This Impossible chili is the best darn vegan chili recipe ever! Made with Impossible meat, it tastes like the real deal yet it’s 100% vegan and gluten-free. Impress your friends and family with this authentic-tasting chili (or don’t tell them it’s vegan and they will never know.)

A bowl of Impossible chili with vegan cheese, vegan sour cream, and jalapenos on top.

Want to save this recipe?

Enter your email below and get it sent straight to your inbox. Plus, get more amazing vegan recipes that will satisfy your cravings!

Save Recipe

❤️ Why make this recipe

Chili is always a crowd pleaser that’s perfect for parties, game days, and get-togethers. When you make chili with Impossible beef it tastes indistinguishable from traditional chili and vegans and non-vegans will be amazed.

You can serve this chili with a topping bar of avocado slices, lime wedges, cilantro, vegan sour cream, and vegan cheddar cheese so everyone can make their own creations. Plus this plant-based chili is gluten-free so all your guests can enjoy it.

We love spicy chili and hearty stews in my house like green chile stew, vegan white “chicken” chili, and vegan beef stew, but this vegan chili is always a hit.

🧾 Ingredients and substitutions

  • Impossible Beef – You can use the 12 oz package of Impossible meat or use 4 Impossible burgers and break them up in the pan while cooking. You can also swap this out for Beyond Meat or any other vegan ground beef product or meatless crumbles. For a budget-friendly option use TVP rehydrated in vegan broth.
  • Olive Oil – for sauteing the onions and peppers. You can swap this out for any oil you want or use vegetable broth for an oil-free option.
  • Onions and Garlic – for flavor. Use yellow onions, white onions, or red onions.
  • Bell peppers – Any color of bell pepper tastes delicious. Green, yellow, red or orange!
  • Jalapeno peppers – The jalapenos give the chili a lot of flavor and the spice mellows out a lot after simmering the soup, but you can add less for a mild chili and more for a spicier chili. If you don’t have fresh jalapenos, you can use canned jalapenos instead.
  • Tomato juice – You will need a large can of tomato juice. You can also use V8 juice instead.
  • Tomato Sauce – you will need a jar of pasta sauce (like the kind you would use for spaghetti.) This adds a lot of flavor to the chili as well.
  • Canned Diced Tomatoes – you can also use 1 1/2 cups of fresh diced tomatoes if you don’t have canned.
  • Beans – I like the taste of kidney beans and pinto beans, but you can also use white beans, black beans, and even chickpeas.
  • Spices – Chili powder, cumin, sugar, oregano, salt, pepper, and cayenne pepper. I also love to add some Chipotle chili powder for some smokiness.
  • Favorite toppings – Garnish with shredded vegan cheddar cheese, dairy-free sour cream, pickled onions, cilantro, lime wedges, chopped red onion, cilantro garlic sauce, or crushed corn chips.

🔪 Helpful tools

  • A Large Soup Pot – for making the chili on the stovetop.
  • Crockpot – or Instant Pot if you want to use the slow cooker method.

🥄 How to make vegan chili

A full printable version of this recipe with ingredient measurements is available at the bottom of this post.

Step 1 – In a large skillet, add the olive oil, onion, bell pepper, garlic, parsley, and jalapeño peppers and cook over medium heat, stirring occasionally, until onions are soft and fragrant (about 5 minutes).

Step 2 – Add the Impossible meat, (or any other faux ground beef) break it up with a wooden spoon, and cook for an additional 5 minutes until the Impossible meat browns.

Onions, garlic, green peppers, and jalapenos cooking in a pot to make vegan chili.
Sauté onions, garlic, and peppers.
Sauted onions, jalapenos, and green peppers with Impossible meat added.
Add Impossible Meat.

Step 3 – Sprinkle the veggies and vegan meat with the spices (chili powder, cumin, sugar, oregano, salt, pepper, and cayenne pepper.) Stir until combined.

Browned Impossible meat in a large soup pan to make chili.
Brown the Impossible Meat.
Seasonings added to a pot to make vegan chili.
Add the spices.

Step 4 – If cooking on the stovetop, add the tomato juice, diced tomatoes, tomato sauce, kidney beans, and pinto beans to either the skillet and stir well.

Step 5 – Simmer over low heat for 1-2 hours before serving.

A large blue pot of vegan chili made with Impossible meat.

Step 6 – Serve with vegan sour cream, vegan cheese, chopped jalapenos, and fresh herbs like cilantro or parsley.

For a complete meal make some vegan cornbread, vegan jalapeno cornbread, focaccia bread, or some vegan drop biscuits to serve with the plant-based chili.

This chili is also great served with some vegan tacos like tempeh tacos, TVP tacos, or cauliflower tacos.

👩🏻‍🍳 Pro Tips

  • Allow the chili to simmer for at least an hour before serving. The flavors melt together the longer it simmers.
  • Simmer the chili on the lowest heat setting to just keep it hot but not boiling.
  • I simmer the chili uncovered, to cook off some of the liquid and make it thicker, but you can also cover it if you want it soupier or if you will be simmering it for a long time at a party.
  • You can leave the sugar out of the recipe if you wish, but the sugar helps to mellow out the acidity of the tomatoes and does a lot for the flavor of the chili.

❓ How to make vegan chili in the crock pot

To make this in a slow cooker, follow steps 1 and 2 on the stovetop then transfer the Impossible meat and veggies to the slow cooker. Add all of the remaining ingredients (spices, tomatoes, and beans) to the slow cooker and set it to low for 7 to 8 hours or set it to high for 4 hours.

A bowl of vegan chili topped with vegan cheddar cheese and sour cream with a blue and white tea towel behind it.

🥡 Storage and reheating

Refrigerate: Leftover vegan chili will keep well in the fridge for 3 – 5 days in an airtight container.

Freeze: This Impossible meat chili freezes well and can be stored in an airtight container in the freezer for up to 3 months. Thaw overnight in the fridge before reheating.

Reheating: Reheat one serving of the chili in the microwave for about 3 minutes or reheat it in a saucepan on the stovetop.

A close up of a bowl of vegan chili topped with vegan cheese and vegan sour cream.

🌟 More vegan soups and stews

📌 Be sure to follow me on Pinterest for new vegan recipes!

*This recipe was inspired by my friend Megan’s chili recipe from the blog Pip and Ebby! It has over a hundred 5-star reviews, so I had to give it a try and make it vegan.

📋 Vegan chili recipe

A bowl of vegan chili made with Impossible meat.
Diet
Gluten Free Icon
Nut Free Icon
Soy Free Icon
Vegan Icon
5 from 5 rating

Impossible Chili

Yield: 12
Prep: 15 minutes
Cook: 2 hours
Total: 2 hours 15 minutes
Author: Monica Davis
Amazing vegan chili made with Impossible Meat and beans.
Print Leave a Review Pin Recipe

Ingredients

  • 1 (12 oz) package Impossible meat, or 4 burgers
  • 4 tablespoons olive oil
  • 1 medium yellow onion, chopped
  • 1 medium green bell pepper, chopped
  • 4 cloves garlic , minced
  • 1/4 cup parsley , finely chopped
  • 2 medium jalapeño peppers , finely chopped (optional)
  • 3 tablespoons chili powder
  • 2 teaspoon cumin
  • 1 tablespoon sugar
  • 1 teaspoon oregano
  • 1 teaspoon salt
  • 1 teaspoon pepper
  • 1/4 teaspoon cayenne pepper
  • 1 (46 oz) can tomato juice
  • 1 (28 oz) can diced tomatoes
  • 1 (15 oz) can tomato sauce
  • 2 (15.5 oz) cans kidney beans , drained and rinsed
  • 2 (15.5 oz) cans pinto beans , drained and rinsed

Instructions
 

  • In a large skillet, add the olive oil, onion, bell pepper, garlic, parsley, and jalapeño peppers and cook over medium heat, stirring occasionally, until onions are soft and fragrant (about 5 minutes).
  • Add the Impossible meat, (or any other faux ground beef) break it up with a wooden spoon, and cook for an additional 5 minutes until the Impossible meat browns.
  • Sprinkle the veggies and vegan meat with the spices (chili powder, cumin, sugar, oregano, salt, pepper, and cayenne pepper.) Stir until combined.
  • If cooking on the stovetop, add the tomato juice, diced tomatoes, tomato sauce, kidney beans, and pinto beans to either the skillet and stir well.
  • Simmer over low heat for 1-2 hours before serving.
  • Serve with vegan sour cream, vegan cheese, chopped jalapenos, and fresh herbs like cilantro or parsley.

Notes

  • Allow the chili to simmer for at least an hour before serving. The flavors melt together the longer it simmers.
  • Simmer the chili on the lowest heat setting to just keep it hot but not boiling.
  • I simmer the chili uncovered, to cook off some of the liquid and make it thicker, but you can also cover it if you want it soupier or if you will be simmering it for a long time at a party.
  • You can leave the sugar out of the recipe if you wish, but the sugar helps to mellow out the acidity of the tomatoes and does a lot for the flavor of the chili.
Serving: 1bowl, Calories: 200kcal, Carbohydrates: 31g, Protein: 9g, Fat: 6g, Saturated Fat: 1g, Polyunsaturated Fat: 1g, Monounsaturated Fat: 4g, Sodium: 415mg, Potassium: 893mg, Fiber: 9g, Sugar: 8g, Vitamin A: 1400IU, Vitamin C: 41mg, Calcium: 84mg, Iron: 4mg
Did you make this recipe?Please leave a star rating and review below!