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Slow Cooker Black Bean Chili! This vegan chili is full of zucchini and beans with a kick of spice! Hearty, filling, perfect for warming up on a cold day! Gluten Free + Low Calorie + Vegan
Just letting you know, this Slow Cooker Black Bean Chili was originally published in February 2014. I retested, rephotographed and updated the content for you. Hope you enjoy it!
I have to be honest. Last week I struggled and I hope you don't mind me telling you about it. Tuesday morning I woke up in tears and I didn't stop crying for four hours. Four hours! I was exhausted. My boyfriend saw patients in the morning then spent the afternoon with me, and kept asking what he could do to make it better. Truthfully, nothing could make whatever I was "feeling" better.
In fact, I have no idea why I was crying. The only way I can describe it was that I felt waves of emotions overflowing me. I felt overwhelmed. Even now, it brings tears to my eyes just thinking about it and I am not someone who cries. I haven't had a baby and I'm not PMSing so who knows what was going on with me?!? I'm just glad it hasn't come back. Fingers crossed!
It did force me to take a day off from everything. So, I cozied up on the couch under my favorite blanket watching movies with a bowl of Black Bean Chili.
I love this recipe because not only is it delicious, but also easy to make. And, I'm all about the EASY recipes. That means more time for the gym, movies, the boyfriend. Oh yeah, and you guys!
Toss the ingredients in a slow cooker, set and go! In a few hours, the house smells AH-mazing when it's time to eat! Another bonus? This recipe has a lot of vegetables!
I'm always looking for ways to incorporate more veggies in my diet. Since losing losing 80 pounds seven years ago, I began eating more and more veggies. In fact, I have them for breakfast. Not for any particular reason other than I love them and well, I need the fiber in my diet with this nasty high cholesterol I'm battling.
I make this chili vegetarian style. It's also dairy-free making it vegan, but you can certainly add ground turkey, chicken or beef for more protein. If you go that route, I recommend adding one can of black beans. The recipe is very hearty so even if you're not someone who meatless meals, I'm sure you won't miss it in this Black Bean Chili!
Slow Cooker Black Bean Chili
Ingredients
- 3 zucchini chopped into 1" pieces
- 30 oz black beans 2 15 oz cans
- 56 oz fire roasted diced tomatoes 2 24 oz cans
- ¾ cup tomato paste
- 1 cup onion diced
- Salt and pepper to taste
- 1 tablespoon oregano
- 1 teaspoon nutmeg
- 1 teaspoon garlic minced
- Optional: 1lb lean ground beef, chicken or turkey for non-vegetarian or vegan
Instructions
- Place all ingredients in a crockpot.
- Cook on low 6-8 hours or high 3-4 hours.
- Serve immediately or store in the refrigerator up to 1 week or in the freezer 1 month.
Notes
- My Amazon shop has more products similar to those used for this recipe and that I recommend to my nutrition clients.
Nutrition
Hi Megan, if I add ground beef to this, should I cook the beef first?
Yes, I would recommend you do that.
I'm sorry - I see it says there are 8 servings - but what is the serving size?
The serving size is 1/8th of the recipe. If you want to be exact, you would weigh the entire chili on a food scale in grams and divide by 8 to get the grams for one serving. I usually eyeball by dividing into 8 containers if I'm food prepping.
What could I sub the zucchini with? I could shred and mince it but my husband will still say he can taste it . what is with the zucchini haters of this world
You could omit it or replace with eggplant, spinach or kale. If you use the leafy greens, I would add a lot to beef it up.
Everyone is all about the chili, I wish Mr. Hungry liked spicy food!
I understand. Have the same issue with Matt.
I just made a big pot of 3-Bean Chili for the week. Yum!
I'm pretty sure you guys experience annoying heat like we experience annoying cold. I seriously need to buy property in multiple places so that I can just experience the best of both worlds #wishfulthinking
Become a snow bird!
I LOVE black bean chili! So yum! I eat a lot of vegetarian too but not because I am one. I just tend to like all the veggies!