The Garden Grazer

Vegan Chili Mac (30 minute!)

By 14 Comments

Vegan Chili Mac comes together in just 30 minutes for a satisfying weeknight meal! (Vegan, gluten-free)

Meet one of our new favorite go-to dinners – Vegan Chili Mac! We all love it, including our toddler who gets super excited and usually asks for seconds. Although she has trouble pronouncing “chili” so it comes out more like “gooey mac” 😉

I love this recipe because it’s amazing comfort food with 8 simple ingredients yet tons of flavor. It’s healthy, filling, and slightly creamy/cheesy from the nutritional yeast. It’s not spicy when using a mild chili powder, so add smoky chipotle powder if you’d like to kick it up. It’s a perfect family-friendly meal loved by kids and adults alike. Gooey mac for the win!

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5 from 2 votes

Vegan Chili Mac

Family-friendly vegan chili mac that comes together in just 30 minutes for a satisfying weeknight meal!
Author: Kaitlin - The Garden Grazer
Prep Time:15 minutes
Cook Time:15 minutes
Total Time:30 minutes
Category: Main Dish
Cuisine: Gluten-Free Option, Vegan
Servings:5

Ingredients

  • 8 oz. elbow pasta (about 2 heaping cups uncooked)
  • 1 onion
  • 15 oz. can tomato sauce
  • 15 oz. can kidney beans (rinsed and drained)
  • 1 1/2 cups corn (I use frozen)
  • 3 Tbsp. nutritional yeast (I use this brand)
  • 3-4 tsp. mild chili powder*
  • 1/2 cup water
  • 3-4 oz. spinach
  • Salt to taste
  • Optional: garlic, chipotle powder

Instructions

  • Cook pasta, leaving al dente. Drain when finished.
  • While pasta is cooking, dice onion.
  • In a large pan over medium heat, saute onion about 8 minutes or until translucent.
  • When onion is soft, add pasta and all other ingredients except spinach.
  • Reduce heat and cook 8-10 minutes, stirring occasionally. Add more water if it becomes too dry.
  • Meanwhile, roughly chop spinach.
  • Add spinach and cook 3 minutes. Salt to taste.

Notes

*If you’re worried about the spiciness in chili powder, try a blend of 1 tsp. chili powder, 1 tsp. cumin, and 1 tsp. smoked paprika – I love these flavors as well!
Recipe adapted from FatFree Vegan Kitchen

Nutrition Per Serving (estimate)

Calories: 356kcal | Carbohydrates: 68g | Protein: 18g | Fat: 2g | Potassium: 1066mg | Fiber: 12g | Sugar: 9g | Vitamin A: 2960IU | Vitamin C: 15.6mg | Calcium: 77mg | Iron: 4.3mg
Did you make this recipe?Tag @thegardengrazer on Instagram and hashtag it #thegardengrazer. I love seeing your recreations!

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Reader Interactions

Comments

  3. Mmmm! Delicious. I've been vegan about 6 months now and this is real comfort food! It's a good thing I love it because I made a whole batch and it's just me. Sounds good for breakfast tomorrow 🙂

    Reply

    • Hi Kim! Haha – awesome 🙂 So glad you're enjoying it! I eat leftovers for breakfast all the time and this is definitely no exception 😉 Have a great week!

      Reply

  4. Thank you the recipe. I made your recipe two weeks ago and we loved it. I made it again today with a few additions/modifications; I used 2oz of spinach and 2 oz of collard greens. I added a birds-eye chili pepper, an orange bell pepper, and a pasilla pepper. Then I added a cajun spice blend. I suppose I had a craving for the spices today. All peppers are deseeded.

    Reply

    • Hi Sari! If you have younger kiddos, I bet you could stretch this one batch to feed all 6. Otherwise you may want to double it (or estimate a batch and a half). If you double it, you'll most likely have leftovers, but we love 'em heated up the next day! 🙂 Hope you guys enjoy!

      Reply

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