Vegan Pumpkin Chilli

 

 

Hey there!

 

Guess what, it was Sunday again, which means I could take my time preparing a delicious dinner and documenting every step of it so I wouldn’t be the only one anymore, who’s able to cook such a divine meal.

 

This week I decided to make a vegan chilli. I just happened to be craving kidney beans over the past few days so they were a must in today’s dinner. Since pumpkins are just starting to be in season again and also because I absolutely love pumpkin, my creation actually turned out as a Vegan Pumpkin Chilli. Besides the beans, which were a given and obviously the pumpkin I also used a can of diced tomatoes and a block of smoked tofu. I used Taifun’s smoked tofu, which is the best in my opinion. In Switzerland you can find this exact brand at any organic food shop, but I am sure any kind of smoked tofu will do the job. I do however recommend completely omitting the tofu altogether if you can’t get your hand on smoked one, I think it would just turn soggy and not contribute to the flavour whatsoever. Whereas the addition of smoked tofu enhances the chilli with a slightly meaty flavour without having to actually use meat. A family friend who was having dinner with us that day actually claimed that she couldn’t believe there was absolutely no meat added to this dish.

As far as spices go I went for the generic chilli spices, which are the ones usually found in chilli mixes from the supermarket. Those were, a chilli, paprika, cumin and oregano. Yet I wanted to add a little special to it and decided to sneak in some unsweetened cocoa powder. Just enough to make the dish taste really rich but still not like a spicy mousse au chocolate. This idea came to me after reading the book Like Water for Chocolate by Laura Esquivel, in which the protagonist Tita de la Garza frequently includes cocoa to savoury Mexican dishes. It sounded very interesting to me, so I decided to give it a go and believe I haven’t got any regrets.

Most of the liquid added came from the tomatoes and obviously the water, but I also decided to add a glass of red wine. In my opinion the smallest amount of red wine goes a long way and can really enhance the flavour of a dish, especially if you are aiming for a hearty and comforting meal, which was definitely my intention on that past Sunday since the weather was absolutely awful. Rain, rain and more rain, that’s all I can say concerning that topic. Just terrible!

 

Well, lucky me that I was able to enjoy such a comforting chilli for dinner on a miserable day like that. The vegan chilli I had cooked today was definitely a success, my family and our visitors loved it and fancy that, I did too. This recipe will most likely go down in history as my family’s go-to chilli recipe; it was truly divine and a definite addition to our dinner repertory.

 

I think by now I got my point across and you all understand how amazing this chilli is and that you should, no you must, try this immediately or at least as soon as you feel like having a chilli the next time.

 

So, drum roll please…

 

… the recipe:

Ingredients:

• 200g Kidney beans
• 1 Hokkaido Pumpkin
• 2tsp cumin
• 2tsp oregano
• 2tbs cocoa
• 1tsp paprika
• 1 chilli
• 2 red onions
• 1 clove of garlic
• 1 can of diced tomatoes
• 1 block of smoked tofu (Taifun)
• olive oil
• 1 glass of red wine

 

1. Soak the kidney beans in water over night
2. Before you start to chop up your other ingredients boil some water and add the beans, so they can already start to soften and the chilli won’t have to cook as long, once all the ingredients are added.

 

3. Dice the Pumpkin into one inch slices, I purposely used Hokkaido, so I didn’t have to peel it, then also slice the onion, chop up your garlic and last but not least the smoked tofu.

 

4. Put the Pumpkin aside and heat some olive oil in a large sauce pan, then add the onion, garlic and the tofu and fry until the tofu is slightly browned and the onions have softened.

 

5. Drain the beans you have been precooking and add them tot he onion and tofu mixture, do the same with the diced pumpkin.

 

6. When all the ingredients are in the same pan pour in one glass of wine, add the can of diced tomatoes and water, I just filled my empty can twice and that was how much water I added. And last but not leats add all the of your spices. Cumin, oregano, cocoa, paprika and the chilli, which you should have chopped up before adding.

 

7. Let the mixture come to a boil, and then lower the temperature and covert the pan with the lid for around an hour.

 

8. After an hour your beans as well as the pumpkin should be ready to eat, take off the lid and let the chilli cook down for another 20 minutes, so the sauce can thicken up. Now just add slat to taste and then serve your delicious creation.

 

Voila, finished is your truly delicious Vegan Pumpkin Chilli. I am totally aware of the fact that you shouldn’t blow your own trumpet, but I just have to say it, this was the absolute best chilli I have ever eaten. Not that I had tried all too many and I am sure there is better ones around, but as far as I can judge it, this is the best! Just try it, then you’ll believe me and I’m sure you’ll be jumping on the bandwagon of admirers.

 

I guess that’s all I have to say for today, now I let you go create your own chilli, perhaps inspired by this recipe or possibly even an exact replica of my creation.

Bisous

Fanny, the foodie