As a Native Texan, I grew up loving meat. However, my soul is Coloradan and as I have adapted to my new home, I have focused more and more on living that Colorado healthy lifestyle. Part of that has been a reduction of meat and in an increasing focus on vegetarian alternatives. This is my take on a 3 bean vegetarian chili that is super high in protein and very tasty.
What's Cooking At Pinnacle House?
More Vegan Options.
Beans. Beans. And more Beans. Over the past year, I have worked diligently to transform my diet. You see. Weight control has actually always been a problem for me. Throughout my life, I’ve explored everything from Atkins to Keto (rebranded Atkins) to intermittent fasting to a Vegan diet. Which is best? Whichever is best for you! And whichever diet you will stick to that is compatible with your goals.
Why more plant based?
At Pinnacle House, we have a large breadfruit tree conveniently located right in our backyard. The tree has successfully produced breadfruit for years. Breadfruit is a bit difficult to work with because of its high latex content. Which usually means that to slice it you need to oil your hands and knife. A dangerous combination when dealing with a sharp object.
In the Bay Islands of Honduras, breadfruit is typically sliced like a pineapple then deep fried. Its is absolutely delicious as l long as it remains hot. The following recipe is a combination of recipes I found online but then modified to use more local ingredients. A jalapeño pepper could easily be substituted for the mutton pepper below.
Why I Created This Recipe.
The biggest challenge of my new diet is getting sufficient protein to support hypertrophy (gaining muscle) while not eating a ton of calories. While I do still enjoy meat a few times a week, I try to keep my diet approximately 80% or higher plant based. This creates challenges. So, I created this recipe as a healthy high protein dinner on heavy lifting days. Beyond Beef is not available to my knowledge in Guanaja but can be purchased at Eldon’s in Roatan. Enjoy!
Ingredients:
- 8 cups Vegetable broth
- 1 package beyond beef
- 2 cups black beans
- 2 cups red beans
- 2 cups pinto beans
- 1 onion
- 2 bell peppers
- 6-8 gloves garlic minced
- 1 small can tomato paste
- 1 can diced tomatoes
- 1 can mushrooms
- Cilantro (1/4 cup dried, half a cup fresh)
- 2 mutton peppers (or to taste)
- 3 tablespoons chili powder
- 1 tbs. cumin
- 2 teaspoons salt
- 2 tsp coriander
- 2 tsp cocoa powder
- 2 tsp garlic powder
- 1 tsp paprika
- 1 tsp soy sauce
- 2 tablespoons oil for sautéing beyond meat
Steps:
- Soak the beans in a large pan with two inches of water covering for 4-6 hours I also generously salt the beans in the pan.
- Drain and rinse beans. Pour vegetable stock into large pot and stir in tomato paste. Warm stock and add all powdered spices, soy sauce and cocoa powder. Add beans. Bring to simmer and allow to simmer for 30 minutes.
- While beans are heating and beginning to simmer, dice onion, garlic, bell pepper, mutton pepper.
- While beans continue to simmer, in a large sauce pan, add Beyond Beef, onion, garlic, bell peppers, and mutton pepper. Sautee. I do this in stages. Onions first. Then a few minutes later garlic. Then Beyond Beef. After the Beyond Beef is separated and cooked a bit, add bell peppers and mutton peppers. As the final stage the canned mushrooms.
- Add undrained can of diced tomatoes to beans and add cilantro. Add beyond beef mixture. Allow to cook until beans are soft and tender. This usually takes an additional 15-30 minutes.
A Few Recipe Notes:
- I like my food spicy and this is spicy. You can safely reduce the chili powder to soften the spice.
- The mutton pepper adds a flavor I like and is native to the Bay Islands. But it could be omitted.
- How you add is not that important. So don’t feel compelled to follow my timing. But I think it creates a nice process and a good flavor.
- I made the recipe into 8 servings. But you could always divide into even more servings. Serve over rice or quinoa.
- The recipe freezes well. As I keep 2 servings and freeze the rest.
Nutritional Information.
The recipe makes 8 servings and this info is my approximate calculation per serving. Calories: 705. Fat: 13g. Carbs 106g. Fiber 26g. Protein 47.4g.
