Ingredients
Units
Scale
- 2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
- 1 small white or yellow onion, finely diced
- 1 carrot, shredded (a box grated works perfect)
- 2–3 cloves garlic, pressed or minced
- 1 red bell peppers, seeded and medium chopped
- 2 (14-ounce) cans black beans, drained and rinsed well
- 1 (14-ounce) can diced tomatoes (or 4 vine ripe tomatoes, chopped)
- 1 (14-ounce) can tomato sauce
- 1/2 teaspoon red pepper flakes or 1 small jalapeno, chopped (omit for a mild chili)
- 2 teaspoons ground cumin
- 1 tablespoon chili powder (mild, medium or hot, your choice)
- 2 cups veggie stock (or filtered water)
- 2–3 teaspoons sea salt (more or less to taste)
- a few spins of freshly ground black pepper
Instructions
- Heat the olive oil in a large pot over medium heat. Add the chili flakes, onion, carrot and 1 tsp salt, sauté until the onion is translucent, about 5 minutes.
- Add the jalapeno, cumin, paprika, chili powder and garlic, and sauté 2-3 minutes until very fragrant.
- Add the 2 cans of diced tomatoes, with the liquid to deglaze the bottom of the pan. Stir the bottom of the pot well to pick up all of the spices.
- Add the beans, bell pepper, tomato sauce, water, salt and pepper. Stir well and let cook for at least 15 minutes to allow the flavors to combine. You can leave it on the stove on the lowest setting all afternoon to let people help themselves as needed.
This chili can be stored in the refrigerator in an airtight glass container for up to 3 days. It also freezes well.
Garnishes:
- Avocado (our favorite!)
- Fresh cilantro
- Organic tortilla chips
- Lite sour cream or plain greek yogurt
- Shredded cheese
- Pico de gallo
Notes
I use canned beans here for convenience. Since there are some concerns about BPA levels in cans, drain and rinse the beans well before using. Rinsing them well also helps alleviate any digestive discomfort or gas you might experience from beans. You can also prepare the beans from scratch, or look for beans and tomato products in boxes or glass jars if available at your market. While there is a small concern about BPA in cans, that concern is outweighed by the health benefits of both beans and tomatoes, so using cans here is still a great healthy (and economical) option that you can feel good about.