Here's an easy vegetarian chili recipe that takes about 30 minutes to make. You can pull this together with a few pantry items, or feel free to add other veggies and spices when sautéing the onions or while simmering the chili.
I often sneak in a bit of ketchup, barbecue sauce, maple syrup, or honey to balance the acidity of the tomatoes with something sweet. To give it a smoky flavor I'll add some ground chipotle pepper or smoked paprika. To deepen the flavor a bit I might add a small piece of chocolate or a bit of cacao powder.
I used pinto beans for the photos because I had just made a big batch in my Instant Pot (recipe below), but feel free to use any bean or mixture of beans. It's good with black beans, chickpeas, kidney, and even white beans.
This is a thick, chunky chili but feel free to thin it out a bit with water while it's simmering, or add a bit more crushed tomatoes and spices. I used crushed tomatoes partly to get a thick consistency but you can also use pureed tomatoes or even fresh tomatoes. If you go the fresh tomatoes route add a bit of tomato paste to thicken it and enrich the flavor.
The hidden treat here is the pickled red onions. Instead of vinegar I use lime juice, a pinch of salt, and drizzle of sweetener to quickly pickle the red onion. The flavor balances well with the chili, and makes the color of the dish pop as well. For additional garnish try some crème fraîche, yogurt, cashew cream, diced avocado, crumbled or graded cheese, and cilantro. And you can also add a base for a fuller meal using rice, quinoa, or cauliflower rice.
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