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This vegan Chorizo and Black Bean Chili is an easy weeknight dinner! Pair it with an assortment of chili bar toppings and you have a meal everyone loves!
Grab the recipe below for this Chorizo and Black Bean Chili or PIN IT for later!
Like many, this time of year is super busy for us. We have lots of special holiday traditions, do some traveling and host a number of get togethers (hello football watch parties!), holiday gatherings and out of town guests. We also have all of our regular normal day to day responsibilities like work, taking care of our babe, taking care of our home, volunteer work, etc. And no matter how busy this time of year gets, I love every ounce of the season!
Even though I LOVE all the seasonal fun and day to day activities this time of year, if I’m being honest, sometimes it can feel overwhelming or stressful. To make sure we get everything done and still enjoy all the fun, I rely on tried and true recipes, minimize commitments and take all the help I can get- like delegate tasks and utilize convenient services.
Like, one thing that has been super helpful since having a baby is Walmart’s Online Grocery Pickup. It is a huge time saver and makes grocery shopping a breeze, which I never realized would be so difficult with a newborn. I simply create my order online, schedule a pick-up time and then go to the special pick up area in the Walmart parking lot and they bring it to you! I’ve been using this service a lot since having a baby and I’ll definitely continue to use it during this busy time of year!
Another thing that I rely on during this time of year is tried and true recipes and simple entertaining hacks. It is so easy to get wrapped up in creating a picture-perfect holiday spread or tailgate set up, but I’ve found that people just want good food and an opportunity to visit with friends and family. So, whether I’m hosting Sunday supper with my in-laws, game night with friends, our annual white elephant party or simply trying to get dinner on the table on a busy weeknight, I keep things simple, while creating life long memories.
Chili bars, and food bars in general (like a loaded baked potato bar or ice cream sundae bar), are one of my biggest entertaining “hacks”. It is so easy to set up the “bar” by dumping toppings in bowls and then people can help themselves to create *their* perfect bowl of chili, making it a huge hit with guests!
In addition to being a simple dinner party option and a fan favorite, the thing I like about chili bars is that they are super customizable. For a larger gathering, I’ll go all out with the toppings, but if we are doing chili for a weeknight dinner, I’ll scale things back and do just a handful of toppings.
Today’s recipe for Chorizo and Black Bean Chili is a family favorite and one I’ve been making for years. When I first started making it, I used traditional chorizo, however, since we have a number of friends and family members that are vegan or vegetarian, I always try to serve vegan/vegetarian dishes at our gatherings. Not only that, personally we try to eat “meat free” a few nights a week to add variety to our meals, thus I’m always looking to change up some of our favorite recipes to make them meat free.
So, when I discovered vegan MorningStar Farms Chorizo Crumbles, when placing our most recent online grocery order, I knew I could easily swap out traditional chorizo with this veggie cuisine option and have a chili recipe that everyone could enjoy and love! I mean, since we are already a fan of MorningStar products and keep their plant based vegan burgers, like their MorningStar Farms Tex-Mex Burgers, stocked in our freezer for quick and easy lunch and dinner options; clearly using the MorningStar Farms Chorizo Crumbles to make this chili a meat free meal was a no brainier! And you want to know a little secret, everyone LOVED this chili, even those that don’t normally eat vegan or vegetarian!
This Chorizo and Black Bean Chili recipe is vegan as written below, and can be dressed up and topped with a variety of toppings. I really like avocado, sour cream, cheddar cheese, cilantro and corn chips mixed in, but to keep it a 100% vegan chili recipe (not just vegetarian) make sure and use vegan chili toppings. In addition to be easily adaptable, this vegetarian chili recipe comes together in under 30-minutes and uses just a handful of basic ingredients. It is a fantastic recipe to serve at any dinner party or to make for dinner on a busy weeknight!
Grab my recipe for Chorizo and Black Bean Chili and check out my chili bar topping suggestions below!
Chili Bar Toppings:
- Pepitas
- Cheddar cheese
- Queso fresco
- Homemade cornbread
- Corn chips
- Green onions
- White onions
- Fresh cilantro
- Avocado
- Sour cream or Greek yogurt
- Pico de gallo
- Lime wedges
- 1 tablespoon canola, corn or olive oil
- 1 large yellow onion, diced
- 1 green bell pepper, stem removed, seeded and diced
- 1 red bell pepper, stem removed, seeded and diced
- 1 (13.5-ounce) Value Pack MorningStar Farms Chorizo Crumbles
- 2 cloves garlic, minced
- 1 teaspoon chili powder
- 1 teaspoon ground cumin
- ½ teaspoon each Kosher salt and black pepper
- 1 cup vegetable broth
- 1 (24-ounce) jar medium chunky salsa
- 2 (15-ounce) cans no salt added black beans, drained and rinsed
- n a large, heavy bottomed pot or dutch oven, heat oil over medium-high heat. Add onions and bell peppers and sauté until onions are translucent and the peppers are soft, about 3-5 minutes.
- Add MorningStar Farms Chorizo Crumbles, minced garlic, chili powder, cumin, salt and black pepper; cook, stirring occasionally for 2-3 minutes.
- Add vegetable broth, salsa and black beans to pot. Reduce heat to a simmer and cook, stirring occasionally for 15-20 minutes, or until heated through.
- Serve with desired toppings.
This chili recipe as written is vegan, however, depending on the toppings used, could make this chili vegetarian instead.
Looking to make this Chorizo and Black Bean Chili recipe and host your own chili bar? Stock up on the new the MorningStar Farms Chorizo Crumbles and other MorningStar® Farms products, like MorningStar Farms Falafel Burgers (4ct Value Pack), MorningStar Farms BBQ Chik’n Nuggets and MorningStar Farms Tex-Mex Burgers (4ct Value Pack) on the frozen food aisle of your local Walmart or purchase them from the Walmart Online Grocery Pickup. For more vegan and vegetarian recipes and entertaining ideas, click here or follow MorningStar Farms® on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, Pinterest and YouTube!
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