Sweet Potato Black Bean Pumpkin Chili

This is a healthy chili recipe that is always on rotation in the FMK household. It is my go-to for fall but I love to make it all winter too.

For this pumpkin chili version, I decided to keep it super simple. Most of these items are likely already in your pantry: sweet potatoes, black beans, canned pumpkin, crushed tomatoes, onion, vegetable stock…

And hopefully you have a well-stocked spice cabinet too. Because you can’t really do chili without the necessary spices…. Chili powder, I like to throw in some cumin, paprika, etc. I actually go heavy on the chili powder for lots of flavor.

What is the point of having chili if it’s flavorless??

Why This Pumpkin Chili is Amazing

1. You can’t really mess it up.
2. It lasts a good week in the fridge, hello leftovers.
3. If you’re using a slow cooker, hassle free, hands free cooking.
4. It’s an easy vegan chili recipe everyone will love.
5. Add your favorite toppings, mine for sure being tortilla chips and avocado here.
6. It’s hearty, thick and so delicious!

Pantry Ingredients List

Like I mentioned above, we’re really using mainly pantry staples here, which means you can throw this together in a hurry, let it cook in the slow cooker and you’ll have dinner set for days.

Here’s what you need for this vegan pumpkin chili:

• sweet potatoes – peel and chop them so they’re all roughly the same size and cook evenly.
• canned black beans – or cook your own, but using canned will save on time. I always like to buy low sodium and rinse them thoroughly.
• canned pumpkin – adds a hearty-ness to this chili that I just love.
• onion & garlic – can’t really do chili without it! Adds so much flavor
• canned crushed tomatoes – just 1 can (about 14 ounces) is all you need. Make sure to include all the juices.
• vegetable broth – you can use vegetable to keep this recipe vegan.
• chili seasonings – chili powder, cumin, paprika, cayenne AND cinnamon, which adds the perfect touch to this pumpkin chili, in my opinion.

Pumpkin Chili Toppings

You can’t go wrong with avocado and tortilla chips, in my opinion.

Add a little vegan sour cream and cheese if you want.

If you’re feeling up to a little baking, I can’t recommend this vegan & gluten free cornbread enough.

Variations & Substitutions

This pumpkin chili recipe is easily adaptable and you can play around with ingredients, depending on what you like in your chili.

• Add in quinoa
• Substitute butternut squash for the sweet potatoes
• Add in one diced bell pepper.
• If you have meat eater on your hands, you can throw your choice of browned meat into the crock pot. Or just add the pre-cooked burger into individual serving bowls.

Just note if you add in more ingredients (both quinoa, bell pepper and meat) you will probably need some additional broth, about 1/2 cup or so.