This Vegan 3 Bean Chili Recipe is a hearty and delicious meal that’s quick, easy, and perfect for game day! A fantastic meatless chili recipe that comes out perfectly cooked in the crock pot!
This recipe was originally published on November 20th, 2016. Get version 1 information here.
Chili recipes are perennial, right?
If it’s cold outside, a bowl of chili will warm you up from the inside!
If the weather is warm, have a chili cookout!
A big, hearty warm bowl of chili never lets you down.
Tips for making this chili
- I use Cargamanto beans (AKA cranberry beans), black beans and small red beans in this recipe. You can always sub it with red kidney beans and/or pinto beans.
- Be sure to soak the beans overnight. This has nothing to do with reducing the cooking time. It has everything to do with reducing the lectins in the beans. Lectins are bad for your gut, so, soaking them overnight will make lectins be less problematic. (SOURCE – Blue Zone, Healthline and my conversations with nutritionist.)
- This chili can be refrigerated (for about 1 week) and frozen (for up to 6 months)
- I used mushroom stock in this recipe because that’s all I had. Use any stock you have on hand.
- I use chili powder in addition to red chili pepper in this recipe. It’s not a spicy chili at all, but you can always adjust it to your taste.
- If you like tajin spice as much as I do, you can also add it to this recipe. I love flavoring my cauliflower with it.
🍅 Handy Tip: For this recipe and for almost all other bean recipes, I prefer using dry beans over canned beans. They don’t have the added preservatives or extra sodium.
To ‘shroom or not to ‘shroom
The original version of this recipe has mushrooms and it tasted AMAZING!! I know I am biased, but it’s still true.
Then, I made a slow cooker version and served it to a few vegan friends. They weren’t fond of the mushrooms in the chili. But, I loved it.
So, I will leave it to all of you readers to decide on weather you want to add them or not.
Tips for if you want to add them. Use baby button brown mushrooms. Slice them as thinly as you can. Also, saute them first before adding to the slow cooker.
👩🍳 Appliance tip: Slow cooker is the best way to make this chili because you are completely hands off. You just dump the ingredients and the slow cooker does all the work.
How to use this chili
- Make delicious tacos with your leftovers
- Drizzle it on your loaded sweet potato or a plain sweet potato
- Mix it with basmati rice for a quick weeknight dinner meal.
- Put it into an enchilada or a burrito.
- Make a chili stroganoff.
- Serve it as dip for your chips.
- Dizzy, Busy and Hungry put leftover chili into a grilled cheese sandwich and it has me drooling!
- You can even use these beans in an air fryer burrito.
Chili is the perfect game day food because it can be served by itself or as topping!
This vegetarian chili recipe is made to hit the spot!
🍅 Handy Tip: This chili can be frozen for up to 6months! So, make a big batch and use it in meal prep.
Ingredients for 3 bean chili
- olive oil
- cumin seed
- garlic
- ginger
- red onions
- red pepper
- mushrooms
- beans
- tomato sauce
- enchilada sauce
- mushroom stock
- water
- salt
- chili powder
- Tajin spice
How to make this slow cooker chili
- Set the slow cooker to high
- Heat 2 tablespoons of olive oil in the crock pot, then add 1 teaspoon of cumin seed and heat until browned. Add the garlic and ginger (fresh is better if you can get it).
- Add the red onions and cook them about 3 minutes or until browned.
- Add the red peppers and mushrooms (if using), and saute until the mushrooms are soft.
- Add the beans, tomato sauce, enchilada sauce and half of the water
- Add the salt, cumin powder and chili powder. Mix well and close the lid for the crock pot
- Let it simmer on high for 2.5 hours. Be sure to stir occasionally.
- After two and half hours, add the remaining water.
- Let it continue to simmer for another 3 hours. Be sure to stir occasionally.
🫘 Bean tip: Always use dry beans which you soak overnight. Then, cook them in the Slow cooker or in your Instant Pot. This will reduce the lectin levels significantly.
Answering your questions
Technically, you could make vegetarian chili by taking any chili recipe and removing the meat. To add in texture, use mushrooms and even soy curls or soy crumbles.
Because beans and veggies are the main stars of this chili recipe with beans, it’s packed with lots of fiber and protein that will fill you up and leave you feeling extremely satisfied!
This is not very spicy because I made it for friends. If you can handle a little heat at more chili powder or use chile ancho, which is in the lower end of the scoville scale
Yes, it’s very easy to make chili seasoning at home. I like to make this homemade chili seasoning using simple seasonings. Then, I add it to all my favorite chili recipes.
More Chili Recipes
Making chili in your Dutch oven is so easy and delicious. You will love the addition of pasta in it.
Beets add a nice color and texture to chili. It’s really easy and delicious.
Sharing is caring
Don’t be shy, chime in below in the comments. Let me hear your opinion on this recipe. If you tried and enjoyed this chili recipe with beans, please rate it 5 stars! Share it on Facebook, Pinterest, Twitter, Instagram and even YouTube.
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Hearty 3 Bean Chili
Ingredients
- 3 Tbsp extra virgin olive oil or avocado oil
- 1 tsp cumin seed
- 2 Tbsp garlic minced
- 2 cloves ginger minced
- ¼ cup red onions
- ½ red chili pepper
- ¼ cup mushrooms finely sliced
- 1 cup cargamanto beans dry, soaked overnight
- 1 cup black beans dry, soaked overnight
- ½ small red beans dry, soaked overnight
- 1 cup tomato sauce
- ¼ cup enchilada sauce
- 1 cup mushroom stock or stock of choice
- 6 cup water divided into 2 parts
- 1 Tbsp salt adjust to taste
- 1 tsp cumin powder
- 1 Tbsp chili powder adjust to taste
- 1 tsp Tajin spice optional
Instructions
- Set the slow cooker to high
- Heat olive oil in the crock pot for 30 seconds
- Add 1 teaspoon of cumin seeds
- Add the red onions and cook them about 3 minutes or until browned
- Add the garlic and ginger
- Add the red peppers and mushrooms (if using), and saute until the mushrooms are soft
- Add the beans, tomato sauce, enchilada sauce and one part of the water
- Add the salt, cumin powder chili powder and tajin (if using)
- Mix well and close the lid for the crock pot
- Let it simmer on high for 2.5 hours. Be sure to stir occasionally.
- After two and half hours, add the remaining water.
- Let it continue to simmer for another 3 hours. Be sure to stir occasionally.
- Turn off crock pot and mix well
- Serve immediately or let it cool before freezing it.
Video
Notes
Nutrition
Version 1
From time to time, I go re-visit old recipes. I will change the recipe or the images to make them more current.
This time, I changed the recipe from stove-top to crock pot and also made it vegan. The old recipe was vegetarian and had Old El Paso products because they sponsored it.
Also, since I used different beans in this recipe, I thought it was better to take new pictures for the post.
Hope you like it as much as we do. Check out the original stove-top version here.
Serve this chili in a taco bowl
Hello! I really need your version one of this recipe! It’s a family favorite that I saved long ago. Your link to it above is not going anywhere. Is there a chance you could re-post it or send me the original recipe?
Thank you, Kimberly. Sorry for the link errors. I have fixed it in post and here is the link -> https://web.archive.org/web/20161129075953/https://www.healingtomato.com/2016/11/20/vegetarian-chili-recipe/
How did I never think of adding ginger to a chili recipe ?!? Brilliant. And so good – this added a really unique flavour. Thank you!
Thank you, Sarita
We loved this slow cooker chili and served it, as you suggested, over baked sweet potatoes.
I did leave out the mushrooms, but the addition of ginger was fantastic! I had never added it to my chili before and I always will now.
Scrumptious!
Thank you, Glenda. 🙂
I made this recipe using bits and ends of different dried beans I had left, and added the mushrooms as suggested. Perfection on a cold winter day!
Thank you, Ksenia.
Simple, delicious, filling and LOVED the addition of mushroom! Thank you for sharing this one. Everyone enjoyed it.
Thank you, Gen. 🙂
I made this chili yesterday and it was a hit. We have some vegan chili fans at our house now. Thanks for this one, its a keeper. 🙂
Yay! That makes me so happy to hear. Thank you. 🙂