Both healthy and hearty, quinoa sweet potato chili is a filling vegan dinner.
This sweet potato chili comes together quickly on the stovetop, or it can simmer in your slow cooker. It's an easy, super-healthy vegan dinner that's likely to provide leftovers for another meal. Hooray!
A warm blend of spices set this chili apart from other similar quinoa sweet potato chili recipes: chili powder, cumin, coriander, smoked paprika and just a hint of cinnamon.
A can of fire roasted tomatoes and diced green chiles, plus both black and pinto beans, give this chili a mix of flavors that complement the sweet potatoes and quinoa.
Flavorful, but not spicy, this vegan chili might just even win over your littlest eaters.
For more mature palates, you'll want to kick things up a notch. Keep a bottle of your favorite hot sauce on the table and serve sliced jalapeno on the side.
When you're craving chili, I also love my super-flavorful Instant Pot vegetarian chili, and for meat eaters Quick and Easy Turkey Chili or Instant Pot White Bean and Turkey Chili.
Sides and Servings Suggestions
You can serve quinoa sweet potato chili with several different sides AND in several different ways. It's easy to make leftovers taste new again by serving this chili in a slightly different way the second time around.
Cornbread or Corn Tortilla Chips: Confession: I find it impossible to eat this chili without corn tortilla chips. I love crunchy chips crumbled over the top of my bowl!
Nachos: I love a plate of nachos served on the side so I can dip warm, cheesy chips into my chili. I'm telling you, using chili as a dip for nachos is underrated!
Burrito Filling: Warm up tortillas, add extra toppings (like green onion, shredded cabbage or bell peppers, sour cream and cheese) and serve chili burritos.
Baked Potatoes: Spoon chili over baked potatoes
Quinoa Sweet Potato Chili is made in 3 easy steps on the stovetop
1. Saute onion, garlic and spices
2. Add beans and tomatoes
3. Add sweet potato, quinoa, green chiles and parsley
Then, just simmer for 30 to 40 minutes until the sweet potatoes are tender.
How to Store Leftovers
This chili keeps in the refrigerator for up to 5 days, giving you plenty of time to enjoy leftovers. Reheat in the microwave, or gently on the stovetop. You can also freeze quinoa chili, in one large freezer bag or divvied up into individual portions in smaller freezer bags. Perfect for lunches!
Is Quinoa Healthy?
Quinoa was a staple of the ancient Incas and today is often considered a "'Super Grain" because it contains more protein than any other grain. It is considered a complete protein because it contains all eight essential amino acids.
Quinoa is naturally gluten-free and rich in magnesium and folate, among other nutrients.
Do I Have to Rinse Canned Beans?
Many recipes that use canned beans instruct readers to "drain and rinse" canned beans before using them. Do you really have to rinse canned beans?
It depends on the recipe. Rinsing canned beans washes away the salty liquid they've been canned in, making the beans less salty. If you want the beans to be less salty, then rinse them. If you're adding beans to a recipe that needs a good amount of salt for flavor (like chili) then don't bother. Just drain the beans and add them directly to the recipe.
Keep in mind, however, that not rinsing beans usually means you can add less salt to your recipe. Use a lighter hand with the salt shaker!
What About Canned Bean Liquid?
The salty, starchy liquid in canned beans is usually drained off before beans are added to a recipe. However, there might be times when you want to use that liquid.
Canned bean liquid can be added to soup, stew, chili or other recipes that need broth. However, you'll want to keep two things in mind before you dump that whole can of beans into your recipes.
1. Taste the bean liquid first. Make sure you like the flavor, and make sure the amount of salt in the liquid won't make your dish too salty.
2. Bean starch is cloudy and has texture. If you want a clear broth for your soup, don't add the bean liquid. Also, the starch in the bean liquid might thicken your dish. If you're okay with that, then go ahead and add the whole can of beans, liquid and all.
More Family-Friendly Vegetarian Meals
- Creamy Oven-Baked Polenta
- Crockpot Lentil Soup
- Vegetarian Fajitas with Smoky Lime Sour Cream
- One-Pot Spaghetti with Tomato and Kale
Quinoa Sweet Potato Chili
Both healthy and hearty, quinoa sweet potato chili is a filling vegan dinner that can be made on the stovetop or in your slow cooker.
- Prep Time: 15 minutes
- Cook Time: 50 minutes
- Total Time: 1 hour 5 minutes
- Yield: 6 to 8 servings 1x
- Category: Chili
- Method: Simmer
- Cuisine: American
- Diet: Vegan
Ingredients
- 2 tablespoons oil
- 1 small onion, chopped
- 4 cloves garlic, finely chopped
- 1 tablespoon chili powder
- 2 teaspoons cumin
- 1 teaspoon coriander
- ½ teaspoon smoked paprika
- ¼ teaspoon cinnamon
- ¾ teaspoon salt
- 1 14-ounce can diced fire-roasted tomatoes
- 1 can black beans, drained
- 1 can pinto beans, drained
- 2 medium or 3 smaller sweet potatoes, peeled and cut into *½-inch pieces (about 3 cups)
- ½ cup uncooked quinoa (rinsed with water)
- 1 4-oz can (mild or spicy) diced green chiles (or 1 bell pepper, chopped)
- ¼ cup chopped parsley or cilantro, plus more for garnish
- 6 cups water or broth
Topping Suggestions:
- cilantro
- green onion
- jalapeno pepper
- avocado
- tortilla chips
*The most important thing is that the pieces of sweet potato are all about the same size so they cook evenly. The larger the pieces, the longer they will take to become soft.
Instructions
Stove Top:
- In a large pot or Dutch Oven, warm oil over medium heat. Add onion and saute until soft, about 5 minutes.
- Add garlic and spices (chili powder, cumin, coriander, smoked paprika, cinnamon) and cook about 1 minute more, stirring constantly so the spices don’t stick to the pot.
- Add remaining ingredients: salt, tomatoes, black beans, pinto beans, sweet potato, quinoa, green chiles, parsley, water/broth.
- Bring to a boil, then reduce heat and simmer over medium-low, half covered with a lid, for 30 to 40 minutes. Stir occasionally to make sure the chili isn’t sticking to the pot. The chili is done when the sweet potato is soft and easily pierced with a fork.
- When the chili is done, add more salt to taste. Toppings are a must - tortilla chips, avocado, cilantro, jalapeno, etc..
Slow Cooker:
- Simply add all ingredients to the slow cooker. Stir well before putting on the lid. Cook on Low for 6 to 8 hours or High for 4 to 6 hours.
Notes
The quinoa will absorb liquid, making this a thick chili. Add more broth or water if you want, especially if you're reheating the chili later in the week.
Keywords: quinoa chili, quinoa, sweet potato chili, quinoa sweet potato chili
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