Four Bean Tofu Chili With Mushrooms ~ Hearty & Healthy
Four Bean Tofu Chili With Mushrooms is one of those meatless Monday meals you will enjoy any day of the week.
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Go ahead and enjoy a big bowl of heart-healthy tofu chili. I’ve added four different kinds of beans, sliced mushrooms, onions, garlic, and spices to entice all the senses. Zero fat is added to this entire pot of chili.
It’s perfectly ok to add ground turkey or ground chicken to this recipe instead of tofu if tofu isn’t your thing. But you might consider giving it a try because it has a completely different texture when prepared in this recipe.
The tofu becomes disguised once it’s crumbled and seasoned. You could even leave it out and have a 4-bean chili or add some other form of meat substitute, like Beyond Burger Crumbles, for example.
**Important ~ please read:
To Prepare tofu for this recipe or any other recipe that you might want to have a “meaty” texture, such as lasagna, tacos, or breakfast wraps, I explain in the steps below.
1 – Purchase 1 package of firm or extra-firm tofu. I suggest finding one that says NON-GMO soybeans.
2 -Open the package and pour out the liquid. Wrap the tofu square in a couple of paper towels or a clean dish towel to soak up the liquid. Try to remove as much liquid as possible.
3 -Remove tofu from the towel and place it in a freezer container. Freeze overnight or until ready to use. You can freeze tofu for up to 5 months for the best quality.
4 – When ready to use tofu, it must be defrosted. I prefer the microwave, but overnight in the refrigerator is fine too. Drain off the liquid and gently squeeze the tofu to rid of even more liquid. Wrap tofu in a couple of paper towels or a clean dish towel, and gently squeeze. I like to eliminate as much moisture as possible; this gives me the best results in recipes. Your tofu will now have a rubbery texture.
To Make Four Bean Tofu Chili With Mushrooms You Will Need:
- Firm tofu ~ previously frozen, defrosted, and excess liquid removed. See the above info **
- Fresh mushrooms ~ I use Button or Portobello.
- Onion
- Minced garlic
- Canned beans ~ any combination you like. I used dark red kidney beans, black beans, red beans, and pinto beans ~ drained and rinsed (and most recently garbanzo beans)
- Tomato sauce
- Diced tomatoes
- Cumin
- Salt
- Ground black pepper
- Chili powder
- Water
Optional Toppings:
- Purple onion chopped finely for garnish.
- Grated Mexican blend or cheddar non-dairy cheese
- Crunched Corn Chips
Enjoy!
Four Bean Tofu Chili With Mushrooms
Ingredients
- 1 package organic firm tofu ~ previously froze and excess liquid removed and chopped.
- 2 cups fresh mushrooms ~ chopped ~ I use button or Portobello
- 1 medium onion ~ finely chopped
- 1 tsp minced garlic
- 4 – 15.5oz cans of beans ~ drained and rinsed ~ any combination you like. I used dark red kidney beans black beans, red beans, and pinto beans
- 2 – 15oz cans of tomato sauce
- 2 – 14.5oz cans of diced tomatoes ~ pureed
- 1 tsp cumin
- 1 tsp salt
- 1/4 tsp ground black pepper
- 2-3 tbsp chili powder I use 3
- 1 1/2-2 cups water
Instructions
- In a large kettle sauté onions, garlic, and mushrooms in a small amount of water, about 1/4 cup.
- Add seasonings and tofu. Crumble the tofu as you add it so it resembles ground meat. I break it up while I’m cooking it too.
- Sauté a few minutes more, adding 1/4 cup more water if needed or some of the pureed tomatoes.
- Bring to a boil and simmer at least 30 minutes, stirring occasionally. Add up to 1/2 cup of additional water if chili seems a little thick. Thickness can vary depending on personal preference.1
- Pour in all the beans and the tomatoes, stirring well.
- Serve up with optional toppings!
Notes
purple onion chopped finely for garnish
grated Mexican blend or cheddar non-dairy cheese
Greetings! Very useful advice in this particular article!
It is the little changes that make the largest changes.
Thanks for sharing!
Hi Alisha! I am so glad you found this information to be helpful, that is the reason I created this website. I really appreciate your sharing this.
YUMMY!!!!! Thanks for sharing your recipe! I’ve heard about your blog a couple of times and will now spend my afternoon reading 🙂
I’m so glad you checked out my food blog Rose! I really like this chili recipe and no one can tell it doesn’t have meat. Perfect for meatless Mondays : )
I have been pre-cooking ground beef for a long time – it is just so much easier to do it once and be done with if for a while. Sometimes I cook a batch that is just plain ground beef – and then I’ll do another batch and add green peppers and onions. I also store mine in freezer zip lock bags due to the storage issue – much easier to store flat.
That is a great idea Rubi, it’s always good to be prepared and having things ready to go in the freezer is a huge help in meal preparations.
Thanks for sharing!
I’m going to make this for dinner tonight! I’m going to make it on the stove instead of the slow cooker, though. Thanks for the lovely dinner inspiration! 🙂
Hi Hannah,
I’m excited you are going to try this tofu chili because it’s a favorite of mine! I’ve made it on the stovetop many times, in fact maybe even more so than in slow cooker. Enjoy and let me know what you think if you get a chance.