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8 Healthy Substitutes for Beans in Chili

by Laura Fuentes

Aug 23, 2022
updated Jul 26, 2023

All the articles & recipes on this website have been created through real-life testing and experience (no ai) since 2010. This post may contain affiliate links. Please read our disclosure policy.

Have a favorite chili recipe but want to find a substitute for the beans in the chili? This post has you covered with several easy options where the outcome is just as delicious!

And if you’re not married to that recipe, I’ll also link several no-bean chili recipes that will have you coming back for more.

Best Bean Substitutes for Chili

Whenever you want to substitute beans in chili, there are two things to keep in mind: beans add volume to the chili, and they don’t shrink down when cooked. This is important if adding veggies like cauliflower that often reduce in size when finely chopped.

Here are my favorite bean substitutes for chili:

  • Ground meat: adding extra meat to a chili recipe is an excellent low-carb bean substitute for chili. You’ll want to add ½ lb of ground beef, turkey, or chicken per can of beans.
  • Chopped veggies: cauliflower, carrots, zucchini, and butternut squash are terrific too! Add 1 ½ cups of chopped veggies per can of beans.
  • Sweet Potatoes: cubed sweet potatoes are great and provide lots of nutrition in chili. Add one 6-inch sweet potato per can of beans, about 1 ½ cups cubed.
  • Tofu or tempeh: cube it small, and you have a high protein substitute for beans in your chili. 1 to 1 ½ cups cubed per can of beans.
  • Lentils: you can have lentils but not beans in your diet? No problem. add ½ cup dry lentils per can of beans and 1 ½ cups water to the pot to cook them.
  • Farro: farro is a whole grain that can be used in chili to add volume. I recommend cooking the farro separately and then adding it to the pot. 
  • Cooked Rice: add 1 ½ cups of cooked rice to the chili per can of beans. 
  • Mushrooms: dice them in slightly bigger pieces and add 1 ½ cups of mushrooms per can of beans. 

Chili Recipes without Beans

Want to skip the figuring out and substitution process? I’ve got you covered with this list of chili recipes without beans. From paleo chili to keto chili to chili cooked in the slow cooker, you’ll find one or more recipes to add to your menu, I’m sure!

  • Keto Chili
  • Paleo Chili
  • Ground Turkey Chili
  • Slow Cooker Low Carb Chili
  • Red Chicken Chili
by Laura Fuentes

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