Lentil Sweet Potato Chili
on Feb 28, 2022, Updated Jul 04, 2024
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This hearty, one pot Lentil Sweet Potato Chili is smoky a little spicy, and full of plant based protein and fiber! It’s the perfect dinner for a cold night.
What’s a meal that you love to make when it’s cold outside? For me it’s chili. I love that I can make a pot of it and it lasts for several days. And unlike most meals it tastes even better on days two and three.
Generally there’s some type of meat added to chili. Classic beef chili is probably the most popular, but if you’re like me you might prefer to use ground turkey or ground chicken like I did with this Healthy Slow Cooker Turkey Chili.
Something you may not have tried is making a vegetarian chili or vegan chili. Today I’m sharing a recipe for this super hearty and flavorful Lentil Sweet Potato Chili.
It has many of the same ingredients you’ll find in classic chili, but lentils, black beans, and kidney beans replace the meat. It’s full of fiber and you’ll still be getting a decent amount of protein thanks to the lentils.
Ingredients For Lentil Sweet Potato Chili
- red onion – yellow onion can also be used.
- poblano chile – a bell pepper can also be used.
- jalapeño – leave in the vein and seeds if you want an extra spicy chili.
- sweet potato
- garlic
- chili powder, smoked paprika, ground cumin, dried oregano
- cinnamon – this may seem strange, but the small amount you use adds a wonderful warm sweetness to the chili. Trust me, it won’t taste like dessert.
- tomato paste
- maple syrup – This is optional, but if you find that the tomatoes make the chili too acidic this will counteract that.
- red lentils – Be sure to check the cooking time on the red lentils. Some may take only 15-20 minutes to cook while other varieties will take up to 40 minutes.
- diced green chiles
- canned crushed tomatoes
- low sodium vegetable broth
- canned black beans
- canned kidney beans
How To Make Lentil Sweet Potato Chili
This chili is an easy, one pot recipe. Start by sautéing the onion, poblano, jalapeño, and sweet potato in a large pot. Once they’ve softened add in the garlic and all of the dried spices.
Stir everything together and then work in the tomato paste. Add in the crushed tomatoes, green chiles, maple syrup, and vegetable broth. Scrape up any brown bits from the bottom of the pot.
Bring the chili to a boil and then pour in the red lentils. Stir everything together and lower the heat to medium-low so that the chili is barely simmering. Let it cook for 15-20 minutes or until the lentils are tender.
If the chili starts to get too thick, pour in additional broth or water. Once the lentils are tender stir in the black beans and kidney beans and bring it back up to a simmer.
Serve the chili topped with diced red onion, avocado, and cilantro if desired.
Health Benefits Of Lentils
- Lentils are a great source of plant based protein. A 1/2 cup of cooked lentils has 12 grams of protein.
- They’re an excellent source of fiber. One cup has at least 10 grams of fiber.
- If you’re low on iron, one cup has about 1/3 of what you need in a day.
- If you don’t do dairy, lentils are a good source of calcium, 35 grams in one cup.
Storing, Freezing, And Reheating Chili
Storing – The lentil chili will keep in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 5 days.
Freezing – Chili freezes great and that’s no exception with this lentil sweet potato chili. Let the chili cool completely and then store it in a freezer safe container or freezer bag. If using a freezer bag be sure to press out any air. The chili will keep for up to 3 months in the freezer.
Reheating – Let the lentil chili defrost in the refrigerator overnight. You can either reheat it in the microwave or in a saucepan on the stove.
More Chili Recipes
- Slow Cooker Buffalo Chicken Chili
- Slow Cooker Bison Sweet Potato Chili
- White Chicken Chili
- Slow Cooker Italian Turkey Chili
- Slow Cooker Cincinnati Turkey Chili
Did you make this Lentil Sweet Potato Chili? I’d love if you’d leave a recipe rating and review below.
Lentil Sweet Potato Chili
Ingredients
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
- 1 cup diced red onion
- 1 poblano chile seeded and diced
- 1 jalapeño seeded, deveined and finely diced
- 2 cups diced sweet potato
- 1 teaspoon grated garlic
- 2 tablespoons chili powder
- 1 tablespoon smoked paprika
- 2 teaspoons ground cumin
- 1 1/2 teaspoons dried oregano
- 1/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon
- Salt and fresh ground black pepper to taste
- 2 tablespoons tomato paste
- 1 cup split red lentils rinsed
- 4 ounce can diced green chiles
- 1 tablespoon maple syrup
- 28 ounce can crushed tomatoes
- 3 cups low sodium vegetable broth
- 15 ounce can black beans rinsed and drained
- 15 ounce can kidney beans rinsed and drained
- Avocado red onion, and cilantro for toppings
Instructions
- Heat a tablespoon of olive oil in a large pot over medium high heat. Add in the onion, sweet potato, poblano, and jalapeño. Season with salt and pepper and sauté for 5-6 minutes. Add in the garlic and all of the dried spices and sauté another 2 minutes.
- Add in the tomato paste and stir it into the vegetables. Pour in the crushed tomatoes, green chiles, maple syrup, and vegetable broth. Scrape up any brown bits from the bottom of the pot.
- Bring the chili to a boil, then pour in the red lentils. Stir everything together and lower the heat to medium low. Let it simmer for 15-20 minutes or until the lentils are tender. Stir occasionally so that the lentils don't stick to the bottom of the pot.
- If the chili starts to get too thick, pour in additional broth or water. Once the lentils are tender stir in the black beans and kidney beans and bring it back up to a simmer. Serve the chili topped with diced red onion, avocado, and cilantro if desired.
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
Love this recipe,it is the best vegetarian chili ever. I also like that it makes a very big pot and it freezes well. I added about two cups of cooked barley which gave it a nice thickness and a great almost meat like texture.
I am making this for the second time. Thank you for this recipe Danae. This was SO good that I had to force myself to stop eating, lest I eat the entire pot.
I eat this on Meatless Monday.
Thanks for making the chili Debbie. I’m so glad you like it!
I’m in the process of making this.
#2 tells us to add maple syrup but Maple syrup is not on the list of ingredients
I’m going to leave it out but wanted to let you know.
nice alt chili for me, lentils – great, sweet potatoes – even better! I basically love all chilis and always interested in new ones and this is definitely new and really creative, so thank you