Vegetarian Skillet Chili

Never add chili powder and sauté, unless you want to burn the chili and have a coughing fit. Instead, add it after the tomatoes soften and just before you add the beans

Instead of using canned beans, which are too mushy for me, I bring a bag of dried beans to a boil and let them go for 5-10 minutes, turn off and let them sit in the water, covered for an hour. I take what I need and bag the rest and freeze. I do this with every type of bean I use regularly so I have beans with a little tooth to them. This could be done on a weekend day so it wouldn't cut in to after work meal cooking time.

Make it 28 oz of tomatoes, 2 tb Chile powder and 1 tb each of oregano and cumin. Intense and delicious.

In my veg chili I use grated carrots along with the onions which adds a texture not unlike what you get when you make chili using hamburger.

WOW. 10/10, blew away my mom's recipe. Does not need the pickled shallots to be great (they weren't my fav anyway). These are the exact ingredients I used in the order I added them to the skillet: 1 small sweet yellow onion (sauteed until softened) 3 tsp minced garlic (sauteed for 30 secs) 1 can of black beans (drained, rinsed) 1 can of kidney beans (drained, rinsed) 1 can of petite diced tomatoes 1 Tbsp chili powder 1 tsp oregano 1 tsp cumin 3 pinches of salt 1 pinch of pepper

I like to puree a can of chipotles in adobo, then freeze them in a plastic ice cube tray and transfer them to a container for the freezer. Then I always have about a tablespoon of the stuff whenever I need it. I do the same with a can of tomato paste. Saves so much waste.

Personally, I liked this dish. Unfortunately, the co-diner gave it a thumbs down and rummaged through the freezer for something else. Don't know what he finally decided on because I was too annoyed to bother to find out.

I loved the pickled onions - a winner

Am I missing something? There is no suggested amount for the chili powder or oregano.

Great chili with following modifications:
One red pepper, one green pepper with onions
add two cloves of minced garlic
3/4 TBS cumin and chili powder
1tsp oregano and basil
2 cans diced tomatoes, one of them fire roasted
juice of 1/4 lime

You know what would be really nice in this? Some pureed chipotles in adobo. I keep a container in the freezer and scoop out a couple of tablespoons to add to chili.

When I read this from you (six months late), Karen, and, like so many others, found it "helpful," I wrote to Melissa Clark. Her reply, which I provide below, was prompt and what you might have imagined if you were desperate or just feeling creative or in a guessing mood:

"The idea is that you add it to taste. start with a teaspoon of chili powder and say, 1/2 teaspoon oregano (or less if you don't love it) and go from there."

Have fun!

I used one can kidney beans, one can of black beans, 28 oz can of chopped tomatoes, 2 Tbsp chili powder (1 Tbsp Hatch medium and a scant 1 Tbsp smoked ancho powder), 1 tsp dried oregano and 1 tsp ground cumin. I also added 1 chopped red bell pepper and 1 chopped yellow pepper to the onion/garlic mixture. I sautéed the onion, garlic and peppers until soft, then added spices, cooked for a minute or two and then added tomatoes. Simmered for 20 minutes, added beans and simmered for 10 more minutes.

I made this last night and it was wonderfully satisfying. The first time I make a recipe, I always follow the directions explicitly and then modify it when I make it again, if necessary. With this recipe, I don't think I would change a thing. I used Canellini beans and all of the garnishes and it was great. If you're desperate for meat, I think a pound of ground turkey or beef would work and I would brown it along with the onion and adjust the seasonings accordingly.

This is a great almost no-recipe recipe. I used a combo of red kidney beans and black beans, a minced chipotle, whole 28ozer of roasted/diced tomatoes, and splash of IPA to add some liquid. The pickled onions were a welcome addition. My toddlers loved it.

Perhaps it would be good to remember that taste is a matter of...well, taste. What tastes better to you won't necessarily taste better to someone else. And what's more, what tastes good to an individual is often as much a matter of what they are accustomed to as anything else.