Bean and Barley Chili

What a delicious bowl of chili. It's hardy and spicy, and the barley makes it thick and creamy. The best part? The dry and canned ingredients have long shelf lives and can be bought for a very low price. The other best part? The vegetables are all from the Guelph Farmers Market.

Bean and Barley Chili

What you'll need:

Vegetables

- 1 diced red pepper

- 1 diced onion

- 1 stalk celery

- 4 cloves of garlic, minced or finely chopped
- 650 ml vegetable broth* or water

Dry goods

- 1 can (540 ml) of black beans

- 1 can (540 ml) of molasses-style baked beans

- 1 can (540 ml) of kidney beans

- 1 can (796 ml) of diced tomatoes

- 1 can (540 ml) of diced tomatoes with chili spices

- 1 cup of barley

Spices

- Chipotle sauce

- Cumin

- Chili powder

- Paprika

- Cayenne pepper

- Salt & pepper

Garnishes (optional)

- Grated cheese

- Green onion

- Sour cream

Ingredients for Bean and Barley Chili

How to make it

1. Saute the vegetables in a large pot for a few minutes, until onions are translucent.

2. Add the canned goods and let simmer on low.

3. In a separate pot, prepare the barley according to package directions. We made it using vegetable broth for a bit of extra flavour, but making it with water would work just fine!

4. Add the barley to the bean, tomato, and vegetable mix and let the whole thing simmer until the vegetables and barley are cooked, and your apartment smells amazing.

5. Add the spices to taste.

6. Garnish with whatever you have at hand! Our chili turned out pretty spicy, so the sour cream helped to tone it down and make it creamy.


*I make my vegetable broth by boiling vegetable scraps, following this Tasty video.