Say hello to the ultimate pumpkin chili! This hearty vegan chili is thick, rich, and packed with flavor from pumpkin puree, sweet winter squash, and warming spices. Easy to make, crowd-pleasing, and absolutely delicious!
I make it a mission to cram as much pumpkin as possible into the fall season. I’ve got desserts like vegan pumpkin cake, vegan pumpkin bread, and vegan pumpkin pie, plus savory favorites like my vegan pumpkin pasta and pumpkin soup. But this time I’m upping the ante and putting it all into one recipe: vegan pumpkin chili.
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This chili is basically a pumpkin explosion. Canned pumpkin puree makes this chili extra thick and rich. You might love this addition so much that you find yourself adding it to every batch of chili you make, all year long. Fresh winter squash adds a touch of sweetness, which is perfectly balanced by the (optional, but highly recommended) addition of pumpkin beer.
Ingredients You'll Need
Below you'll find a list of ingredients in this recipe, with notes and substitutions. Scroll all the way to the bottom of the post to see the full recipe, including the amount of each ingredient.
- Olive oil. You can swap this out with another high-heat oil, like avocado, canola, or corn oil, if you'd like.
- Onion.
- Red bell pepper.
- Garlic.
- Spices. You'll need ground cumin, chili powder, smoked paprika, cinnamon, and cloves.
- Vegetable broth or beer. I love beer in my chili, but I know beer isn't everyone's cup of tea (ha!), so feel free to use vegetable broth. If you are using beer, pumpkin ale is a great one to go with. Run your beer through Barnivore to make sure it's vegan.
- Winter squash. You can use fresh pumpkin if you'd like, but go with sugar pumpkin. Personally, I prefer butternut or acorn squash, both of which are sweeter and denser.
- Black beans. Other varieties of canned beans like pinto or kidney can be substituted.
- Canned diced tomatoes.
- Pumpkin puree. Make sure you're using pumpkin puree and not pumpkin pie filling, which includes spices and sugar.
- Sugar. This is optional. If your winter squash isn't very sweet and you use beer, which adds bitterness, you may want to include a bit of sugar to balance the flavors. If you do use it, make sure to buy organic to keep the recipe vegan — conventional sugar is sometimes processed with animal products.
- Salt and pepper.
- Toppings. A good bowl of chili always needs good toppings! I used avocado, cilantro, and pepitas in the photos, but shredded vegan cheese, vegan sour cream, cashew cream, diced onion, or scallions are all great choices as well.
How It's Made
Below is a detailed photo tutorial on how to make this dish. Scroll all the way down if you'd like to skip right to the recipe!
Step 1: Cook the onion and pepper. Heat your olive oil in a pot, then add diced onion and red bell pepper. Cook them for a few minutes to start softening them up.
Step 2: Add garlic and spices. Stir in minced garlic, ground cumin, chili powder, smoked paprika, cinnamon, and cloves. Cook the mixture briefly, stirring the entire time.
Step 3: Simmer. Stir in the broth or beer, diced squash, beans, tomatoes, and pumpkin puree. Bring the chili to a boil, then lower the heat and let it simmer until it's nice and thick and the squash is soft.
Step 4: Finish the chili. Take the pot off of heat. Give it a taste-test and add sugar if needed, along with salt and pepper. You can also adjust any other seasonings to suit your preference at this point.
Step 5: Serve. Your pumpkin chili is done! Ladle it into bowls and pile on the toppings. Some vegan cornbread or vegan corn muffins make an excellent accompaniment.
Variations
- Add protein. Throw in some crumbled tofu, tempeh, or plant-based ground beef style crumbles.
- Make it spicy. This chili is pretty mild, but that can be changed! Season it with cayenne pepper or your favorite hot sauce to taste.
- Add an apple. A diced apple adds some sweetness and can be used instead of sugar.
- Add veggies. Add some diced carrots, corn, cauliflower, fresh greens like kale, or thawed frozen veggies such as peas.
Frequently Asked Questions
It can be! Most beers contain gluten, so either use a certified gluten-free brew or skip the beer and use vegetable broth instead.
Hardly any! Nearly all of the alcohol will cook off before your chili is done.
Leftover pumpkin chili will keep in an airtight container in the fridge for about four days, or in the freezer for about three months.
More Vegan Chili Recipes
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📖 Recipe
Pumpkin Chili
Ingredients
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
- 1 medium onion, diced
- 1 medium red bell pepper, diced
- 5 garlic cloves, minced
- 1 ½ tablespoon ground cumin
- 1 ½ tablespoons chili powder
- 1 teaspoon smoked paprika
- ½ teaspoon ground cinnamon
- ¼ teaspoon ground cloves
- 1 cup vegetable broth or ale (bonus points for using pumpkin ale)
- 3 cups diced winter squash (such as butternut, sugar pumpkin, or acorn squash)
- 2 (15.5 ounce/439 gram) cans black beans, drained and rinsed
- 2 (14.5 ounce/411 gram) cans diced tomatoes
- 1 (15 ounce/425 gram) can pumpkin puree
- 2 teaspoons organic granulated sugar (Note 1)
- Salt and pepper, to taste
- Toppings of choice, such as avocado, pepitas, and fresh cilantro
Instructions
- Coat the bottom of a large pot with oil and place it over medium heat. Add the onion and pepper. Sweat the vegetables for about 5 minutes, stirring frequently, until they start to soften.
- Add the garlic, cumin, chili powder, paprika, cinnamon, and cloves. Cook the mixture for about 1 minute more, until very fragrant, stirring constantly.
- Stir in the broth or beer, diced winter squash, black beans, diced tomatoes, and pumpkin puree. Raise the heat and bring the liquid to a boil. Lower the heat and allow it to simmer for about 30 minutes, until the squash is tender and the chili is thick. You can thin it with some water if it gets too thick at any point.
- Remove the pot from heat. Taste-test the chili and add sugar if needed, then season it with salt and pepper to taste.
- Ladle into bowls and serve with toppings of choice.
Notes
- Only use the sugar if desired/needed. It can help balance out any bitterness if you used beer in the chili, or if your fresh squash isn't very sweet.
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Easy and delicious! Thanks for the recipe.
Can this chili be frozen?
Absolutely! Seal it up well and it should be good for 3 months or so.
Do you think this will work in a crock pot? I don’t want anything too mushy but want to make family potluck easier. Thanks!
I think it would work! I'd still add the ingredients in stages like the recipe specifies though - that part is important because the tomatoes can prevent the lentils from cooking. I'm also not sure as to the cook time in a crockpot, so you'll probably just need to keep an eye on it.
Simply delicious. All of the flavors work together in balance so not one is prominent. This was the perfect meal for a chilly winter evening. Looking forward to enjoying the leftovers. Thanks for another great recipe.
Awesome!! I'm so glad you enjoyed it! Thanks so much Mimi!
Do you think it would ruin it to add the whole can of pumpkin?
I don't think so! If your nervous, you could always start with 1/2 cup, then wait until it's almost done cooking and add the rest just a bit at a time. :)
Looking soo testy 😋
Thank you!
What can I substitute for the bottle of pumpkin ale? I don’t know where to find it
You can use regular ale or another type of beer if that's available. Otherwise, just go with vegetable broth. Enjoy!
It brownish not nice like yours
I made this today and it was a great success. A keeper for sure! Thank you for all your wonderful recipes:-)
Yay!! I'm so glad you enjoyed it! Thanks Pat!
How long did you have to bake the pie pumpkin for?
No need to bake! It cooks while simmering in the chili! :)