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I’ve been making chili for as long as I can remember, but I never thought about making pumpkin chili until last fall. Ever since I’ve been completely obsessed with this recipe! I’ll be honest I was very skeptical at first mixing cinnamon into chili, but it turned about incredible. Something about cumin and chili powder mixed with cinnamon really works! This recipe is a fall favorite in my house and goes perfectly with my paleo cornbread recipe that really brings this meal to the next level. Try it out!
Pumpkin Chili Ingredients
Ground Turkey: I like to make this chili with ground turkey, but you can use any kind of ground meat you’d like, including classic ground beef, ground chicken, or even plant-based options like Beyond Meat.
Onion, Garlic & Peppers: Adding onion, garlic, and bell peppers to this recipe adds texture and great flavor to the chili. The key is to cook down the onion until soft and caramelizing to get that deep flavor before adding in the spices.
Sweet Potatoes: Adding sweet potatoes to this chili adds some extra substance to the recipe and takes advantage of the beautiful in-season produce this time of year. Be sure to cut them into very small pieces, no bigger than 1/2-inch cubes, in order to get them nice and soft.
Spices: The spices you’ll need for the chili include chili powder, smoked paprika, cumin, cinnamon, salt and black pepper. Do not skip the cinnamon, this is what will give you the pumpkin chili taste! Trust me on this one!
Kidney Beans: Red kidney beans are the typical bean used in chili, so that’s what you’ll want to use in this recipe. You could sub for another type of bean if you’d prefer, just follow the same cooking instructions.
Pumpkin Puree: We of course need pumpkin for pumpkin chili! While the pumpkin doesn’t actually add a ton of taste to the chili, the puree adds thickness and also gives you some great health benefits.
Crushed Tomatoes: A large can of crushed tomatoes is the main source of liquid for the chili. You could also use diced tomatoes, peeled tomatoes that you can break up with your hands, or even just tomato sauce if tomato pieces aren’t your thing.
Chicken Broth: Chicken broth also adds some extra liquid to the recipe. Depending on how you prefer the thickness of your chili, you can add less of more of the broth. Also, you can sub for vegetable broth or even water if you don’t have any on hand.
Baking Soda: If you’re wondering why you’d need to add baking soda to chili, here’s why: adding baking soda actually makes the meat more tender after the protein strands are tightened during the cooking process. Go science!!
How To Make Pumpkin Chili
Step One: Begin by fully cooking the turkey meat on a skillet with 2 tbsp of the avocado oil until browned all over. Once the turkey is fully cooked, set it aside to be added to the chili.
Step Two: In a large pot, heat the remaining 2 tbsp over medium-high heat. Add the chopped onion and sauté until the onions are soft and beginning to caramelize, then add in the minced garlic and chopped bell pepper.
Step Three: Sauté the onion, garlic and bell peppers for a few minutes, then add in the cubed sweet potato and stir to mix. Add in the chili powder, smoked paprika, cumin, cinnamon, salt and black pepper and stir again to coat everything with the spices.
Step Four: Reduce heat to medium and let the mix simmer for about five minutes, until the spices are aromatic. Then pour in the kidney beans, pumpkin puree, crushed tomatoes, and broth and mix again.
Step Five: Cover the pot and bring the chili to a boil. Let simmer for 20 minutes, until the sweet potatoes and kidney beans are tender to a fork, add in the cooked ground turkey, then reduce heat to low.
Step Six: Add in the baking soda and stir it into the chili. Let the chili sit on low until serving or store in the refrigerator in an air-tight container for up to five days or the freezer for a month.
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PUMPKIN CHILI (GF, DF, GRAIN-FREE)
4-6
servings20
minutes40
minutesGluten-Free, Grain-Free, Dairty-Free
I’ve been making chili for as long as I can remember, but I never thought about making pumpkin chili until last fall. Ever since I’ve been completely obsessed with this recipe! I’ll be honest I was very skeptical at first mixing cinnamon into chili, but it turned about incredible. Something about cumin and chili powder mixed with cinnamon really works! This recipe is a fall favorite in my house and goes perfectly with my paleo cornbread recipe that really brings this meal to the next level. Try it out!
Ingredients
1 lb ground turkey
2 tbsp + 2 tbsp avocado or olive oil
1 large yellow onion, chopped
3 garlic cloves, minced
1-2 bell peppers, chopped
1 large sweet potato, cubed (~1/4-1/2-inch cubes)
2 tsp chili powder
2 tsp smoked paprika
2 tsp cumin
2 tsp cinnamon
1 tsp salt
1/2 tsp black pepper
1 15oz can kidney beans
1 cup pumpkin puree
1 28oz can crushed tomatoes
1 cup chicken or vegetable broth
1 tsp baking soda
Directions
- Begin by fully cooking the turkey meat on a skillet with 2 tbsp of the avocado oil until browned all over. Once the turkey is fully cooked, set it aside to be added to the chili.
- In a large pot, heat the remaining 2 tbsp over medium-high heat. Add the chopped onion and sauté until the onions are soft and beginning to caramelize, then add in the minced garlic and chopped bell pepper.
- Sauté the onion, garlic and bell peppers for a few minutes, then add in the cubed sweet potato and stir to mix. Add in the chili powder, smoked paprika, cumin, cinnamon, salt and black pepper and stir again to coat everything with the spices.
- Reduce heat to medium and let the mix simmer for about five minutes, until the spices are aromatic. Then pour in the kidney beans, pumpkin puree, crushed tomatoes, and broth and mix again.
- Cover the pot and bring the chili to a boil. Let simmer for 20 minutes, until the sweet potatoes and kidney beans are tender to a fork, add in the cooked ground turkey, then reduce heat to low.
- Add in the baking soda and stir it into the chili. Let the chili sit on low until serving or store in the refrigerator in an air-tight container for up to five days or the freezer for a month.
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