Chilli usually has meat as its main ingredient which is why it is also called as chilli con carne. But because of the growing popularity of the dish, a demand for vegetarian chili is also increasing. Vegetarians also want to enjoy this traditional south western dish, which is why they come up with different types of vegetarian chili recipes.
Vegetarian chili is also called chili sin carne which literally translates to chili with no meat. This has become popular in the 1960s and 1970s, which is also the time when vegetarianism also started to grow popular. This type of chili is also popular among those who want to reduce their consumption of meat for health reasons.
The main idea of vegetarian chilli is excluding meat from the recipe, and substituting vegetables or other vegetarian-friendly foods such as tofu and veggie meats. You can add different kinds of vegetables like potatoes, squash, corn, mushrooms, and/or beans.
If you want to know how to cook vegetarian chilli using tofu, corn, and beans, just do the following steps.
• To be able to work more efficiently and faster, prepare all the materials and tools that you will need and also the ingredients. for this recipe, you will need 2 cups of crumbled firm tofu, 2 cups of chopped tomatoes, 3 cups of partially drained baked beans, one and a half cups of frozen corn, ¾ teaspoon chilli powder, a quarter of a teaspoon cayenne pepper, a tablespoon of safflower oil, a teaspoon of garlic, one and ¼ cups of onions, half a cup of ketchup, 3 tablespoons of paprika, a teaspoon of powdered cumin, and a couple of tablespoons of masa.
• Slice your firm tofu thinly and place them on a kitchen towel carefully. Place another towel over the tofu and let the towel dry the moisture from the tofu for half an hour. Some people might be afraid or might have some inhibitions in using tofu because of its bland taste which they think will affect the taste of the chili. This is not true. Tofu will actually make a great blank canvass of the different flavours in your chili which come from the different spices and other ingredients that you used.
• In a large pot, heat the safflower oil in medium heat and add the minced garlic and chopped onion. Stir until the onion is soft and transparent. Be careful with onions and garlic. You don’t want to burn them because this will give a bitter taste to your chili. Add the sliced tofu and stir for about 4 minutes.
• Put the chopped tomatoes, baked beans, ketchup, and corn into the pan with the onion, garlic, and tofu. Mix the ingredients thoroughly.
• After several minutes and making sure that the ingredients are well incorporated, add the remaining ingredients and spices such as masa, chili powder, cayenne pepper, cumin, and paprika.
• Cover your pot and let it simmer for a few minutes. Simmering the mixture makes the chili’s flavours combine altogether. Stir the chilli from time to time to avoid uneven cooking. This will be ready in about half an hour.
• If you have 8 to 10 guests, this will be enough for them.