Coconut Milk Chili With Sweet Potatoes & Chickpeas
Coconut milk chili is packed with nutrients from sweet potatoes, chickpeas, lentils, peppers, and corn! Skip the cheese and yogurt garnish to keep it vegan.
Heat the oil in a large deep-sided skillet over medium-low heat. Add the chopped onion and garlic to the pre-heated oil and cook until they are fragrant, and the onion is translucent, about 4 to 5 minutes.
Add the ground cumin, dried oregano, salt, sugar, and chili powder to the pot. Cook for 1 minute.
Add the vegetable stock and chopped sweet potato. Increase the heat to medium-high and bring everything to a light boil. Reduce the heat once again and keep the chili at a lively simmer for 18 to 20 minutes, stirring often.
Add the chopped red pepper, crushed tomatoes, chickpeas, lentils, coconut milk, and corn to the pot. Continue to simmer for 5 to 7 minutes.
Sprinkle the cornmeal into the chili and stir. Continue to simmer for 5 minutes to thicken. Remove the chili from the heat and stir in two handfuls of chopped cilantro stems and leaves. Serve the chili hot, garnished with plain yogurt and shredded cheese, or your other favourite chili toppings.
Notes
To Store—I always store chili in the fridge, in the cooking pot with the lid on top, for the first night. That way we can still easily help ourselves to a small bowl if a craving strikes. After the first day, I portion the chili into glass serving containers with lids and keep a few in the fridge. The chili will keep, stored this way in the refrigerator, for up to 5 days.To Freeze—After a couple of days, when we're tired of eating chili constantly, I place the portioned-off sealed containers in the freezer. The chili will keep in the freezer for up to 3 months.To Reheat—To reheat chili directly from the freezer I let one of the containers sit on the counter for about 30 minutes to take the chill off of the glass. I place the container in the microwave and either use the defrost option, or cook it for a few minutes at a time at half power. My partner Chris hates the microwave so he prefers to heat the chili gently in a pot on the stove until all of the frozen chunks are broken up and the chili is heated through.