Vegan Butternut Squash Chili Sans Carne

You will not believe the big flavours in this simple butternut squash chili and your meat-eating friends will not even notice it is vegan!

Vegan Pumpkin Chili Anyone?

This pumpkin chili recipe is definitely a winter warming favourite in our household. It is a really quick and simple meal that can be on your table in 40 minutes and 10 minutes of that is preparation time.

It is full of all the flavours you associate with a good Chili Con Carne.

Flavours like cumin, tomato, beans and of course chili but the sweet earthiness of the pumpkin remains the star of the show.

Of course, this is no better, or indeed worse than a beef or pork chili.

It is different and when I am cooking food sans meat I like to celebrate the difference rather than turn the key ingredients into meat substitutes.

This recipe can be made with pretty much any member of the pumpkin family by adding shifting the cooking time a little.

Using Up Leftover Butternut Squash.

I used to avoid cooking with ingredients like butternut squash because as a family for two there was always leftovers.

And if I were to be honest, I really dislike eating the same thing over and over again. I am also terrible at using up stuff I freeze for later.

But with a bit of planning then I can make a whole butternut squash the focus of 3 different meals over three days and never get close to bored.

Pureeing any leftovers is the simplest route, just drizzle with oil and season with salt and roast for an hour.

I use the puree in both my pureed pumpkin risotto and my roast butternut squash soup.

But leaving it chunky I can head to Italy with a delicious spicy butternut squash pasta, Burma with my pumpkin Curry or North Africa with my butternut Squash Tagine.

The key to making squash last is to just cut what you need leaving a small cut edge.

Wrap that cut edge immediately in cling film and store in the crisper drawer in the fridge. It should last an east 5 days doing this, maybe as much as 7.

I always slice off the thin exposed edge before using the next bit.

Serving Suggestions.

I usually serve this with brown rice, and as I am not vegan, a dollop of sour cream and some snipped chives.

You could also add a sprinkle of sharp Cheddar cheese if that is your thing.

But this works equally well with toasted millet and so long as you are not bothered about skipping “culinary” borders it is delicious with buttered couscous.

And so long as you keep it nice and dry it works amazingly wrapped in a flour or corn tortilla with some crispy lettuce!