Quinoa Vegetarian Chili

Chili is always made with meat. My husband even walked over and told me that the only thing wrong with the chili was that it was missing ground beef. When I made him take a bite he took back what he said. He dove in for another bite and then kept grabbing tortilla chips and dipping them in my bowl of chili after he ate his hamburger. He will now be having his own Chili Size tonight. A burger with vegetarian chili. It is a perfect blend of spices and vegetables. 

Yields: Enough for 6 adults or more

Ingredients:

1 cup cooked quinoa

1 Tbsp. extra virgin olive oil

1 cup yellow onion, diced

4-5 garlic cloves, minced

1 can (14.5 oz.) diced tomatoes

1 can (8 oz.) tomato sauce

1 cup Vegetable broth

1 can (7 oz.) mild fire roasted diced green chiles with juice

1 Tbsp. chili powder

1 tsp. ground cumin

1 tsp. unsweetened cocoa powder

½ tsp. paprika

¼ tsp. granulated white sugar

¼ tsp. ground coriander

¼ tsp. cayenne pepper, or to taste

1 tsp. kosher salt, to taste

1 tsp. ground black pepper, to taste

1 can (15 oz.) kidney beans, drained and rinsed

1 can (15 oz.) black beans, drained and rinsed

1 cup fresh or frozen cut corn

Juice of ½ of one lime

Optional toppings: Fresh cilantro, guacamole, sour cream, shredded cheese, tortilla chips or cracker

Directions:

Prep your cans by opening all of them, draining and rinsing the beans ahead of time

In a rice cooker, prepare your Quinoa. I use 1 cup of Quinoa and 2 cups of water with a splash of olive oil giving you some leftovers

In a large pot, heat olive oil for one minute on medium-high heat. Toss in the onion and sauté until tender, roughly 4-5 minutes adding in the garlic and cooking for 30 seconds

Add in the diced tomatoes, tomato sauce, cooked quinoa, vegetable broth, green chiles, chili powder, cumin, cocoa powder, paprika, sugar, coriander, cayenne pepper, salt, and pepper

Bring mixture to a quick boil and then reduce to simmer covering pot and allowing to simmer for 30 minutes

Add in the kidney beans, black beans, and corn and simmering for another 30 minutes

Serve in a bowl with your favorite toppings or you can toast hamburger buns and pour the chili over the top like “Chili-Size”. For meat eaters, you can toss a hamburger patty on the toasted buns and pour chili over the top. Endless possibilities!