by James Coulter
This Sunday (Sep. 22) was the first day of fall. Autumn is officially upon us. The nights are getting longer. The air is getting cooler. (Okay, maybe not so much in Florida!) And with this cooler weather comes jackets and hot drinks.
Obviously, everyone is clamoring for pumpkin spice. After all, what could be more warming on a brisk autumn day than a pumpkin spice late?
Well, there’s a meme currently circulating on Facebook: “When people think of fall, they think pumpkin spice. I think chili.”
After a long day strolling through the brisk autumn air, nothing feeling more relaxing than returning to a home filled with the spicy aroma of chili either cooking on the stove or in a crockpot and ladling a piping serving of beef and beans slowed cooked into a savory stew.
Of course, anyone could post any run-of-the-mill recipe chili. Me? I wanted to be different. So, what makes this chili recipe different? Simple: it’s meatless.
That’s right. This chili recipe still has everything else you’ve come to love from classic chili including beans, tomatoes, and corn. But what sets this batch apart from the rest is the lack of meat.
Instead, this chili is made with steel-cut oats.
You heard correctly. Oatmeal! And interestingly enough, it tastes just as good as beefy chili.
This recipe requires the chili to be prepared and cooked on the stove. However, I decided to use my slow-cooker instead. Because who doesn’t like dumping all of their ingredients into a pot in the morning and enjoying a hearty meal once dinner rolls along later that evening?
As for my own attempt at making this, the chili itself tasted like authentic chili sans meat. My only deviation was that I used chili powder rather than cumin, so this batch was particularly spicier.
My only other reservation was the significant lack of meat. Without that beef, the overall texture tasted more like a soup than a stew. Perhaps next time I will add more than a half cup of oats to provide more texture.
Otherwise, if you’re looking for a meatless chili alternative, give this recipe a try. I highly recommend it.
Recipe from SheKnows.com:
Ingredients
2 cups water plus 1 veggie bouillon cube (or 2 cups veggie broth)
1/2 cup steel-cut oats
1 tbsp. oregano
2 tsp. ground cumin
1 tsp. chili powder
3 cloves garlic, minced
1 (14.5 ounce) can kidney beans, drained and rinsed (or 1-1/2 cups homemade)
1 (14.5 ounce) can black beans, drained and rinsed (or 1-1/2 cups homemade)
1 (14.5 ounce) can diced tomatoes, regular or fire-roasted
1 cup frozen corn, regular or fire-roasted
1/2 to 1 teaspoon liquid smoke, to taste
Juice of 1/2 a lime
Salt and pepper, to taste
Directions
1. Bring the water and bouillon to a boil in a soup pot. Add oats and lower to medium heat.
2.Cook uncovered for about 15 minutes or until the oats are tender and most of the liquid has been absorbed.
3. Stir in the oregano, cumin, garlic, kidney beans, black beans, tomatoes, corn and liquid smoke.
4. Cover and cook over low heat for 20 minutes to allow the flavors to meld.
5. Before serving, add the juice of half a lime as well as salt and pepper, to taste.
