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High Protein Vegan Chili with Sweet Potatoes and TVP

I hope you’re hungry tonight because my high protein vegan chili is here to satisfy some big appetites! This delicious and healthy vegan chili gets protein from TVP (textured vegetable protein) and beans, and is loaded with heartwarming flavors of sweet potatoes and chipotle chile peppers.

High-protein vegan chili with sweet potatoes and TVP - vegan chili recipe

Since we are about to embark on a cross-country move from Alabama to Washington state, lately I’ve been trying to cook through all of the dried and canned food in my pantry. Okay, maybe not all – it’s unlikely that I’ll go through about 10 pounds of dried beans of all sorts, but at least I’m trying!

With all these beans in my pantry, it seems only logical to make a big pot of high-protein vegan chili loaded with the goodness of plant protein and fiber. To boost the protein content, I decided to add some textured vegetable protein, or TVP as it’s known in the cooking world.

I bought a bag of TVP to make these vegan sausages from Lindsay Nixon’s Happy Herbivore Cookbook. The sausages were delicious, but I haven’t made them again since then, and the bag of TVP got pushed all the way to the back of my pantry. Once I rediscovered it the other day, I set myself for a challenge to use it.

Healthy high protein vegan chili recipe

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Enter this vegan chili recipe I came up with: I was able to use up at least a half of the TVP I had, plus a cup of dried pinto beans from my vast dried bean collection. (Here’s how I cook dried beans from scratch.)

The internet is abundant with various TVP chili recipes, so I was happy to use a few helpful tips on using it in cooking. Basically, the dried TVP crumbles come back to life after you soak them in boiling water for a few minutes, and once you add them to the pot of chili, they absorb all of the flavors of the dish.

High-protein vegan chili with sweet potatoes and TVP - vegan chili recipe

My biggest surprise was to find out that cooked TVP has the exact same texture as ground meat, which worked great in this chili!

Another tip I found helpful: Matt from No Meat Athlete blog suggested blending some of the cooked beans (pinto in my case) with tomatoes and hot peppers in a food processor, and adding that mixture to the rest of the ingredients in the pot. This adds up to the hearty texture of your chili.

Following his advice, I blended 1/2 cup of beans with canned green chilies, tomato paste and some vegetable broth. The resulting chili was thick and velvety-smooth, so I highly recommend this tip!

High-protein vegan chili recipe awith sweet potatoes

I can see that some of us might question if TVP fits into the category of healthy whole-food ingredients. I’ll admit that it is a processed food since it doesn’t grow on a tree branch out in the wild, but if we only use it once in a while, there’s no need to be afraid.

Vegan chili with sweet potatoes and TVP - high protein vegan chili recipe

There are lots of other plant-based ingredients that we can add to a pot of chili (for example, I used barley in my Three Bean Barley Chili recipe), so if you’re not a fan of the TVP idea, you’re welcome to skip it altogether.

Yield: 6 servings

High Protein Vegan Chili with Sweet Potatoes and TVP

High Protein Vegan Chili with Sweet Potatoes and TVP

This delicious and heartwarming high protein vegan chili with TVP and sweet potatoes makes a great dinner, especially when it's cold outside! TVP gives it a meaty texture, and sweet potatoes add a mild hint of sweetness. Canned green chilies bring a nice kick of spice - adjust them to your liking.

Prep Time 15 minutes
Cook Time 40 minutes
Total Time 55 minutes

Ingredients

Spices (adjust the amounts to taste):

  • 1 Tbsp cumin
  • 1/4 - 1/2 Tbsp chipotle chile powder
  • 1/2 Tbsp smoked paprika
  • 1/2 Tbsp dried thyme
  • 1/2 Tbsp black pepper

Instructions

  1. Soak 1 cup TVP in 1 cup of boiling water, set aside.
  2. In a food processor, combine 1/2 cup pinto beans, tomato sauce, canned chilies OR canned chipotle chiles in adobo sauce, and 1/2 cup vegetable broth. Blend until smooth.
  3. Heat up a large heavy-bottomed pot over medium heat. Add 2 Tbsp veggie broth. Once the broth is bubbly, add chopped carrots, onion, celery, bell pepper and parsnip. Cook 3-4 min, stirring and adding more broth to prevent sticking. Add minced garlic and the diced sweet potato. Cook 3-4 min longer, or until the potato pieces start looking partially cooked.
  4. Stir in all of the spices, beans, TVP (squeeze it lightly before adding to the pot), the mixture from the food processor, and the remaining veggie broth. Cover, reduce the heat to medium-low, and simmer for 15 min, stirring a couple times.
  5. Add a splash of wine (if using) and Bragg's liquid aminos or salt. Cook for 5 min more, taste and adjust the seasonings. Take off the cover and cook for 10 min more. Turn off the heat and set the pot aside for 10-15 min to let the flavors blend.
  6. Serve with fresh chopped cilantro, avocado slices, vegan sour cream, hot sauce, etc. to your liking.

Notes

*Alternatively, use 1 can of pinto beans, drained and rinsed.

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Nutrition Information:

Yield:

6

Serving Size:

1

Amount Per Serving: Calories: 220Total Fat: 6gSaturated Fat: 1gTrans Fat: 0gUnsaturated Fat: 5gCholesterol: 0mgSodium: 477mgCarbohydrates: 36gFiber: 12gSugar: 8gProtein: 9g

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author avatar
Alina Zavatsky - Vegan Runner Eats
Alina first made a switch to a vegan diet in 2013 to optimize her athletic performance as a marathon runner. Eventually she embraced veganism as a way to be kinder to fellow living beings and the environment. Alina hopes that this blog helps its readers on their path to becoming vegan and making this world a better place.
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Victoria

Tuesday 16th of July 2019

I plugged your recipe into My Fitness Pal, and the protein amount it gives for this recipe is 12g, not 22g. I used the same ingredients. I just want to know where the other half of the protein came from? Or maybe how you got your macro breakdown for this? Thank you!

Alina Zavatsky - Vegan Runner Eats

Tuesday 16th of July 2019

Hi Victoria! The nutrition calculations are done automatically by the recipe card. I've noticed that sometimes they are off, that's why there is a disclaimer that all nutrition information numbers are approximate.

Allison

Wednesday 31st of January 2018

Strange you have ads for Tyson and Hillshire Farms on your site!

Alina Zavatsky - Vegan Runner Eats

Thursday 1st of February 2018

Hi Allison! Sorry about that. I don't have full control over the content my ad provider shows in their ads. I'm planning to fix that in the near future.

Craig Asari

Saturday 30th of September 2017

Wife & I made this tonight. Amazing flavors!

Alina Zavatsky - Vegan Runner Eats

Saturday 30th of September 2017

Wonderful, Craig, glad you and your wife liked it!

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