This One Pot Vegan Chili Mac is the ultimate comfort food. It's hearty and filling and loaded with pasta, beans, corn, tomato sauce and vegan cheese. It's the perfect easy weeknight dinner made in 30 minutes!
This Vegan Chili Mac is like a combination of Vegetarian Chili and Vegan Mac and Cheese, all made together in just one pot.
Two favorite classic comfort foods, combined together, packed with veggies and loaded with flavor. It's healthy and hearty and made in just 30 minutes with minimum clean up needed.
This chili mac recipe is perfect to make in the fall and winter. It's the perfect quick weeknight meal and the leftovers will be even better the next day!
Why You'll Love This Recipe
This simple chili mac recipe is:
- Quick and easy: Made in one pot in only 30 minutes! This is an easy meal to make with minimum clean up required.
- Vegan and gluten-free: the chili mac uses shredded vegan cheese. You can also make it gluten-free by using a gluten-free pasta.
- Healthy comfort food: this recipe is filled with all of the ingredients needed in a typically comfort food dish but also filled with plant-based protein and veggies. You can also up your protein by using a protein pasta such as chickpea pasta.
Ingredients You'll Need
The ingredients in this recipe are simple and you only need one pot! Nothing fancy or complicated. Here is all of the ingredients you will need:
- Veggies: onion, bell pepper and garlic
- Liquids: I used vegetable stock
- Tomatoes: I used fire roasted diced tomatoes to make the base of this chili however use your favorite canned tomatoes or whatever is available in your grocery store
- Beans: Red kidney beans, black beans or pinto beans are all perfect for this recipe. I used a mix of each
- Corn: I used canned but frozen or fresh will work as well
- Pasta: Elbow macaroni is my go to pasta for chili mac. You can also opt to use whole wheat pasta or protein pasta as a healthy swap
- Spices: smoked paprika, cumin, oregano and chili powder are used to get that classic chili flavor. Taste and adjust the amounts to your taste
How to Make Vegan Chili Mac and cheese
I personally love this recipe without cheese but you can also make vegan chili mac and cheese by adding one of these two ingredients at the end of making the dish:
- Add nutritional yeast - This will give you a cheese flavor however you'll be missing the creamy texture you get from adding cheese.
- Use shredded vegan cheese - In this recipe I added the shredded vegan cheese to the top as garnish. If you prefer, you can add 1 - 2 cups to the chili mac and stir it in until melted.
How to make the Vegan Chili Mac
This vegetarian chili mac recipe is a great weeknight meal. It's so easy to make and only requires a few simple steps:
- Saute veggies: In a large pot, heat oil and saute the onions and peppers. Then add in garlic and continue to sauté.
- Add the ingredients: Add the vegetable stock, tomatoes, beans and corn and stir to combine.
- Add Seasoning: Add the spices into the pot and stir to combine.
- Simmer: Bring to a boil, then add the pasta. Stir to prevent pasta from sticking and then reduce to a rolling boil and let simmer until pasta is tender.
- Serve: Taste and adjust the seasonings, and serve. If making chili mac and cheese, add in the optional nutritional yeast or shredded cheese.
Toppings to use:
You can serve this dish with a variety of garnishes:
- Shredded vegan cheese
- Fresh chopped cilantro
- Vegan sour cream
- Sliced green onions
Vegan Meat Substitutes:
For a more traditional and "meatier" chili mac texture, here are some options that can to add to the dish:
- Meatless "ground beef"
- Vegan tempeh crumbles
- Tofu crumbles
- Finely chopped baby mushrooms
Storage and Reheating Tips
- Leftovers: Refrigerate leftovers in a closed container for 4-5 days.
- Reheating: Reheat in the microwave for 2-3 minutes, or until warmed through. Then add your favorite toppings.
- Freezing: After cooking, let the chili mac cool before transferring it to a freezer-safe container. When you're ready to reheat it, simply remove it from the freezer, the night before, and let it thaw overnight in the fridge before reheating.
More Recipes You May Like
Leftover Chili Stuffed Peppers
Vegetable Pot Pie with Biscuits
One Pot Vegan Chili Mac
Ingredients
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
- 1 yellow onion medium, diced
- 1 bell pepper medium, chopped
- 5 cloves garlic minced
- 1 1/2 cups Vegetable broth
- 28 ounces fire-roasted crushed tomatoes
- 15 ounces red kidney beans or pinto beans or ½ of both
- 15 ounces black beans
- ½ cup corn small can drained, frozen or fresh
- 1 teaspoon smoked paprika
- 1 teaspoon ground cumin
- 1 teaspoon ground oregano
- 3 tablespoons chili powder
- Salt and pepper to taste
- 8 ounces dry elbow pasta or favorite pasta
Toppings
- 1 cup shredded vegan cheese
- ½ cup fresh cilantro chopped
- Vegan sour cream
- Green onions sliced
Instructions
- In a large pot, add olive oil over medium heat. Add the onions and peppers and sauté for 4 minutes or until softened. Then add in the garlic and stir together. Let cook for 1 minute.
- Pour in the vegetable stock, tomatoes, beans, corn and seasonings and stir until everything is well combined.
- Bring to a boil, add the pasta and then reduce to a simmer. Cover with a lid and cook for 10-15 minutes or until pasta has cooked to al dente. Stir every few minutes so the pasta doesn't stick to the bottom.
- If the chili mac appears too soupy, remove the lid and let it cook for just another minute but do not overcook or the noodles, they will become mushy.
- If adding in cheese, reduce the heat and add it to the top of the pot and cover with a lid for about 5 minutes to let the cheese melt. You can also garnish each individual serving with cheese and desired toppings.
Nutrition
Disclaimer
Although HalfPastHungry.com attempts to provide accurate nutritional information, note that these are only estimates. Nutritional information may be affected based on which products you use, the brand that was purchased, or in other unforeseeable ways. HalfPastHungry.com will not be held liable for any reliance on given nutritional information. If you need to follow a specific caloric regimen, please consult your physician first.
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