Slow Cooker Spicy Black Bean and Sweet Potato Chili

This nourishing, smoky vegan chili is perfect for cold weeknights. Mix everything in the slow cooker before the chaos of the day begins, then just toss in some frozen corn a few minutes before you’re ready to eat. As with any chili, toppings go far. Feel free to throw on what you have and what sounds good, like tortilla chips, cilantro or vegan cheese. The recipe calls for either coconut oil or vegetable oil. If you’d like a mild coconut flavor — which plays well with the orange juice in the chili — choose unrefined or virgin coconut oil. For a neutral flavor, choose refined coconut oil or any vegetable oil. Use one chipotle chile for a very mild chili, and four if you like yours very spicy. (Get the stovetop version of this recipe here.)

Ingredients

• 1 ½

  pounds sweet potatoes (4 to 5 small-medium or about 2 large), scrubbed and cut into 1/2-inch pieces

• 2

  (15-ounce) cans black beans, drained

• 1

  (28-ounce) can crushed or diced tomatoes, preferably fire-roasted

• ¾

  cup orange juice

• ¼

  cup coconut oil or vegetable oil

• 1 to 4

  chipotles from a can of chipotles in adobo, finely chopped, plus 3 tablespoons adobo sauce

• 2

  packed tablespoons light brown sugar

• Juice of 1 lime (about 1 1/2 tablespoons)

• 6

  garlic cloves, smashed and roughly chopped

• 2

  teaspoons ground cumin

• 2

  teaspoons garlic powder

• 2

  teaspoons onion powder

• Kosher salt and black pepper

• 1

  (10-ounce) bag frozen corn

• Sliced avocado and red onion, for topping

Preparation

1. In a 6- to 8-quart slow cooker, combine the sweet potatoes, black beans, tomatoes, orange juice, oil, chipotles and adobo sauce, brown sugar, lime juice, garlic cloves, and dried spices. Stir in 2 teaspoons salt, a generous amount of pepper and 1 cup water. Cook on low until the sweet potatoes are tender, about 8 hours. The chili holds well on the warm setting.
2. Just before serving, stir in the corn and let it warm through, about 5 minutes. Taste and add more salt and pepper if necessary. Top with avocado and red onion.