RSS
Why It's Good:
Although this chili isn't the "five alarm" variety, it does have some heat, and that comes from capsaicin, which is known to reduce inflammation. It's a natural pain reliever. There are also cardiovascular benefits to chili consumption, including lowering of cholesterol and triglycerides, which are linked to heart disease.
Why It's Green:
Any time you choose meatless chili over chili made with beef, you're doing good things for the earth. The beef industry is one of the country's main sources of water pollution, soil erosion, and—indirectly through huge amounts of grain feed—pesticide and petroleum-based fertilizer run-off into our soil and land. Eating organic ensures you're part of the solution, not part of the problem.
Where To Get It:
For more of Jay Weinstein's recipes on Sprig.com, click here.
The Ultimate Vegan Chili
All across America, cattle are running scared. With chili cook-offs happening soon in cities like Marietta, Georgia; Baton Rouge, Louisiana; California City, California; Eastpointe, Michigan; Houston, Texas; and Sewell, New Jersey (to name only a few), chefs are sharpening up their knives. Happily, some cows will live to see another day, since some of the best blue-ribbon chili is meat-free. The key to making chili that will leave the discerning beef-eaters incredulous lies in using authentic ingredients, and elevating them with chef-tested secrets.
Here I must get a little strident: Don't you dare use tasteless, pre-mixed chili powder as your flavor base. Start with genuine fresh and dried chilies, such as jalapeño, ancho (or dried poblano chilies), chipotle, and sweet red, yellow and green bell peppers, and infuse your dish with their fruity, herbaceous essences. To grind a dried ancho chili, toast it in moderate oven heat or a toaster-oven for five minutes (it should puff slightly), remove the stem and seeds, and pulverize it in a blender, spice grinder, or food processor.
Introduce the deep spice complexity that can only come from whole cumin seeds, toasted until their essential oils rise, and then ground right before they go into the pot. Bring it on home with a trifecta of hearty beans: red kidney, plump white cannellini, and profound Cuban black beans.
When the wooden spoon gives its final stir to this vibrant stew, only about an hour after you've started, you'll be ready to be a contender for cook-off prizes. Serve the dish with dollops of tofu sour cream, a sprinkling of chopped red onions, and a fragrant touch of fresh cilantro.—Jay Weinstein
Vegan Chili
Serves 8
1/4 cup olive oil
2 cups chopped onions
1 cup each chopped carrots, green, red and yellow bell peppers
2 tsp. salt
1 Tbs. chopped garlic
2 chopped seeded jalapeño peppers
1 tablespoon ground ancho chili (or, in a pinch, 1/2 tsp. crushed red pepper flakes)
1 chipotle in adobo, chopped (these canned smoked chilies are in the Spanish foods sections of most supermarkets. If not available, add extra ancho)
1 Tbsp. cumin seeds, toasted briefly in a dry pan and ground, or 4 tsp. ground cumin
One can (28-ounce) plum tomatoes, roughly chopped, juice included
Three cans (16-ounce) beans: one each red kidney, cannellini and black beans, rinsed and drained, or an equal amount of home-cooked beans
1 cup tomato juice
Tofu sour cream (optional)
Finely chopped red onions
Chopped fresh cilantro
1. Heat the oil in a heavy-bottomed Dutch oven or soup pot. Add the onions, carrots, bell peppers and salt; cook 15 minutes over medium heat, until the onions are soft.
2. Add the garlic, jalapeños, anchos, chipotle and cumin; cook five minutes more. Stir in tomatoes, beans and tomato juice. Simmer about 45 minutes. Serve garnished with tofu sour cream (if using), red onions and cilantro.
