Vegan Diaries – Black Bean Chili and Hot Peppers Baby!!!

I love chili. But I’m not obsessed with it.

You know, like the people who have recipes in safe deposit boxes because only 2  living family members are allowed to know the secret ingredient. When one dies there’s a ceremony and death match that decides who’s next.

I am crazy for hot peppers. There’s this scotch bonnet hot pepper sauce that  warns only to use a touch because it’s so hot. I buy two bottles at a time.

Habanero? No problemo. I’ve eaten them raw. Because I can. Word.

I’d like to plan a vacation around the Hatch Chile Pepper Festival. Finding someone to brave New Mexico heat so you can eat hot peppers is not an easy task. But I will fulfill my quest. Can you imagine? Hot peppers. Hot weather. Hot yoga.

Sounds like heaven….Or? Anyway.

I digress- I was talking about chile. This is a vegetarian chile, which I know in some parts of the world is blasphemy, but amazing chile can be made without carne. But if you want to add meat- I won’t judge you, as you as you plan to tag along on my pepper vision quest.

Ingredients

• black beans – 4 cups that have been soaked and cooked (reserve 1/4 of the liquid) If you are using canned black beans they don’t need to be pre-cooked.
• tomatoes – 2 cups that are chopped make sure they are ripe and juicy (or canned are fine if that’s what you’ve got on hand!)
• bell peppers – 4 roughly chopped (I used yellow and orange)
• onion – one large chopped
• habanero pepper (optional)
• green chili peppers – chopped
• dried red pepper – 2T (it’s a lot I’d use 1 if you don’t like it super hot)
• smoked paprika – 1 T
• cumin -1T
• garlic – 4-6 cloves
• olive oil 1/4 cup
• lime juice – 3T
• dried basil – 1T
• salt – 1/2 T
• red wine 1/4 cup

Preparation

1. This is a one pot affair which is nice.
2. Heat olive oil (medium low-medium) and sweat the onions, garlic and green chiles for two minutes
3. Add the cumin and paprika stir
4. Add red wine stir for 2 minutes
5. Add bell peppers, lime juice and rest of spices
6. Stir in tomatoes
7. Add the beans
8. Bring the mixture to a simmer
9. Reduce heat to low and cook for 30-40 minutes

Serve over brown rice or alone! I topped it with a smidge of guac because, that’s how I roll.

Enjoy!!!

Here’s a CBS Sunday Morning clip about the Hatch Chile Festival.

Okay, maybe I am a little crazy for chile peppers. But we all gotta be somethin’.

Wave your freak flags people. Let ‘em wave.

This is yoga. It’s hot baby.

Namaste y’all.