Healthy and hearty, this homemade, easy weeknight chili w/ pinto beans, black beans, and {optional} sweet Italian sausage, makes for a perfect family meal! Try it out along with 19 more healthy chili recipes for everyone to enjoy! {vegan, vegetarian, & paleo options}
As much as I like chili for it’s own sake, sometimes I think a big ‘ol bowl of piping hot chili is just an excuse to pile on all the delicious toppings. Hello cheese, onions, and avocado!
What else would you top yours off with???
Today kicks off National Chili Month, and I’m excited to share my latest recipe creation with you, Easy Weeknight Chili with Pinto Beans, Black Beans, & Sweet Italian Sausage, plus, if you’re not convinced you should be eating chili, I’m going to give you 5 good reasons to eat a bowl today!
5 Reasons to Eat a Bowl of the Easy Weeknight Chili Today!
1. Chili is the ultimate “health food” that doesn’t taste “healthy”
Of course we all know it tastes delicious, but what about all the super nutritious ingredients that go into your chili pot? Metabolism boosting chili powder. Sulfur rich onions and garlic. And, lycopene laced tomatoes! And, let’s not forget the MIND Diet friendly beans for brain health! Toot, toot!!
2. It’s super versatile!
My chili contains beans and a modest amount of meat, but yours can contain whatever you like! Vegetarian or vegan? Skip the meat and add more beans. Or, throw in some lentils. Sub the dairy cheese for non-dairy cheese or just omit the cheese altogether, and you’re good to go!
Low FODMAP diet? Ditch the onions and garlic and try canned/rinsed/drained lentils-1/2 cup per serving or chickpeas-1/4 cup per serving.
Paleo? Say adios to the beans and cheese and add in some chopped up veggies in addition to the meat. Of course, it goes without saying, for those of you following a gluten-free diet like me, {most} chili is naturally gluten-free!
3. This easy weeknight chili is super easy to make
Especially if you have a well-stocked pantry. Don’t have chili powder? Add any or all of the following: cumin, onion powder, paprika, oregano, garlic powder, allspice, and red chili flakes.
Don’t have sausage? Try adding ground grass fed beef, ground turkey, ground bison, or, again, ditch the meat altogether and add more beans, lentils, maybe some fall veggies like sweet potatoes or butternut squash. Oh, my!
No plain chopped tomatoes or tomato sauce? Got a jar of marinara? Toss that into the pot and enjoy a bowl of chili a la Italian style!
4. It will make you happy!
A couple of reasons for this…One, chilies contain a substance called capsaicin which triggers your body to produce the mood boosting endorphins. And, two, think about what you associate with eating a bowl of chili…for me, it’s images of ski trips to Mammoth with friends or sitting down to a cozy fall family dinner followed by a board game or two. Pure bliss!
In other words, chili is the ultimate comfort food, and what better reason to eat it than that?!
5. Did I mention it’s National Chili Month??
Enough said! So make a batch of my easy weeknight chili recipe below, then be sure and check out all the other delicious chili recipes I’ve rounded up from some of my favorite healthy food bloggers for you too!
Easy Weeknight Chili with Black Beans, Pinto Beans, and Sweet Italian Sausage
Ingredients
- 2 teaspoons high oleic expeller pressed sunflower oil
- 1 1/2 pounds sweet Italian sausage
- 1 small sweet onion, or 1/2 large onion, finely chopped
- 2 cloves garlic, minced
- 14.5 oz can chopped or diced tomatoes
- 8 ounces tomato sauce
- 3 tablespoons tomato paste
- 1/2 to 3/4 cup vegetable broth, i.e. “no chicken” broth
- 15 ounce can black beans
- 15 ounce can pinto beans
- 3 tablespoons chili powder
- 1 teaspoon ground cumin
- Salt and fresh ground black pepper to taste
- Toppings of choice, Chopped onion, grated cheddar cheese, chopped avocado, chopped cilantro, sour cream or Greek yogurt.
Instructions
- Heat oil in a large saucepan or dutch oven over medium heat. Removed casings from sausage, add to pan and cook until sausage is no longer pink (~7-10 minutes). Removed sausage from pan into a small bowl using a slotted spoon, and set aside.
- Add chopped onion and mined garlic to pan with meat drippings, and stir until onion is tender.
- Return cooked sausage to pan and add beans, diced tomatoes, tomato sauce, and tomato paste. Add 1/2 cup broth and stir in with other ingredients. Add an additional 1/4 cup if more liquid is desired.
- Add spices and salt and pepper to taste, then turn heat down to low and simmer for ~ 20 minutes.
- Divide in to 6 bowls and garnish with toppings of choice.
Notes
Make it your own! Easy ingredient swaps & substitutions:
- Omit meat for a vegetarian version
- Omit meat and cheese for a vegan version & addd extra veggies {butternut squash, sweet potatoes, fresh or frozen corn, pumpkin, chopped peppers, etc.}
- Add additional varieties of beans and/or lentils; stir in cooked whole grains such as sorghum, rice, millet, buckwheat, or quinoa.
- Low FODMAP option: Omit onion and garlic. Add sauted leeks (dark green tops only) & garlic oil. Swap pinto and black beans for canned/rinsed/drained lentils and/or chickpeas. Top w/ chopped green onion tops.
- Have fun experimenting!
Nutrition
19 More Healthy Chili Recipes You’ll Love!
Chili Recipes with Meat
- Veggie Loaded Turkey Chili ~ The Real Food Dietitians
- Healthier Crockpot Cincinnati Chili ~ Jeanettes Healthy Living
- Turkey Chili w/ Spicy Popcorn ~ Cape Fear Nutrition
- Pumpkin Chicken Chili ~ Down to Earth Dietitian
- Turkey Chili with Pintos ~ Healthy Seasonal Recipes
- Jamaican Jerk Chili w/ Mango Salsa ~ Prevention RD
- Sweet & Smokey Maple Turkey Chili ~ The Spicy RD
- Healthier Crockpot Cincinnati Chili ~ Jeanettes Healthy Living
Vegetarian & Vegan Chili Recipes
- Black Bean Quinoa Chili ~ Food to Glow
- Sweet Potato Tempeh Chili ~ The Fresh Beet
- Smoky Lentil Chili ~ Sharon Palmer
- Slow Cooker Vegetarian Chili with Butternut Squash ~ The Lemon Bowl
- Sweet Potato Lentil Chili ~ fANNEtastic food
- Freezer Friendly Veggie-Loaded Chili ~ Oh My Veggies
- Smoky Black Bean & Corn Vegetarian Chili Recipe ~ Cookin’ Canuck
Paleo Chili Recipes
- Pumpkin Chicken Chili ~ The Roasted Root
- White Chicken Chili ~ A Spicy Perspective
- Butternut Squash ChiliButternut Squash Chili~ Everyday Maven
- Slow Cooker Chili Verde ~ A Girl Worth Saving
- Chocolate Pumpkin Chili ~ All Day I Dream About Food
