If you know me, you know that I am pretty crazy about beans of all kinds. So when Kathy Hester first told me about her bean book last year, I got excited. I am still excited because the book is out now and it covers everything that you need to know about beans, their choosing them and cooking them. Kathy is an incredible recipe developer who manages to use beans in a huge variety of ways in very inventive recipes from breakfast through dessert. And the best part: all the recipes are vegan and include substitutions for how to make the recipes gluten-free, soy-free, nut-free and oil-free. Kathy covers it all.
I chose to make Vaquero Bean Tempeh Chili. One little issue is that currently there are no Vaquero beans available from one of my favorite bean sources, Rancho Gordo. So I substituted these beautiful Black Calypso beans. Here are some shots of what they look like dried, ready to be soaked and then cooked. You can see that the color gets muddy but I can tell you that their taste is still incredible. (You can substitute pinto or your favorite bean.)
I shared what I know about pressure cooking with Kathy for this book. So, I of course, pressure cooked these beans. It took 7 minutes at pressure for the presoaked beans with a natural pressure release.
For your information, one bag of beans is about 2 ½ cups of beans. I ended up with 7 cups of beans. I tell you, there is no other protein source that offers as much as a bean. Even if you buy heirloom beans at more than five dollars a pound, you get a lot for your money.
I used a Five Grain tempeh from Turtle Island, a can of organic tomatoes and organic tomato paste. I already had a few kinds of chili powder and used those to make this dish.
Some people might call me a hothead and indeed it might be true. It especially is when it comes to chili. This chili was too mild for me but would be great for anyone who doesn’t want much heat. Even my husband who doesn’t care much for hot food requested hot sauce. The hot sauce made the chili sing.
The recipe is very easy to make and does not require a lot of ingredients. Regarding the number of servings, I ate at least 2 servings and my husband ate 1, and I am sure that I have enough chili for another 6 meals. I think that this dish makes chili for 8 to 12 people. It will be a great dish to serve at a potluck or big party.
If I had any of Renee Comet’s wonderful photos you would see how incredible Kathy’s recipes truly look.
Kathy Hester is the genius behind this and honestly, I am blown away by the cookbook. I want to make the majority of the recipes but I cannot decide where to start. They span the gamut from breakfast beans to beany desserts and everything in between. The dishes run the spectrum from Indian to Jamaican and Mexican to French and Moroccan, focusing on traditionally vegan meals along with creative uses for beans (fudgesicles!). Since the meals typically call for cooked beans, they are mostly easy, quick dishes, too. Here are the chapters and a few sample dishes (a complete recipe list can be found here):
Vaquero Bean and Tempeh Chili
Ingredients
- 2 tablespoons olive oil *use water or broth
- 1/2 small onion minced
- 3 cloves garlic minced
- 8 ounces 225 g soy tempeh, diced (**use seitan)
- 6 cups 1500 g cooked Vaquero beans or 3 cans (15 ounces, or 420 g each) pinto or black beans, rinsed and drained
- 1 cup 235 ml water
- 1 can 14.5 ounces, or 406 g diced tomatoes or 1 1/2 cups (270 g) chopped fresh
- 1 tablespoon tomato paste
- 1 teaspoon chili powder
- 1 teaspoon pasilla chile powder
- 1 teaspoon oregano
- 1/2 teaspoon paprika
- 1/4 to 1/2 teaspoon chipotle powder
- Salt smoked or plain
- Vegan sour cream **or Cashew Cream for serving
Instructions
- Heat the olive oil in a large saucepan over medium heat.
- Add the onion and sauté until translucent, about 5 minutes.
- Then add the garlic and sauté for a few more minutes.
- Add everything else except the salt and sour cream.
- Cook over medium heat and turn to low as soon as it starts to simmer.
- Cover and cook for 30 to 40 minutes, until piping hot.
- Taste and season with salt. Serve topped with vegan sour cream.
Notes
Serving size: 1 1/2 cup Calories: 347.3 Fat: 8.4 Saturated fat: 1.4 Carbohydrates: 51 Fiber: 15.9 Protein: 20 Cholesterol: 0
jolina kryzjekowski says
jill
yes bean substitute if bean substitute be needed? Beans substitute beans are not beans good. I using not beans for beans but needed to know Jill what beans substitute beans beans?
The Peace Patch says
So many beans I’ve never heard of! Kathy’s book looks superyumful and I must checkout Rancho Gordo. Many thanks for sharing the recipe!
Annie says
I’m enjoying this cookbook so much! Haven’t tried the chili yet – it looks delicious!