Sweet and Savory Vegetarian Chili
Salted caramel popcorn. Chicken and waffles. Maple bacon. I LOVE that delicious sweet and savory combo, and it is captured and catapulted right out of this world in this vegetarian version of fall chili. I’m sure it would be equally tasty if you wanted to use ground beef or turkey in there as well, but I found this veggie combo to be plenty weighty and satisfying on its own, while also having a unique taste and texture that offers a nice alternative to your standard chili. The sweetness in my vegetarian chili comes from a combination of maple syrup that is incorporated in the chili itself as it simmers, crispy sweet corn, and a crumble of sweet cornbread that finishes the dish.
The recipe couldn’t be more straightforward and full of simple ingredients, prepared simply. The savory base of this chili starts with 1 small yellow onion and 4 big cloves of minced garlic, salted and peppered, and sweated out in the bottom of a big pot or Dutch oven on the stove top. Next, I stirred in a very heaping spoonful of tomato paste, while also sprinkling in my chili spices (a combo of garlic salt, onion powder, cumin, chili powder, smoky paprika, turmeric, cilantro, and a Mexican spice blend I found in the cabinet). I let that meld together until the tomato paste had melted into the onions and garlic and the paste was beginning to brown onto the bottom of the pan. Then I added about 8 oz. thick sliced mushrooms and let them get tomato-y and spicy. Next was 2 cans of beans—I chose dark red kidney beans and great northern beans for their color and flavor, but I’m sure any beans would do the trick. I also threw in 1 can of sweet corn, 1 can of fire-roasted diced tomatoes, and 1 can-full of water. At this point, I turned the heat down to medium-low, popped a lid on the pot, and let it simmer. At the 5-minute mark I gave it all a stir and also poured in a nice swirl of maple syrup and also a bit of red wine. I used a Pinot Noir because that’s what I was sipping on and it gave a beautiful depth of flavor, but I think a heavier bodied red could be lovely in this dish as well. Now I simmered the whole thing, stirring occasionally, until it had thickened and reduced to my liking, and I knew the mushrooms had soaked up a maximum of flavor.
As yum as this chili was, it was really the toppings that made the final product so incredibly flavorful and full of complimentary and contrasting textures. I filled a deep soup bowl with the chili, then topped off the whole thing with a big squeeze of lime, a sprinkle of sharp cheddar cheese, several slices of avocado, a dollop of sour cream, a little handful of chopped scallions, a bit more cilantro, and lastly a heavy-handed crumbling of delicious, sweet cornbread.
In the end, the savory vegetarian base of this chili, very spiced, almost plummy from the wine, but slightly sweet with maple syrup, topped with the fresh greenness of the scallions, avocado, and cilantro, the creamy tang of the cheese and sour cream, and the crumbly sweetness of the cornbread was as complex and beautiful of a flavor/texture combo as I could have hoped for. Now I’ve just got to deal with the anticipation of how much richer and more delish this stuff is going to get in the fridge over the next few days…