This smoky Black Bean Sweet Potato Chili is going to rock your world! Honestly, it’s the best vegetarian chili to ever grace my kitchen. 100% a game changer.
I’m about to say something bold: this Black Bean Sweet Potato Chili will convert any meat lover. I know, it’s a bold statement. But after a few years of hearing from you guys about this recipe… I stand by my statement confidently. Chili is an ESSENTIAL recipe during the fall/winter. And you won’t miss the meat with all the black beans, sweet potatoes and spices in this one.
Loaded with chili powder, chipotle peppers, cumin, beans, tomatoes and quinoa, it’s basically a giant party in a pot and it’s addictive. Make it, enjoy it, and then take it for lunch the next day and make everyone jealous. I tend to make a double batch of this on the weekends and then freeze small portions to pull out when needed. It freezes like a charm. Just make it, let it cool, portion it into small containers and then freeze. When you’re ready to serve, take it out of the freezer, let it sit on the counter until it’s no longer totally frozen, and then re-heat either in a microwave or in a non-stick skillet with an extra splash of stock to loosen it up. Bingo.
As far as substitutions for this goes:
- Butternut Squash is a great substitute for sweet potatoes
- Farro or rice also works in place of quinoa. You might need a tiny bit extra time for farro, and a little extra liquid. But both are delish.
- Black beans can be substituted with any of your favorite canned bean. If you want to make your own beans, this is my favorite recipe
Stuck in a dinner rut? Looking for new delicious dinner ideas? Check out my roundup of 50+ easy dinner ideas here.
Black Bean Sweet Potato Chili
Ingredients
- 1 tablespoon olive oil, plus 2 extra teaspoons
- 1 large sweet potato, peeled and diced
- 1 large red onion, diced
- 4 cloves garlic, roughly chopped
- 2 tablespoons chili powder
- 1/2 teaspoon ground chipotle pepper
- 1/2 teaspoon ground cumin
- 1/4 teaspoon kosher salt
- 3 1/2 cups vegetable stock
- 1 15-ounce cans black beans, rinsed and drained
- 1 14.5-ounce can fire roasted diced tomatoes
- 1/2 cup dried quinoa
- 4 teaspoons lime juice
- serving suggestions: avocado, cilantro, crema, grated cheese
Instructions
- Heat a large heavy bottom pot with the oil over medium high heat.
- Add the sweet potato and onion and cook for about 5 minutes, until the onion is softened. Add the garlic, chili powder, chipotle, cumin and salt and stir to combine.
- Add the stock, tomatoes, black beans and quinoa and bring the mixture to a boil. Stir to incorporate.
- Cover the pot and reduce the heat to maintain a gentle simmer.
- Cook for 30-40 minutes until the quinoa is fully cooked and the sweet potatoes are soft and the entire mixture is thick like a chili.
- Add the lime juice and remove the pot from the heat. Season with salt as needed.
- Garnish with avocado, cilantro, crema or cheese before serving.
Oh my goodness…this is THE best Chili I have ever made/had…and I am not a huge fan of Chili. I am forever changed. Great job on the recipe! I added a pound of ground chicken, and doubled the spices. Unbelievable!!
YAY!!! Thanks Nicole 🙂
Can you sub in chicken stock for the vegetable stock? (Sorry if I missed this during the snapisode!) Thanks, Gaby!
yes!!
Would you know the protein, fat and carbs on this plz?
Hey Konnie!
Unfortunately I’m not a nutritionist so I dont have that information. But I do cook with the freshest ingredients possible and believe in a well balanced diet and this falls right into that!
Thanks
This was awesome! I pureed some of the sweet potato to thicken it up and because I like sweet and spicy, just a tablespoon of brown sugar. This one was added to my favorites. Thank you!
Smells awesome!!! Tastes great and let me tell you, I don’t cook. My boyfriend is coming back from a business trip and he deserves it. Thank you!
I love it as does everyone that tastes it, Great job and thanks for sharing! I have made 6 times and not changed a thing.
I just made this recipe, my second recipe from WGC (first was the Fatoush <3) and it's absolutely delicious! Chipotle is as rare as a unicorn in Aussie supermarkets so I had to forgo that element but the Chili is still amazing! Thanks Gaby, you're a legend! X
LOVE that!! so glad you enjoyed!
I’ve made this a few times and I LOVE IT…the only problem is that my husband doesn’t like the taste of quinoa…If I use rice do you think I need to double it? Thanks!
I’d use the same amount of rice as quinoa! and it will be perf
I made this for me and my teenage daughter that can be somewhat picky. She really liked it and ate two bowls of it. I added frozen peas and corn to mine. It was great and I didn’t even miss the meat.
Can this be doubled or tripled?
absolutely!
This looks so hearty and comforting!
This is right up my alley!! Making it 🙂
I made something similar last year and loved it. This version looks even smokier and better. Maybe a few chipotle peppers in a adobo sauce added in, too:) All things are better when topped with Avo anyways!! Ah, I bet a scoop of your guac on top would be AMAZING too!!!
Comfort food perfection!! I can’t get over how flavorful and simple this looks! Such a perfect dish for the colder days ahead!
That look so damn good! Perfect for football season!
Just made this a day ahead for football Sunday. It is soooooo goooooodddd! I am working on eating less meat and this fits the bill perfectly. It is a winner for sure. I think it will be even tastier tomorrow as he flavors meld. I used fish tomatoes from the garden instead of canned, but that was the only change. Thank you!
Thank you very much for sharing such great recipes! They are really inspiring, especially when you don’t have many great ideas. God bless you!
The weather cooled enough and for once I located quinoa at the local grocery so I’m finally trying this recipe. It’s just boiled and is now in the simmer stage. Most importantly, my son has already commented twice on the great smells from the kitchen, which is pretty rare for him. 🙂
Quick-related question: I love cooking with sweet potatoes but always have trouble cutting them easily, no matter how sharp the knife. Is there a way to prep the potato itself so the process is easier?
I just peel it and then slice into rounds and THEN dice it up!!
Does this freeze well?
YES!
Are there nutrition facts anywhere for this recipe???
Unfortunately not!! But most readers input their serving size and recipe into their favorite tracking tool for accurate breakdowns! xoxo
This was fabulous to say the lease. I am forwarding the recipe to my sister, for my brother-in-law who has some health concerns.
Hi Gaby,
I am interested in substituting the quinoa for ground beef or turkey. How much ground beef or turkey would you suggest adding? If I add meat, does anything else in the recipe need to be adjusted?
Thank you!
just add about 1/2 – 1 lb of ground beef, and cook it at the beginning of the recipe when cooking the onion
This chili recipe is so perfect! The weather has been getting colder and I wanted something nice, warm comforting and easy to make for supper. Decided to try this and love love loved it!! Thank you!!
LOVE hearing that! xx
My hubbie was convinced he could never have chili again because he stopped eating meat. I made this chili without quinoa and substituted sweet potatoes with Yukon gold for our tastes. We absolutely loved it. He was amazed and said it tasted better than our long used chili recipe with meat. YAY! Thanks Gaby! It’s on the winter rotation. Btw, easy to make and you usually have all the ingredients already in your pantry, which is a big plus!
BEST COMMENT EVER!! So happy
Hi Gaby. I made this as per the instructions and it was amazing. Even my 20 year old son who does not like chill said it was fantastic. I am making this for a retreat next week and need to also take a salad to go with it. What salad would you suggest? Love your recipes!
My green monster salad with a cilantro vinaigrette !
Is it gluten free? I’m hosting a friend for dinner and was hoping to use this! But she’s gluten free…
it is!
I made this last night to eat after giving out candy to trick-or-treaters…it was so amazing!!! New fav recipe. Love your blog!
LOVE hearing that! Thanks Grace
This is so good, but fudge I didn’t realize it would be spicy. I’m guessing the chipotle pepper. I made to bring to a new mama, but I’m thinking I may need to make a new batch. Would removing the chipotle pepper from the recipe remove the heat? Thanks!
ya – that would make it not spicy!
Delicious! I doubled the recipe and used farro instead, worked great. I think any grain (quinoa, farro, barley, rice) would work great, honestly.. And I pureed a few cups and added back to make it thicker, as someone else suggested. Served with lime, cilantro, and sour cream at the table. I don’t like chili traditionally but this was awesome and my husband said it was one of my best dishes ever! I also almost never leave comments, so that’s how good this was! Thanks Gabby.
omg THANK YOU Brooke!! This means the world to me 🙂
How many cups per serving?
1 1/2
Just made this delicious recipe!! Love everything about it! We added more spices that we like, some tomato paste for an extra zip, malt beer and grilled some steak on top!! Will definitely be a regular dinner we will make and I can’t wait for lunch leftovers! Thank you!
I’ve been following your Instagram for awhile now and finally made my first WGC recipe. This chili is so good! Plenty of flavor and I served mine with Siete Foods tortilla chips. I’ll definitely be making more of your recipes soon!
Hi Gaby! I came home from my Super Bowl party and made this chili for lunch this week and it is DELISH!! I love it! Definitely going to be added to my winter soup favorites–I’ve shared the recipe with 3 people already! Thank you so much!
Have a great week!
I love this recipe and I make it a few times a month in the fall and winter. Do you know if this could be adapted for an instant pot? Thanks for having the BEST recipes Gaby!
it should could be, but I haven’t tried it yet!
I was just about to ask this. Sounds like it could be adapted. Sauté the veggies first then add everything else?
Making it right now! Thanks Gabby for the recipe!
This was phenomenal! I did double the sweet potato and the beans — added a can of garbanzos as well. It was SO good!
So I commented on this awhile back, but just made this again and it’s the most amazing chili ever. Doubled the recipe and threw everything in the crockpot and now we’re set with dinner for a few days !