Greatest Wholesome Chili Recipes for Fall 2021

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Chili is the substance of the gods. No wonder there are cook-offs devoted to the stuff, with secret recipes that some never reveal, not even to family members.

For the record, there are two main types of chilli – the standard variety and the healthier variety. We won’t pick favorites as we love a meaty Texas chili (including meat sweats) as much as we love a vegetable. But there are times when you just want something lighter and better for your body and at the same time want to nourish your soul.

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This is where the healthier chili recipes come in, prepared to greet the cooler autumn weather without tipping your bathroom scale. They come in all shapes and sizes, from original recipes to mindful hacks from those already in the cooking world. Here are four recipes to get you on the healthy chili train.

Turkey corn chilli

What’s below is a slight modification of a Rachel Ray recipe. The bones are superb, but we like to use ground turkey as opposed to turkey meat and decide to add some kidney beans for extra substance and texture. And while prep and cooking technically takes less than 30 minutes, we recommend simmering it for a few hours on low or in a slow cooker. It just gets better over time (in fact, it almost always gets better the next day).

Ingredients:

  • 1 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
  • 1 medium onion, chopped
  • 1 large paprika, red or green, chopped (if available, use up the remaining paprika strips from the raw food bowl)
  • 1 jalapeño pepper, deseeded and chopped
  • 1 bay leaf, fresh or dried
  • 1.5 pounds of ground turkey
  • 2 tbsp chili powder
  • 2 tbsp ground cumin
  • 2 teaspoons of cayenne pepper sauce
  • Coarse salt
  • 2 cups frozen kernels of corn or leftover prepared corn
  • 1 can of coarsely crushed tomatoes
  • 1 can of kidney beans
  • 2 cups of prepared chicken broth or broth, paper containers or cans
  • 2 spring onions, white and green, chopped

Directions:

  1. Heat a deep saucepan over medium heat. When chopping, work near the stove.
  2. Pour oil into your saucepan, 1 turn of the pan, and add vegetables as you chop.
  3. Add the bay leaf and cook the vegetables for 5 minutes, stirring frequently and reducing the heat if the vegetables start to stick.
  4. Stir in minced turkey and season with chili powder, cumin and cayenne sauce. Season with a little salt.
  5. Add corn, tomatoes, beans and broth.
  6. Combine your chilli well, adjust the seasonings, reduce the heat to medium and simmer for 7-10 minutes.
  7. Garnish the chilli with chopped spring onions.

Vegetable Chili

This Jamie Oliver recipe is a great foundation to play around with. As he suggests, try a version made with butternut squash or regular potatoes as opposed to sweet potatoes. Or play around with your bean bill (there are a few options below). Whichever direction you go, it will be very satisfying.

Jamie Oliver Vegetable Chilli.

Ingredients:

  • 1 pound sweet potatoes
  • 1 level teaspoon of cayenne pepper, plus a little more to sprinkle on
  • 1 heaped teaspoon cumin, plus something to sprinkle
  • 1 level teaspoon of ground cinnamon, plus something to sprinkle with
  • olive oil
  • 1 onion
  • 2 colored peppers
  • 2 cloves of garlic
  • 1 bunch of fresh coriander
  • 2 fresh colored chillies
  • 2 x 15-ounce cans of beans, such as kidney, chickpea, pinto, cannellini
  • 2 x 15-ounce cans of high quality plum tomatoes
  • Lime or lemon juice or vinegar to taste

Directions:

  1. Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F.
  2. Peel the sweet potatoes and cut into bite-sized pieces, then place on a baking sheet.
  3. Sprinkle with a pinch of cayenne pepper, cumin, cinnamon, sea salt and black pepper, drizzle with oil and then turn to coat. Roast for 45 minutes to 1 hour, or until golden brown and tender.
  4. Peel and roughly chop the onion. Halve, core and roughly chop the peppers, then peel the garlic and cut into fine slices.
  5. Pluck the coriander leaves, finely chop the stalks. Core and finely chop the chillies.
  6. In the meantime, put 2 tablespoons of oil in a large pan over medium heat, then add onion, paprika and garlic and cook for 5 minutes, stirring regularly.
  7. Add coriander stalks, chillies, and spices and cook for another 5 to 10 minutes, or until tender and start to caramelize, stirring occasionally.
  8. Add the beans, juice, and everything. Add the tomatoes, chop up with the back of a spoon and stir well.
  9. Bring to a boil, then reduce the heat to medium-low and leave on for 25-30 minutes, or until thickened and reduced – keep an eye on them and add a splash of water to dissolve them if necessary.
  10. Stir the roasted sweet potato with most of the coriander leaves through the chilli, then season to taste and season if necessary.
  11. Finally, season with a splash of lime or lemon juice or a sip of vinegar and sprinkle with the rest of the coriander. Deliciously served with yogurt or sour cream, guacamole and rice or tortilla chips

White Chicken Chilli

The poultry route is almost always healthier than red meat. This recipe is an adaptation of a Delish recipe that has been tweaked a bit. We decide to cook the corn early, which will caramelize the skins and bring out more flavor. We also filled in vegetable broth instead of chicken broth.

White Chicken Chilli.

Ingredients:

  • 1 tablespoon Extra virgin olive oil
  • 1 small yellow onion, diced
  • 1 Jalapeño, pitted and chopped
  • 2 Cloves of garlic, chopped
  • 1 teaspoon dried oregano
  • 1 teaspoon ground cumin
  • 2 (4.5 oz.) Cans of green chilies
  • 3 Skinless chicken breast, boneless, cut into thirds
  • 5 cups low sodium vegetable broth
  • Kosher salt
  • Freshly ground black pepper
  • 2 (15 oz.) Cans of white beans, drained and rinsed
  • 1.5 cups frozen corn
  • 0.5 cup sour cream
  • freshly chopped coriander, for garnish
  • 0.25 cup shredded Monterey Jack
  • 0.25 cup crushed tortilla chips

Directions:

  1. Heat the oil in a large saucepan over medium heat.
  2. Add onion, corn, and jalapeño and cook until tender, about 5 minutes.
  3. Add garlic, oregano and cumin seeds and cook until fragrant 1 minute.
  4. Add green chilies, chicken and broth and season with salt and pepper. Bring to a boil, then reduce the heat and simmer covered for 10 to 12 minutes, until the chicken is tender and cooked through.
  5. Place the chicken on a plate and chop with two forks. Back in the pot and add white beans. Bring to a simmer and cook for 10 minutes, mash about 1/4 of the beans with a wooden spoon.
  6. Turn off the heat and stir in the sour cream.
  7. Garnish with coriander, cheese and french fries.

Vegetarian chili

The work of Martha Stewart, this recipe works fine as it is, but is just as good or better with a different vegetable approach. It calls for zucchini, but we’re big fans of pumpkins, carrots or eggplant.

Martha Stewart Vegetarian chilli with bread.

Ingredients:

  • 2 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
  • 1 medium-sized yellow onion, diced medium-sized
  • 4 cloves of garlic, roughly chopped
  • 1.5 teaspoons of ground cumin
  • 1 teaspoon of chipotle chilli powder
  • Coarse salt and ground pepper
  • 1 medium zucchini, cut into 1/2-inch cubes
  • 0.75 cup (6 oz) tomato paste
  • 1 can (15.5 oz) black beans, rinsed and drained
  • 1 can (15.5 oz) pinto beans, rinsed and drained
  • 1 can (14.5 oz) of diced tomatoes with green chilies
  • 1 can (14.5 oz) of diced tomatoes

Directions:

  1. In a large saucepan, heat the oil over medium to high heat.
  2. Add onion and garlic; Cook, stirring frequently, until the onion is translucent and the garlic is tender, about 4 minutes.
  3. Add cumin and chili powder, season with salt and pepper and cook until the spices are fragrant, 1 minute.
  4. Add zucchini and tomato paste; Cook, stirring frequently, until the tomato paste is deep brick-red, 3 minutes.
  5. Stir in black beans, pinto beans, and both cans of diced tomatoes.
  6. Add 2 cups of water and bring the mixture to a boil.
  7. Reduce to a medium simmer and cook until the zucchini is tender and the liquid is slightly reduced, 20 minutes.
  8. Season with salt and pepper.

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