Lentils? In chili?

This lentil chili was a revelation for me. I’m not very familiar with cooking lentils, but I’ve been trying to add more cost effective meals into my go-to recipe list. Because the “meat” of the dish is lentils, rather than ground beef, it is so much less expensive than regular chili. It is also extremely filling because of all the veggies and fiber, so a small portion goes a long way. I don’t mind having a huge batch of this chili because I could eat it all week and not get tired of it.

One thing I use in this recipe that I recommend is the Kinder’s Chili seasoning packet. I personally love the woodfired chili or mild chili packets. Now you can use whatever seasoning you prefer, whether it’s a different chili seasoning mix or your own blend, it’s up to you. But I don’t think I could top the Kinder’s seasonings with my own blend.

Is it vegetarian?

Like I said, this chili is filled with veggies and doesn’t need a meat to make it a filling, delicious, whole meal. In this recipe, I use chicken broth because I prefer the flavor that it adds. However, adding vegetable stock (or even just water), rather than chicken broth, is a simple switch to turn this into a completely vegetarian meal! This is a great time to mention that this recipe is very customizable. In the recipes, all the vegetable I put in are ones that I personally love and thought would taste great in this chili, but really you can add absolutely any veggies you want. Potatoes, mushrooms, corn, whatever you love would most likely taste amazing in this, so make this exactly how you like it!

Recipe

Ingredients:

• 3 Tbsp olive oil
• 1 large sweet onion
• 2 bell peppers
• 2 large carrots (or 2 handfuls of baby carrots)
• 2 stalks of celery
• 2 medium zucchini
• 2 Tbsp tomato paste
• 1 packet Kinder’s Mild Chili seasoning
• 1 can diced tomatoes and green chilies
• 3 cups of chicken broth (or 3 cups of water and a chicken bouillon cube)
• 1 cup green lentils
• 3 cups spinach
• Salt & pepper
• Shredded cheddar cheese, sour cream, and avocado for topping!

Instructions:

1. Before I start any prep or cooking, I start soaking the lentils. Put them in a bowl with some cold water. This helps them soften just a little, so they have to cook for a little less time. If you forget, don’t worry. They’ll just have to cook for a few more minutes in the pan.
2. Chop all of the vegetables except for the spinach. I like to chop them to around the same, uniform size.
3. Turn your pan to medium heat. Pour the olive oil into the pan, then throw in the onions. I let them soften for 2-3 minutes before adding the rest. I then add the peppers, carrots, celery, and zucchini. Season with plenty of salt and pepper. Let those cook for 10 minutes, until the vegetables are softened and aren’t sweating out any more water.
4. Add the tomato paste and cook for 2-3 more minutes, stirring the vegetables until they’re coated.
5. Add in the seasoning packet and do the same as the tomato paste. Cook for 2-3 more minutes and stir to coat the vegetables.
6. Stir in the can of diced tomatoes and green chilies. Make sure to scrape the bottom of the pan to make sure no tomato paste or seasoning sticks to the bottom and burns.
7. Add in the chicken broth and lentils and stir all together. Make sure your stove is at medium heat, or that the lentil mixture is at a gentle boil, depending on your stove that may be at medium-high or medium-low. I cover the pan for the first half of the cooking process and uncover it for the second half, so that the water can start evaporating and I have a thick, chili consistency by the end.
8. Cook for about 30 minutes, or until the lentil are soft. If the pan starts getting dry then add more water. Stir occasionally to ensure that nothing burns on the bottom of the pan.
9. Once the chili is mostly finished, stir in the spinach. The heat will wilt the spinach in a few minutes with some stirring.
10. Once I serve myself a plate I love to top this with shredded cheddar cheese, a dollop of sour cream, and some diced avocado. It tastes amazing!

If you decide to try out this recipe, let me know how you like it! Once I made this for the first time, it became a weekly recipe for me, so delicious!