Smoky bean chili

cooked8 servings4 Jul 2026

“What is the point of meat lol this is top notch”

Ingredients

• thin-sliced bacon
• 250 gonions
• garlic, a lot
• 2 cankidney beans, drained
• 400 gchickpeas, drained
• 120 gchickpea aquafaba
• 2 canchopped tomatoes
• 285 gcorn
• 2 tspcumin
• 1.5 tspground coriander
• 1 tbspsmoked paprika
• 1 tspchipotle
• 1.5 tspgaram masala
• 0.5 tspfenugreek
• cinnamon, a small pinch
• 1 tspMSG
• 1.25 square85% dark chocolate
• 0.5lemon, juice
• salt
• sour cream, cheddar and tortillas, to serve

Steps

1. 1render the bacon until crisp; keep 2–3 tbsp of the fat and reserve the bacon
2. 2brown the onions hard, then add garlic for the last minute
3. 3bloom cumin, coriander, smoked paprika, chipotle, garam masala, fenugreek and cinnamon for about 30 seconds
4. 4add both tomatoes, both cans of beans, chickpeas with aquafaba, MSG, chocolate and bacon
5. 5simmer uncovered for 25–30 minutes, adding the corn for the last 10 minutes
6. 6finish with lemon juice and adjust salt; serve with sour cream, cheddar and warm tortillas

Tweaks

• —the first plan used one bean can, but the settled batch used both kidney-bean cans
• —the crispy chickpea topping was abandoned for the easier full-pot version
• —the final batch was loosened with about 200 ml bouillon and finished with chocolate, lemon, salt and MSG

Variations

• Indian-spiced beef version

  • —bacon and chickpeas → 600 g ground beef and 2 cans kidney beans — use 3 tbsp garam masala, 2 tsp cumin, 1 tsp turmeric, 1 tsp ginger powder and 1–2 tsp chipotle

• apple chili

  • —no fruit → 1 medium apple — dice and sauté with the onion

• quick butter-bean version

  • —kidney beans → black beans and butter beans — use 300 g ground beef, 1 can tomatoes and 150–200 g frozen corn

• canned chili upgrade

  • —homemade base → 400 g canned chili con carne — add one 430 g bean-and-corn can, 2–3 consommé cubes, cumin, smoked paprika and mustard; reduce uncovered for tortillas