Sweet Potato and Lentil Chili (vegan)
by Chungah
A winning chili for both vegetarians and omnivores that is sure to be a hit at your next potluck or family meal!
I have a bad case of the Mondays. It’s bad enough coming back from a weekend but losing an hour of sleep? Ugh. Let’s just say it’ll be a glorious day when we get that hour back in November.
Anyway, I have a very special recipe for you today.
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Drumroll please…
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It’s my first official vegan recipe for Damn Delicious!
See, I try to eat healthy most of the time (except for when Jason’s in town – then cheeseburgers, fries, and artery-clogging goodness is all fair game) and I’m even somewhat of a vegetarian when Jason is away at school. But trying out vegan recipes is always a bit of a struggle because abstaining from dairy and egg products is almost impossible!
But this chili here? Yeah, it makes veganism seem completely doable (note: the Greek yogurt and cheese is merely for garnish/photographic purposes). I tried out this recipe for Naturebox and to be honest, I was a bit skeptical about it in the beginning. I’m not the biggest lentils fan – I’ve actually only had it once before at a restaurant and I wasn’t completely in love with it – and I’ve never had meatless chili either but I decided to stick with the recipe as is and boy am I glad I did.
Within the first bite of this chili, I was in heaven. The sweet potatoes and lentils are incredibly filling, and you have every guarantee that you won’t be missing the meat. Plus, with a side of cornbread, you’ll be sure to be asking for seconds!
Sweet Potato and Lentil Chili (vegan)
Ingredients
- 2 tablespoons olive oil
- 1 onion, diced
- 2 bell peppers, diced
- 3 sweet potatoes, diced
- 3 cloves garlic, minced
- 2 cups vegetable broth
- 1 15-ounce can diced tomatoes with green chilis
- 2 cups steamed lentils
- 2 tablespoons chili powder
- 1 tablespoon cumin
- 1 tablespoon paprika
- ¼ teaspoon cayenne pepper, or more to taste
- Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper, to taste
Instructions
- Heat olive oil in a Dutch oven or large pot over medium high heat. Add onion and bell peppers, and cook, stirring occasionally, until tender, about 3-5 minutes. Add sweet potatoes and garlic and cook, stirring occasionally, until potatoes begin to soften, about 5-7 minutes. Stir in vegetable broth, diced tomatoes, lentils, chili powder, cumin, paprika, cayenne pepper, salt and pepper, to taste.
- Bring to a boil; reduce heat and simmer until thickened, about 30 minutes.
- Serve immediately.
Notes
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Our family really loved this recipe! I have three little ones that hate sweet potatoes. They ate all of thier chili and asked for seconds!! (We didn’t add cayenne pepper because it was to hot for my kids.) Thank you so much for this recipe!
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Just curious.. What color lentils did you use? I’ve found there are slight taste differences between brown & red (the only two I’ve ever used).
I used brown lentils but feel free to use your favorite kind of lentils.
Cam this be used as a freezer to crock pot meal? Just curious as I am trying to stock my freezer before my little girl makes her appearance.
This chili is certainly freezer-friendly but I have never personally tried reheating in the crock pot.
Can’t wait to try this tonight! Can the lentils be added uncooked…
I would advise against adding the uncooked lentils as it may soak up more of the liquid and completely change the texture of the dish.
I did! I added only 1 cup of uncooked lentils (makes 2 cups once cooked) and added an extra cup of vegetable broth (total of 3 cups) since they will soak up more liquid. So good!!
Is the measurement for the lentils before or after they are steamed?
Bercie, the ingredients indicate “2 cups steamed lentils” – this refers to 2 cups lentils after they are steamed. Hope that helps!