and bell peppers. Set the instant pot to sauté function and add some olive oil. Sauté the onions first. Then add the bell peppers, garlic and all your spices. Add the vegan ground beef as well.
- Add your tomatoes, water and vegetable bouillon and stir. Add some soy sauce and brown sugar at this time as well.
- Turn saute function off, put the lid on and set to seal. Put the instant pot lid on and set it to seal. Pressure cook on high for 6 minutes. Quick release. Then serve with some dairy free sour cream and dairy free cheese.
🥣 How to serve
Serve on top of a baked potato with vegan sour cream and your favorite toppings.
Top the chili with vegan sour cream, green onions, vegan cheese or avocados or fresh cilantro.
Top with some tortilla chips.
I also love baking some homemade fries and topping the fries with the chili, and a homemade vegan cheese sauce. Vegan chili cheese fries are a weeknight favorite in our household.
🍴Recommended equipment
You will of course need an Instant pot and it helps to have a Stainless steel soup ladle. I've also found it really helpful to have this handy Instant pot magnetic cooking times on hand.
FAQ's
Dried beans would be great in this recipe, but soak and cook them first. Check out my post about how to cook dried beans if you need some help.
Yes! It's amazingly good for you. Because there is no meat, there is zero cholesterol in this chili. Thanks to the beans, there is a ton of fiber that is known to be good for your health.
You can skip the meat entirely and just make a bean chili. A mix of black, pinto and kidney beans is delicious. You can also use brown lentils. If you'd like a more meat substitute, you can use vegan ground beef like from the brand Beyond Meat, or soy curls or soy crumbles. Crumbled tofu would also work well.
❄️ Storage and reheating tips
- To Store - The leftover chili will last in an airtight container in the fridge for about a week.
- To reheat - You can reheat this on the stove on medium heat. Just add some water or vegetable broth if it's too thick. This can also reheat in a microwave.
- To freeze - This recipe freezes really well. Just store in a freezer-friendly container and pop it in the freezer. It will last 3-6 months in the freezer. Just thaw it out and then reheat it when you want to eat it.
- To make ahead - Chop up your garlic, onions and bell peppers. When you're ready to cook just follow the directions.
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📖 Recipe
Best vegan instant pot chili
Equipment
- Pressure cooker
- Knife
Ingredients
- 1 large onion (diced)
- 2 Beyond burger patties (Read the notes section below)
- ½ teaspoon chipotle chili powder (optional if you don't like spice)
- 1½ teaspoon smoked paprika powder
- 3 tablespoons chili powder
- 1 teaspoon oregano
- 2 teaspoon cumin
- 1 tablespoon brown sugar (or maple syrup)
- 1 tablespoon cocoa powder
- 4 cloves of garlic (minced)
- 7 oz bell pepper (diced)
- 20 oz Ro-tel diced tomatoes with green chilis (mild)
- 2 tablespoons of tomato paste
- 1 tablespoon soy sauce
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 1 teaspoon black pepper
- 2 cups vegetable broth (if cooking in instant pot)
- 3 cups vegetable broth (if cooking on the stove)
- 16 oz can of black beans (drained and rinsed)
- 2 (16 oz) cans of red kidney beans (drained and rinsed)
Instructions
Instant pot instructions
- Set instant pot to sauté on medium heat. Pour 1 teaspoon of oil into the pot
- Sauté the Beyond burger patties (or the mushrooms or crumbled tofu if you're using one of these instead) for 2 minutes and crumble it up with the edge of your spoon2 Beyond burger patties
- Add the diced onions and sauté until burger crumbles turn brown and the onions become translucent and golden brown. (about 1-2 minutes).1 large onion
- Add the spices and tomato paste and saute for 30 seconds. Add the frozen bell peppers, minced garlic and sauté for one minute.½ teaspoon chipotle chili powder, 1½ teaspoon smoked paprika powder, 3 tablespoons chili powder, 1 teaspoon oregano, 2 teaspoon cumin, 7 oz bell pepper, 2 tablespoons of tomato paste, 4 cloves of garlic
- Add the canned tomatoes, soy sauce, water, cocoa powder, maple syrup, salt and beans. Stir, turn off sauté mode. Put on the lid and turn it to seal.20 oz Ro-tel diced tomatoes with green chilis (mild), 1 tablespoon soy sauce, 1 tablespoon brown sugar, 2 cups vegetable broth, 1 tablespoon cocoa powder, 16 oz can of black beans, 2 (16 oz) cans of red kidney beans, 1 teaspoon salt
- Pressure cook on high for 6 minutes. Quick release when it's finished and give it one more stir
- Top with vegan cheese and vegan sour cream or avocados
Stove top instructions
- Add 1 teaspoon of oil to a large soup pot and heat on medium heat
- Sauté the Beyond burger patties (or the mushrooms or crumbled tofu if you're using one of these instead) for 2 minutes and crumble it up with the edge of your spoon2 Beyond burger patties
- Add the diced onions and sauté until burger crumbles turn brown and the onions become translucent1 large onion
- Add all the spices and tomato paste and saute for 30 seconds. Add the frozen bell peppers, minced garlic and sauté for one minute½ teaspoon chipotle chili powder, 1½ teaspoon smoked paprika powder, 3 tablespoons chili powder, 1 teaspoon oregano, 2 teaspoon cumin, 7 oz bell pepper, 2 tablespoons of tomato paste, 4 cloves of garlic
- Add the canned tomatoes, soy sauce, water, maple syrup, salt, cocoa powder and beans.1 tablespoon cocoa powder, 20 oz Ro-tel diced tomatoes with green chilis (mild), 1 tablespoon soy sauce, 16 oz can of black beans, 2 (16 oz) cans of red kidney beans, 3 cups vegetable broth
- Stir and partially cover with a lid
- Bring to boil, then turn way down to a gentle simmer for 30-45 minutes. Stir every 10 minutes to make sure the chili doesn't burn to the bottom of the pan. Make sure it's not simmering too high.
- Turn off heat and let it sit for 10 minutes before serving. Top with vegan cheese and vegan sour cream or avocados
Video
Notes
Nutrition
The nutritional information on this website is only an estimate and is provided for convenience and as a courtesy only. The accuracy of the nutritional information for any recipe on this site is not guaranteed. It should not be used as a substitute for a professional nutritionist’s advice.
Lou
So delicious, easy, and flavorful.