This spicy slow cooker chickpea chili has sweet potaotes and smoky chipotle flavor. No sauteeing means easy prep! Vegan, gluten-free and perfect for meal prep.
When the weather is cool, there is nothing I crave more than a nice bowl of chili. Some of my family's favorites include this Crockpot White Chicken Chili and this Vegan Crockpot Chili. We also love this spicy slow cooker chickpea chili, which will warm you up to the tips of your toes!
This reader favorite recipe is so easy to prepare: no sauteeing means you can get it cooking quickly, or assemble the ingredients ahead and store in the fridge or freezer until you're ready to cook it up!
Not only is it delicious, but hearty, which is super important for plant-based recipes. You will definitely not be feeling hungry after a big bowl of this chickpea chili, that's for sure!
While it is spicy as written, it mellows as it sits in the fridge, and you can also reduce the adobo sauce and omit the chipotle to reduce the spice level.
Reasons you’ll ♡ this spicy chickpea chili
- it's vegan, gluten-free and dairy-free
- it's a total flavor bomb
- it works amazingly well for meal prep: enjoy leftovers or use as a freezer crockpot meal
Recipe Video
Wondering how this chickpea chili comes together? Watch this 1-minute video to get a good visual. You can find more recipe videos on my YouTube channel.
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Let's talk ingredients!
There are a few ingredients in this chickpea chili, but most of them are pantry or fridge staples.
- sweet potatoes- 4 cups of roughly chopped cubes which works out to 1 large or 2-3 smaller. I leave the skins on
- veggies- onion, carrot and garlic
- canned items- diced tomatoes and tomato sauce (which can sometimes be called passata and is not to be confused with ketchup)
- adobo sauce- comes in a can of chipotle peppers. If you want to bring the spice level up, you can include a chopped chipotle pepper
- spices- chili powder, ground cumin and salt.
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Meal prep tips
This vegan chickpea chili works amazingly well for meal prep. Here are some tips to help you out:
- freezer crockpot- you can assemble all the ingredients ahead and freeze as a freezer crockpot meal. When ready to cook, thaw, then cook as directed! This will save you so much time on cook day.
- leftovers- you can also cook ahead and reheat through the week. Leftovers can be stored in the fridge for up to 4 days or the freezer for up to 3 months.
- shortcuts- used pre-minced garlic and frozen chopped onions as a shortcut on this meal.
- Instant Pot- yes, you can cook this in the Instant Pot as well, but if you have a 6 quart you will need to half the recipe! Find the directions on the recipe card.
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Can I swap out the chickpeas?
Sure, you can swap for black beans! Chicken thighs may also work in this recipe (adjust to 5 hours on low and shred them after cooking).
How do I reduce the spice level?
Definitely do not include the chipotle pepper, and pull back on the adobo sauce. In fact, liquid smoke may be a better option as you can get that smoky flavor without the spice.
Reader Samantha also used 2 tablespoons of adobo seasoning in place of the sauce.
*as this chili sits in the fridge for 1-2 days, the spice level mellows noticeably.
What toppings go well on this chili recipe?
Like most chili recipes, this one is all about the toppings! Here are some of our faves:
- avocado or guacamole
- cilantro
- yogurt or coconut yogurt
- tortilla chips
More vegan crockpot recipes
- Slow Cooker Butternut Squash Lentil Curry
- Vegan African Peanut Stew
- Slow Cooker Chickpea Tortilla Soup
- Slow Cooker Black Bean, Quinoa and Sweet Potato Stew
- 36 Vegan Crockpot Recipes
Did you make this? Tag me on social @sweetpeasandsaffron and be sure to leave a comment and rate the recipe!
Spicy Slow Cooker Chickpea Chili (+ Instant Pot)
Ingredients
Chili
- 28 oz diced tomatoes (828 mL)
- 13.5 oz tomato sauce (400 mL)
- 4 tablespoons adobo sauce (see note *) + 1 chopped chipotle pepper (for spicy)
- 2 tablespoons chili powder
- 1 tablespoon ground cumin
- 1 teaspoon salt
- ½ cup stock
- 5 cups sweet potato cubes (cut into 1.5-2 inch cubes 1 large or 2-3 small sweet potatoes)
- 4 cloves garlic (minced)
- 2 small onions (diced)
- 2 carrots (peeled and sliced)
- 2 19 oz cans of chickpeas (drained and rinsed)
After cooking
- Juice of half a lime
To Serve (Optional)
- Avocado
- Cilantro leaves
- Sour cream or Greek yogurt
- Tortilla chips
Instructions
Slow Cooker
- Add all ingredients to the base of a 5 quart slow cooker. Mix with a spatula until completely combined.
- Cook on lowest setting for 8-10 hours.
- Before serving, stir in the lime juice.
- Serve with avocado, cilantro, yogurt/sour cream, and tortilla chips.
Instant Pot
- *You need to halve the recipe for a 6 quart Instant Pot, as it fills above the ⅔ full limit. Or make a full batch and freeze half the uncooked recipe for later*
- Toss all ingredients (of a half batch) into the Instant Pot, and stir until completely combined.
- Cook on high pressure for 10 minutes, followed by a natural release (I unplugged my IP and let it sit for 10-15 minutes, then released remaining pressure).
Storage
- After cooking, this chili may be stored in the fridge for up to 4 days or the freezer for up to 3 months.
Freezer Crockpot
- Assemble all ingredients in a large freezer bag, reusable silicone bag, or meal prep container. Squeeze out air and freeze for up to 3 months.
- When ready to cook, thaw completely before cooking as indicated above.
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Video
Nutrition Information
© Sweet Peas & Saffron - Content and photographs are copyright protected. Sharing of this recipe is both encouraged and appreciated. Copying and/or pasting full recipes to any social media is strictly prohibited.
anika b says
We have made this multiple times a year ever since I found this recipe and just wanted to thank you…it’s absolutely delicious, filling, and my go-to when I have my vegan/vegetarian friends over (I use vegetable stock and it’s good to go!). I have given this recipe link to more than 20 people—everyone who tries it wants the recipe, even the meat-eaters. Thanks for sharing this deliciousness with us!
Tami Daniel says
So good - I’ve shared with multiple people including my mom!! I included the pepper but we love spice (it is spicy) but when topped with avocado and served with cornbread it’s the perfect spicy and sweet.
Jasmine @ Sweet Peas & Saffron says
Hi Tami, so glad to hear that you all enjoyed this slow cooker chickpea chili! Thank you so much for taking the time to leave a rating and review. 🙂
Patricia Floyd says
I love this recipe but unfortunately, it was way too saucy for me and my partner. We felt like we were eating straight tomato sauce! We made it again halving the amount of sauce, adding some red wine (or a little more veg stock) and we found it much better 🙂
Denise Bustard says
Hi Patricia! Thank you so much for your feedback, I really appreciate it!
Karey says
Scrumptious! An alternative tolime juice: freeze a lime whole. Fill bowls half full of chili. Make paper-thin slices of the frozen lime, add 4 per biwl. Add the other half of the chili, add toppings and serve. The lime fkavor realky pops the peels are crunchy, can be eaten or discarded.
Denise says
So happy you enjoyed, Karey! Thanks for reporting back 🙂
Coker family says
I have used this recipe a lot. A few tweaks I make is I never add salt and use low sodium everything as I do not feel it helps on flavor I like. I add in addition to the recipe: shelled edamame (I usually add to everything), can of drained black beans and a package of fake ground meat. To add additional liquid, I use extra broth and tomato’s. Also add extra garlic powder and Hawaiian hot chili powder for additional flavor.
Emily H says
I halved this recipe to fit in my 3 QT instant pot and YUM! The only adobo chili sauce I could find was in a can with chipotle peppers, so I added 2 tbs of sauce and one chipotle pepper from the can. Very spicy and roasty. Will make again!
Denise says
Hi Emily! Yay, so happy to find that a half batch works in the 3 quart. Thanks so much for taking time out of your day to leave a review 🙂
Joan says
My daughter's friend told her about this recipe. In an attempt to eat healthier she had given it a try and loved it. Since we eat plant based she suggested it to my husband and I. I'm so glad she did! This recipe couldn't be easier. Love the smokiness of this dish. I used frozen garden tomatoes from the garden instead of canned. We have 80 Squash from our garden that I wanted to use so I decided to use some of the Kabocha Squash in your recipe. It worked very well. We added 2 full adobo chillies since we needed 🙂 the extra heat. I rated the recipe a 5 because of the flavour (2nd day is even better) , the ease of preparation, the readily available ingredients and because it's low fat, high in fiber and all round healthy.Thank you!
Denise says
Hi Joan! Oh I'm so happy to hear this! Now I want to try adding kobocha squash. Thanks so much for reporting back 🙂
Ciaran Moloney says
Hi. I came across this recipe and I must say I am very interested in giving it a try this weekend.
However, I'm confused. In the article you wrote "This slow cooker sweet potato chickpea chili is packed with healthy and flavorful ingredients: chickpeas, sweet potatoes, tomatoes, carrots, and chipotle peppers". Yet in the list of ingredients, there's no mention of chipotle peppers?
To add to my confusion, I then continued scrolling down to the the comments and in a reply to a comment posted by Sara Mattson, you referred to a 1/2 can of peppers. So I went back up to the list of ingredients and again I found there was no mention of peppers of any kind?
Denise says
Hi Ciaran, sorry for any confusion. This recipe has been modified from the original (as stated at the top of the post) as some people found it way too spicy. The recipe card calls for: "4 tablespoons adobo sauce for less spicy version + 1 chopped chipotle pepper (for spicy)" Adobo sauce is the sauce that comes in a can of chipotle peppers. Hope that clears this up!
Leslie says
I put everything in but the sauce and I added a whole chicken because we like poultry. It is simmering now and it looks delicious but I think it might be more like half chicken soup and chili together because it is thinner than chili but it smells awesome. I will let you know how it turned out. I had an awful time finding chickpeas though so I bought the dried ones and had to soak them for several hours.
Denise says
Hi Leslie, let me know how it goes, I've definitely never added a whole chicken to a chili recipe before and am totally unsure of how that would affect the cook time/liquids. Hopefully it worked out for you!