This is everything one could want in a chili recipe. It is spicy and satisfying. Mexican seasonings are delicious with red lentil beans.This is a whole meal in itself or can be used as a side dish as well. There is plenty of protein here for that pick-me-up that we all need sometimes. 

Chili is a hearty fiery stew that originated somewhere in the ancient past. Nobody really knows where this concoction came into being. It was extremely popular with the cattle drive crowd in Texas. Easy to make on the run, so to speak, it was a protein packed satisfying meal for hungry cow hands.

     It originally consisted of meat,  beans, chile peppers, and herbs. The effects of capsicum kept life as spicy as the stew. Chile peppers were used by the Aztecs, Mayans and Inca Indians. 

     Chile peppers were introduced in New Mexico in 1598 and are still highly prized. Fire roasted, these are a tradition every year.

     In San Antonio, there were Mexican women called Chili Queens that would make chili at home and then take their colorful wagons to the town square every night. They would build mesquite fires to keep the chile warm and then light up the wagons with colored lanterns. Customers would sit on little wooden stools to partake.

    Kelly’s Mexican Chili is the raw vegan version of this classic. I mixed my own herb combination in my sun dried tomato recipe along with the lentils and chili seasoning.  Ole’!

​Mexican Chili

Ingredients:
2 cups red lentils
4 medium sized tomatoes
1 cup Kelly’s sun dried tomatoes
¼ tsp. red pepper
1 tsp. onion powder
1 tsp. garlic powder
2 tbsp. olive oil
¼ tsp. Himalayan pink sea salt
½ cup nutritional yeast
2 tbsp. agave
1 whole red bell pepper
1 jalapeno pepper
1 tsp. chili powder
1 cup chopped cilantro
¾ tsp. lemon juice

Directions:
Note: Prior to making this recipe the lentils must soak for 8 hours. So make sure to keep that in mind when you are planning to serve this dish. Start the day before because you will also need another 8 for dehydration. Place the lentils in a large bowl with 4 cups of filtered water.  Cover and let soak for 8 hours on counter at room temperature.

Place Kelly’s sun dried tomatoes into a separate bowl with ½ cup of filtered water. Cover and let sit on counter for 1 hour. Chop the red bell pepper into pieces. Remove the seeds from the jalapeno if preferred. Otherwise, for a much spicier chili, leave the seeds in.  Chop the jalapeno pepper into pieces. Take the 4 tomatoes and chop them into medium sized pieces. Place 4 tomatoes, lemon juice, onion powder, garlic powder, olive oil, salt, nutritional yeast, agave, chili powder, chopped red bell pepper, red pepper powder, and the chopped jalapeno pepper into a high speed blender. Blend until smooth.

Drain the water off of Kelly’s sun dried tomatoes and set aside. Drain the water off of the lentils and continue to rinse until the water runs clear. Add the lentils, contents of the blender, chopped cilantro, Kelly’s sun dried tomatoes, and hand mix. Take this mixture and place in a pie pan. Put the pan into the dehydrator for 8 hours at 115 degrees. Remove and serve.

 Serves 4 to 6 people. Will last in the refrigerator 4 to 6 days.  Bon Appetit!