Healthy food meets comfort food, with this delicious & homemade buffalo chickpea chili.
It’s playoff hockey season again, which is one of my favorite times to try out new comfort-food recipes.
This week last year, I first made the Creamy Spinach Tomato Pasta.
And the start of another playoff season seemed like the perfect time to finally try this buffalo chickpea chili. After all, what could possibly be more perfect for game time than a big bowl of spicy homemade chili? The completely meatless chili is full of wholesome ingredients, such as carrots, onions, tomatoes, and chickpeas, giving you the perfect excuse to feel less guilty for all the beers and chips that might be consumed alongside!
To show just how easy it is to make, I posted a video below of the process:
More Plant-Based Dinner Ideas:
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- Pizza Quinoa Burgers
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- Sticky Sesame Cauliflower
Tip: If you have a Trader Joes near you, I like to buy the diced mirepoix vegetables to use in this chili recipe. Not only does it take care of all the chopping, it also doesn’t leave you with a zillion leftover pieces of celery you have no idea how to use.
And any time I don’t have to cut up an onion, my eyes are inordinately grateful for it.
Serving suggestions include sliced avocado, tortilla chips, or my favorite Healthy Corn Muffins.
The BEST part about this healthy chili?
Leftovers freeze well, so you can portion extra servings into containers—I use pyrex as opposed to plastic—and freeze for a day when you’re pressed for time but want a home-cooked meal.
The recipe can easily be cooked in a slow cooker, and you can change it up by using different vegetables or trying it with your favorite source of protein. I used kidney beans, but crumbled tofu or tempeh would also work nicely.
If you try the buffalo chili, feel free to add a photo to your rating or tag @ChocolateCoveredKatie on Instagram so I can see and like your picture.
Buffalo Chickpea Chili
Adapted from my Vegetarian Chili Recipe
Buffalo Chickpea Chili
Ingredients
- 15 oz diced tomatoes
- 15 oz tomato sauce
- 15 oz chickpeas, cooked or canned
- 15 oz protein of choice
- 1 cup chopped or diced carrot
- 1/2 cup diced onion
- 1/2 cup diced celery
- optional 1/2 cup corn
- 1 tbsp minced garlic
- 1 1/2 tbsp chili powder
- 1/2 tbsp paprika
- 1/4 tsp salt
- 1/2 tsp cumin
- 3-4 tbsp buffalo sauce or hot sauce
- 4 oz cream cheese, such as tjs vegan, OR cashew cream (can be omitted)
Instructions
If you just want regular (non-spicy) chili, simply omit the buffalo sauce. To add a little extra depth of flavor if desired, you can start by sautéing the onion with a little oil or buttery spread for a few minutes. Combine all ingredients in either a medium pot or a slow cooker, and stir well. If cooking on the stove: bring to a boil, then lower to a simmer and cook uncovered for 35 minutes. If carrots are still too crunchy, cover and cook 10 additional minutes or until vegetables reach desired softness. If using a slow cooker, set to low and cook 6-8 hours. (Time may vary, depending on your slow cooker’s size and settings.)
*Two readers have commented to say this works in the instant pot if you combine all ingredients, set to high pressure manual for 10 minutes, then do a natural release. Thanks to readers Susan and Vicky C for trying the recipe and leaving a comment to let us know how to make it in the instant pot!
Recipe Of The Day:
(Vegan, gf, flourless recipe)
Emily says
24th April 2017 at 8:49 amAbsolutely making this, this week! Love anything buffalo flavored 🙂
xo,
Em
http://www.organicallyemily.com
Maja Harder says
24th April 2017 at 9:35 amSeems like an easy and tasty dish to try!
– http://www.majaharder.com
Juliette | Namastay Traveling says
24th April 2017 at 10:30 amChili is by far my favorite meal! I’ve never changed up my go-to recipe, but this looks like an awesome contender. Seems like it’s be the perfect base for a chili dip, too!
Aimee says
24th April 2017 at 10:36 amdang lady. This looks amazing! I love chili – perfect comfort food for both a chilly day (see what I did there??) OR a summer time cook out. Thanks for sharing!
Danielle says
24th April 2017 at 12:45 pmThis sounds delish! Chili + buffalo sauce = my favorite things
Jessica Kuligowski says
24th April 2017 at 8:49 pm“it also doesn’t leave you with a zillion leftover pieces of celery you have no idea how to use.”
What would my parrot and turtles get :P.
Seriously though, we used to have a vegetarian stand in the mall food court that had buffalo chickpea fritters. They were obviously not health food but still delicious. This reminds me of them.
Deano says
25th April 2017 at 4:28 amChili is one of my favourite meals and you gotta love a meal you can freeze for later! Nice one Katie
Amy says
25th April 2017 at 9:07 amThis looks great, and I know some people would absolutely love this (people who love spicy things, and one who specifically loves buffalo flavor). Is there some way to reduce the sodium? With a 5:1 ratio of sodium:calories per serving, the sodium level is very high (it is recommended to be 1:1, but even 2:1 would be preferable).
Jason Sanford says
25th April 2017 at 12:45 pmIf you are used to lower-sodium recipes, you can use no-sodium canned (or fresh) diced tomatoes and tomato sauce, although it might be a little bland. Also I think the calorie database probably added in all the sodium in the cans of beans, but in reality you are draining almost all of that off. So the true numbers are probably much lower in sodium than what is listed.
Susie says
25th April 2017 at 11:27 amThis recipe sounds so good! I see it serves 7 but how big is one serving? Please excusr me if it was listed somewhere and I spaced it out, [email protected]
Thanks,
Susie
Jason Sanford says
25th April 2017 at 12:43 pmIt says 6-7 cups, so per cup 😉
Lisa says
25th April 2017 at 11:29 amAre there kidney beans in the picture? I don’t see them in the recipe list. I’m sure it’s a great addition though!
Jason Sanford says
25th April 2017 at 12:43 pmIt is what she used for this one: 15 oz protein of choice
Marina @ A Dancer's Live-It says
25th April 2017 at 2:32 pmI was born and raised in Buffalo so I totally approve of this chili!! 😉 Can’t wait to give it a try!!
Margo says
25th April 2017 at 6:04 pmI love this recipe. I always rinse canned beans really well, so that it cuts down on the salt. I’m making this for dinner tonight, as I have everything I need. I plan on serving it with crumbled cornbread.
Samantha says
25th April 2017 at 6:43 pmMaking this now ! Do you add the cream cheese IINTO the chili ? Or after ? Before serving ?
Jason Sanford says
26th April 2017 at 6:41 pmAdd it in just before cooking (see video). How did it turn out???
Val says
26th April 2017 at 5:51 amGreat recipe, thanks Katie! Val x
Marry says
26th April 2017 at 11:04 amThese recipes look delicious and satisfying. I will try it for dinner tonight hopefully it will be delicious.
Dalya Rubin says
28th April 2017 at 3:31 pmThis dish is so up my alley! I can’t wait to give it a try! Thanks for the amazing recipes as always!
Laviza says
30th April 2017 at 1:24 pmThese tasted awesome! These look amazing! I will have to try them.Thank You For Sharing.
Victoria says
2nd May 2017 at 10:10 amMade this last night (with ground beef) and my picky eater husband even got seconds! It’s quick, easy, and delicious. Thank you!
Laurel says
4th May 2017 at 9:31 amI made this last night in the crock put and it was SO GOOD! The 2 vegetarians (older teen and husband) loved it after adding more hot sauce. The younger non-veg teen likes it mild. I loved it hot, as well! Can’t wait to see what it’s like as a leftover–can only imagine the flavor gets better. Thank you!!
Becky says
9th May 2017 at 10:18 pmThis is fantastic. I loved it the first night, and it was even better (Is that possible?) the next day for lunch.
Cassie Autumn Tran says
26th May 2017 at 8:46 pmThis looks like the PERFECT lunch and dinner recipe! I absolutely love Trader Joe’s as well!
Julie says
3rd July 2017 at 7:17 pmThis chili is AMAZING! It is so flavorful, has great texture, and it freezes really well. It has the perfect amount of spice. I used sweet potatoes instead of carrots cuz that’s what I had on hand, and it was absolutely delicious. The buffalo wing sauce is brilliant. It’s even better after it’s been frozen! Thank you!
Sherry Dietrich says
14th August 2017 at 4:28 pmHello,
I made this over the weekend for my weekday work lunch, and I used the kidney beans, Frank’s Buffalo Wing Sauce 4T., no corn, and used light cream cheese. I also used Trader Joe’s mirepoix, wow, that sure cut out some serious chopping time! But I would cook the mirepoix a little longer before adding everything else, but otherwise, it’s really delicious!!
Sue says
25th September 2017 at 10:52 amThis was great! I replaced 1/4 tsp. of the paprika with smoked paprika and used Frank’s medium wing sauce. I cooked it in the pressure cooker on the soup/stew setting and it turned out just right. I added the cream cheese after it was cooked because I didn’t know how that would work in the pressure cooker.
Cari says
26th September 2017 at 2:14 pmHands down my favorite chili recipe ever! I added a bag of Beyond Meat Beefy Crumbles for the “protein of choice” and got rave reviews. I love that this freezes beautifully in individual containers for quick meals. Later this week, I’ll be making my 2nd batch this month!
Julie says
11th October 2017 at 11:25 pmThis is absolutely delicious! I can’t get over how good it tastes. I make a big batch and freeze in small portions. It freezes really well. You have to try it!
Tammy Sue says
7th November 2017 at 12:12 pmI think the WW SmartPoints calculation is for making the recipe without added protein. When I run it through the WW with an added chicken protein and no cream cheese, it comes up much higher than what’s listed in the nutritional info for this recipe.
Diana says
6th January 2018 at 6:26 pmI have made this twice in the past month and lived it!
Diana says
6th January 2018 at 6:27 pmLoved it 😎
Sarah says
20th January 2018 at 11:03 pm+1 for the Instant Pot version! I added diced sweet potato to up the veg. Didn’t have chili powder on hand so I doubled the paprika, cumin, and added a dash of cayenne. As I typically do with my IP soups and stews, I used the saute function to get the mirepoix nice and browned (onion, carrot, celery, and spices) before adding everything else and putting to 10 minutes high pressure. Natural release takes quite a long time for this volume of liquid, but it’ll be worth it. 🙂
Katie (a different one!) says
1st May 2019 at 4:28 pmI think the Weight Watchers Smart Points should actually be 0. Each of the individual ingredients are 0 point foods (except for the cream cheese).
Jason Sanford says
1st May 2019 at 5:07 pmYou’re right! I think Weight Watchers changed to freestyle points after Katie posted this recipe back in 2017, and now beans and chickpeas are free foods on their new freestyle plan. We are changing it, thanks for the heads up!
Jason (media relations)
Naomibg95 says
27th July 2019 at 2:49 amWhere do you find your dry beans?
Thank you for sharing your creations; you are beautiful;
Jason Sanford says
27th July 2019 at 5:51 amHey! You can find dry beans in most grocery stores. Look in the same section as the rice and dried lentils 🙂
Jason
Lisa says
18th November 2019 at 4:00 pmAnother amazing recipe from Katie! This is my ALL TIME favourite chilli recipe – I have made it multiple times and it continues to be my absolute favourite (I’m a fan of chilli in general so I have tried many kinds). I typically add both black beans and lentils to the recipe and have tried adding cooked mushrooms as well. For the carrot, I shred it using my food processor or I occasionally omit as my boyfriend isn’t a fan of carrots.
Henry says
17th December 2019 at 9:01 pmI made this, as well as the suggested corn muffins, tonight for my mom and I. I subbed kidney beans for chickpeas and for the protein I used a product similar to Beyond ground beef. It was delicious; we both loved it! Good thing, because this recipe makes for quite a few leftovers. I’ll probably end up freezing some. Definitely going to make this again!
Henry says
18th December 2019 at 9:35 amHonestly I think this tastes even better heated up for breakfast. I topped it with wasabi edamame and corn chips.