Eat Healthy and Cheap
Three-Bean Chili
Three-bean chili earns its name from texture as much as variety: kidney beans hold their shape, black beans go creamy at the edges, and pinto beans break down just enough to thicken the pot on their own. The depth comes from two techniques stacked together, toasting dried ancho and chipotle before they touch any liquid, and cooking tomato paste down to a deep brick red before the tomatoes go in. Both steps build savoriness the same way a long-simmered stock would, so the pot needs no salt, just a hit of lime at the end to sharpen everything.
Ingredients
- 1/2 cup Kidney beans, dried, soaked overnight
- 1/2 cup Black beans, dried, soaked overnight
- 1/2 cup Pinto beans, dried, soaked overnight
- 2 Bay leaves
- 1 Yellow onion, diced
- 2 Bell peppers, diced
- 5 cloves Garlic, minced
- 2 Anchos, stemmed, seeded, torn
- 1 Chipotle, stemmed
- 2 tsp Cumin seed, toasted and ground
- 1 tsp Dried oregano
- 1 tsp Smoked paprika
- 1 tbsp pure chile powder
- 2 tbsp Tomato paste
- 2 cups Canned crushed tomatoes
- 1 tbsp no-salt vegetable bouillon
- 2 tbsp Lime juice
- 4 Scallions, sliced, to serve
- 1 Avocado, diced, to serve
Method
- Boil the soaked kidney beans hard in fresh water for 10 minutes, then drain and rinse. This hard boil is not optional: raw kidney beans carry a compound that a slow simmer alone will not fully break down.
- Return the kidney beans to the pot with the soaked black beans, the soaked pinto beans, one bay leaf, and 6 cups (1.4 L) fresh water. Bring to a simmer, partly cover, and cook until all three beans are fully tender, 60 to 75 minutes, topping up with hot water if they rise above the surface. Leave the pot unseasoned while the beans cook.
- While the beans simmer, toast the ancho and chipotle in a dry skillet over medium heat, pressing them flat for a few seconds a side until they smell toasty and turn pliable. Watch them closely, since scorched chiles turn bitter. Tear them up, cover with 1 cup (240 ml) just-boiled water, and let soften for 15 minutes.
- Toast the cumin seed in the same dry skillet for about a minute, until fragrant, then grind it. In a wide pot over medium heat, sweat the onion and bell peppers in 3 tablespoons (45 ml) water, stirring and adding a splash more water whenever the pan turns dry, until soft, about 10 minutes.
- Stir the garlic, ground cumin, dried oregano, smoked paprika, and pure chile powder into the vegetables and cook for a minute, until the spices smell toasted instead of raw. Push everything to one side, add the tomato paste to the bare spot, and let it sit undisturbed until it darkens to brick red, about 2 minutes. That color change is the paste caramelizing, and it is most of where this chili's savoriness comes from.
- Drain the softened chiles, keeping the soaking liquid, and blend them with the crushed tomatoes and the vegetable bouillon into a smooth, deep red sauce, adding the soaking liquid as needed to keep the blades moving.
- Stir the chile sauce into the pot with the vegetables. Add the cooked beans along with 2 cups (475 ml) of their cooking liquid and the second bay leaf. Simmer uncovered for 25 to 30 minutes, stirring occasionally, until the chili is thick enough to hold its shape on a spoon. Mash a ladle of beans against the side of the pot and stir it back in for body.
- Fish out the bay leaves. Turn off the heat and stir in the lime juice, then taste: reach for more lime rather than salt if the pot needs lifting. Ladle into bowls and top with the scallions and avocado.
Nutrition
Estimated per serving: 285 calories, 15 g protein, 15 g fiber. Computed from USDA FoodData Central reference values for the main ingredients. This is an approximation, not a laboratory measurement.
Cost per serving is estimated from US national-average retail prices for cheap staple forms, using BLS dried-bean prices and USDA produce prices. Prices vary by store and season, so treat it as a guide, not a receipt.
