Quick, easy, and healthy, this Crock Pot Vegetarian Chili Recipe has been one of my favorites for years. It’s perfect for a party, a big family get-together, or to make for leftovers. Everyone loves it, and the deliciously simple recipe will have you saying that this is a keeper!
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Easy Crockpot recipe
Try this easy slow cooker vegetarian chili recipe that will have everyone asking for the recipe. It’s the perfect way to eat healthier while being super budget friendly. It’s naturally gluten-free, vegan, loaded with fiber, and packed full of flavor!
I’ve made this chili for many parties, and it always gets rave reviews. People who don’t usually like chili love this one. Even meat eaters love this vegan chili.
How should I serve chili?
This chili is so simple to make; there’s no chopping, no complicated measuring, just open some cans of healthy ingredients, mix them all together, and cook. That’s it.
Then, garnish that delicious chili with your favorite toppings:
- Sour cream
- Shredded cheese
- Chopped green onions
- Tortilla chips
- Cilantro
- Guacamole or avocados
- Chopped red or white onion
- Or your favorite toppings
Serve this vegan chili over rice, pasta, or baked potatoes. Top nachos with the chili (we often have a nacho bar at our football watching parties, and this chili is perfect!). Serve with cornbread for a holiday dinner party. Serve it with homemade air fryer tortilla chips for a fun dinner.
Or, just eat straight from a bowl.
Leftovers
It makes a big slow cooker full, filling a (Amazon affiliate link) 4-quart slow cooker almost to the top, which means lots of leftovers or enough to feed a crowd at a big party.
To reheat leftovers, simply pop them in the microwave.
Or, reheat them on the stove over medium heat, stirring often.
Other ideas to use leftover chili
Make up some Mexican Chili Cheese Dip
Try adding some leftover chili to your favorite mac & cheese recipe for an easy chili mac dinner.
Make some chili cheese dogs (try the vegetarian “hot dogs” if you want to keep it vegetarian)
Make some bean & cheese enchiladas by wrapping chili with cheese up in tortillas, place them in a casserole dish, pour some easy enchilada sauce over the top, and top with a little more cheese. Bake until bubbly.
Make Easy Weeknight Eggs using chili instead of pinto beans
Beans, the classic, trending food
The kitchn tells us that beans are a trending ingredient for 2020. And, well, in my opinion, chili is one of those crock-pot meals that just never goes out of style.
I first started making this chili after I got laid off from work, and I wasn’t sure what we could afford. So, I went all budget-conscious on everything.
And, this is a really budget-friendly dish. Especially if you buy the beans when they are on sale at the store. I can usually find beans less than $1 per can, making this whole recipe cost less than $10 for all of the ingredients. When you divide that out by the number of servings, we’re talking about 42 cents (or less) per serving.
Year-round comfort food
Slow Cooker Vegetarian Chili is a comfort food recipe for any time of year. Of course, chili is a great warming dish during the cold winter months. But this chili is fabulous during summer too. It’s perfect for a lighter meal when served over sweet potatoes. And, you can keep the heat out of the house by plugging the slow cooker in outside.
And, because this chili is with healthy beans it’s a protein powerhouse that’ll keep you full for a long time.
Ingredient notes
I like to use low sodium or salt free canned beans for my chili so I can control how much salt is in there. I usually add about 1 & ½ teaspoons salt to the chili, but only if I’ve used the low sodium beans. If you use regular full sodium beans, wait until the chili is cooked to taste it for salt.
You can always add more salt, but you can’t take it out.
I also like to use fire roasted diced tomatoes in my chili. I like the little extra flavor they add.
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Crock Pot Vegetarian Chili Recipe
Crock Pot Vegetarian Chili
Equipment
Ingredients
- 2 cans kidney beans 15 ounce each, drained and rinsed
- 2 cans spicy chili beans 15 ounce each, undrained
- 1 can pinto beans 15 ounce, undrained
- 1 can white beans 15 ounce, drained and rinsed
- 2 cans chunky tomatoes 14.5 ounce each, undrained
- 2 cans tomato paste 6 ounces each
- 4-½ teaspoons chili powder
- ¼ teaspoon cayenne pepper
Instructions
- Mix all ingredients in the bowl of a slow cooker (4-quart or larger). Take 3 to 4 cups of the chili and blend in a blender or use an immersion blender. Cover, and cook on low 5 to 6 hours.
Notes
Serve with chopped red onion, cheddar cheese, sour cream, chopped cilantro, or your favorite toppings.
Nutrition
This recipe was originally posted on my blog in Feb 2010. I’ve made some updates to the original recipe, and reposted it. Here’s the original photo.
Eat salads every night instead of potatoes and paasta! Also no bread.
Just found our next meal for our family get together. Slow cooked meals are so handy, and this one is super filling (also perfect for the vegetarian in our fam).
Hi there, this looks great but under the nutrition is says calories 1 and I am sure that is a misprint so do you know the actual calorie count for this chili.
Jen, I have gone back in and recalculated the nutrition. Odd that it was wrong like that. Keep in mind that this is an estimate, and actual numbers will vary based on different brands and foods used. But, at least there’s a much better number there now, and thanks for alerting me to it!