Fall is in the air, and this Chorizo Chili with Roasted Tomatoes and Squash incorporates the harvest flavours into a delicious hearty meal.
Spicy chorizo sausage, white beans, diced tomatoes, and squash. The perfect comfort food. Great for batch cooking too.
With summer winding down, it’s time to get all the comfort food recipes lined up. I happen to think this is the most flavourful time of year.
RECIPE and INSTRUCTIONS for this chorizo sausage chili can be found at the bottom of this post.
Don’t get me wrong, I am a summer girl to the core. There is just something so satisfying with soups, chilis, and pumpkin lattes.
If you have a Farmer’s Market near you, now is the time to scoop up some great produce. Grab those fresh bushel baskets of produce while you can. One of my favorite things to make this time of year is roasted tomatoes. This freezer-friendly method is just what you need for great meals all year long.
Easy to make meals, hearty satisfying, and totally delicious. Wrapping your hands around big oversized mugs. Sitting by the fire. That is in store for the next few months.
What You Need For This Chorizo Chili Recipe
- Fresh Tomatoes – I like to use Roma, but all kinds will work here.
- Butternut Squash – you can really use any squash variety you like. This is the perfect time of year for finding them.
- Fresh Chorizo Sausage – not the cured variety.
- Poblano Pepper – easily found at the grocery store beside the other peppers.
- Onion – white, yellow, red, spanish, whatever you have on hand.
- Garlic – fresh is best, but dried cloves work well.
- White Kidney Beans – if don’t have them, you can use red kidney beans, or even chickpeas.
- Seasonings – salt, pepper, chili powder cumin, or even a Mexican blend will be delicious.
- Oil – olive or avocado. I also used some jalapeno flavoured oil for added heat.
- Lime and Cilantro – for garnish.
There is lots of wiggle room with this delicious chorizo recipe. Don’t fret if you are missing an ingredient. Swap it out for something else. I promise it will be delicious.
Making Spicy Chorizo Chili Is Easy
Who doesn’t love a big bowl of beef chili? Easy and satisfying is the name of the game. This recipe is just that. Everything you need to know is in the recipe card below. Here is a quick rundown:
First, you need to roast the tomatoes. Wash, cut, season with salt and pepper, coat in oil, and place in a baking dish. This will take about 50 minutes. While the tomatoes are roasting, you can work on the rest of the recipe.
In a large pot, cook the fresh chorizo along with the onions and garlic. I just cut the sausage into chunks. You can remove the casing if you like. Once cooked you will want to drain any excess fat from the pot.
Next, you will add the seasonings, diced squash, and flavoured oil if you are using it. Cook for about 15 minutes.
By this time, the tomatoes should be ready to come out of the oven. Let them cool for a bit and use a blender (regular or immersion) or potato masher to break them up slightly.
Add them to the pot, along with the beans. Bring to a boil, reduce and simmer for about 30 minutes.
Ladle into bowls, garnish with a squeeze of lime and dig in. Serve it with chunks of homemade cornbread or tortilla chips.
Different Types Of Chorizo
This pork sausage is available in three forms:
- raw/fresh
- semi-cooked
- fully cooked
The very popular Spanish chorizo is readily found in the grocery store, in the cured meat section. Since it is fully cooked or cured, you can eat it like ham or salami.
Lots of paprika gives it a red colour. It has a smoky flavour and it can be spicy or mild. It works great in recipes like slow cooker spicy kale soup.
Mexican chorizo is usually raw/uncooked, seasoned with vinegar and chili peppers. Generally, it is less smoky in taste. Look for it in the fresh meat section near other sausages like Bratwurst, Italian, Andouille, and breakfast.
Substitutions
However you mix and match, it’s pretty hard to mess up a great chili recipe.
- Beans – Red kidney beans, chickpeas, Romano beans, and black beans are great choices.
- Seasonings – different types of chili powders and blends all work in this chili recipe.
- Squash – any variety will work. You an even use sweet potatoes.
- Sausage Meat – if you cannot find fresh chorizo, any fresh sausage will work. Spicy Italian is a great substitute.
- Onions – any variety works.
- Poblano Pepper – you can also use jalapeno (remove the seeds if you don’t want all the heat).
- Fresh Tomatoes – all kinds work.
This makes a nice big batch. I did manage to tuck some away in the freezer, although it was so good we wanted to eat all of it! Comfort food heaven.
More Great Comfort Foods
Looking to try more great Fall recipes? Here are a few of our favourites:
- Roasted Pumpkin Soup is made in the blender. Super easy!
- Roasted Cauliflower Soup uses spicy paprika to heat things up.
- Orange Cauliflower Soup combines curry for a nice satisfying main dish meal.
- Sausage and Apple Stuffed Squash is great on the Thanksgiving dinner table.
- Roasted Squash Slices only require 4 ingredients. The perfect fall side dish.
Chorizo Chili With Roasted Tomatoes
Ingredients
- 8 cups fresh Roma tomatoes (roughly cut)
- 4 cups butternut squash (cubed)
- 1 ½ pounds chorizo sausage (fresh not cured)
- 1 tablespoon poblano pepper (seeded and diced)
- 1 tablespoon onion (diced)
- 3 cloves garlic (minced)
- 19 ounces white kidney beans (drained and rinsed)
- 1 ½ teaspoons jalapeno flavoured olive oil
- 1 tablespoon olive oil (for roasting tomatoes)
- 1 teaspoon cumin (or to taste)
- ½ teaspoon chipotle chili powder (or to taste)
- ½ teaspoon salt
- ¼ teaspoon pepper
- lime and cilantro (for garnish)
Instructions
For the Roasted Tomatoes:
- Preheat oven to 400º F. Wash and ยผ cut tomatoes. Place in a large baking dish. Coat with oil, and season with salt and pepper.
- Roast for approximately 50 minutes, turning every so often. When they are done, let cool slightly and blitz in blender to break them up.
While tomatoes are roasting:
- In a heavy bottomed pot, heat the olive oil. Add the diced onion and garlic. Cook for about 10 minutes. While this is cooking cut up the sausage.
- Add the sausage to the onion/garlic mixture. Cook for 20 minutes. Drain any excess fat from the pot. Add the seasonings (chili powder, cumin).
- Add the diced squash and jalapeno oil. Cook for 15 minutes.
- Add the roasted/blitzed tomatoes and beans. Season with salt and pepper.
- Reduce heat to medium/low, cover and simmer for 30 minutes.
- Ladle into bowls. Garnish with a squeeze of lime and cilantro.
Joanna @ Everyday Made Fresh
Living in Florida, I LOVE winter! It’s probably the fact that we don’t get a real winter. A few years ago we went to visit family in Indiana in November, the highs were in the 20’s while we were there, and I loved every minute of it. This looks like a great meal to have as the weather changes, love the addition of the fall flavors.
Homemade & Yummy
This is a favourite of ours……and you already ready know I don’t like winter….but comfort food season is delicious.
Linda Carmical
It’s absolutely hysterical. Every recipe I see surprises me. This one was an, “Oh boy” gotta try this. There’s a chili freak in the house that would love this!
Homemade & Yummy
Well I hope you enjoy it as much as we do.
Aish Das-Padihari
This looks like a hearty meal for fall evenings. I love chili either meatless or meat in it. Great recipe.
Homemade & Yummy
Yup you can never go wrong with chili as far as I’m concerned.
Veena Azmanov
Now this is comfort food! I love the combination. Some of the most amazing flavors in this recipes. The squash, tomatoes.. with all that chorizo – yum!
Homemade & Yummy
Yup this is a keeper for sure.
Marisa Franca @ All Our Way
I love the different ingredients in your chili. The squash I bet gives it a delicious sweetness and the chorizo a great spicy taste. This will be perfect for when you come in from snow shoeing with Hubby!! I’m in your camp — I hate winter!! I’m afraid if I were in your “shoes” I’d be back to the house in record time enjoying something hot. Fall is my favorite season — all the fruit and veggies are great. Can’t wait for the comfort food!!
Homemade & Yummy
HAHAH….well trying to enjoy the winter at some point in my life is a challenge for sure….better late than never. However….staying in the house will always win for sure.
Emily
Squash and chorizo are the perfect combo, I absolutely love the sound of this!
Homemade & Yummy
We LOVE this chili version….so nice and spicy.
Mary
I love your flavor combination of sweet and spicy in your chili. It’s been so hot here, I can’t wait for it to cool down so I can start making all the delicious comfort foods, like your chili!
Homemade & Yummy
I wish I could say the same for the weather. This week has been better than ANY week in the summer.
Bintu (@recipespantry)
This dish looks packed full of flavour. Love it! But it has a nice heat
Homemade & Yummy
You can make this a spicy as you like. Hope you give it a try.
Fred Nonterah
This does look like a hearty meal, I would add a little more heat. Summer over here in San Diego has been unusually hot and humid. Hope you have great fall weather in the Northeast.
Homemade & Yummy
That is the beauty of these kinds of dishes….alter them to your heart’s content!!
Helene D'Souza
I am in love with all the flavors in your chorizo chili. unfortunately we don’t get the spanish or portugues chorizo here (not sure what you get in the US). There is a local chorizo here in Goa but I am not sure if it would suit the flavors, it’s quite spicy.
Homemade & Yummy
Well if you like spicy….and the chorizo you can get…I think it would work just fine!!
Jeni @ Biscuits & Booze
Our summer here in Tennessee has been equally wet and mild. And I am ALSO not a fan of winter. I grew up in Fl so I just don’t get all that grey cold ick. BUT! I am a huge fan of fall, and this recipe is part of why I love it! I am going to try it with some veggie chorizo. It looks so yummy and we are all about comfort food ๐
Homemade & Yummy
Yes….I don’t like the cold weather, but I sure LOVE the food that goes along with it.
Julia
Cold and rainy summer is not cool no matter where you live but at least you can now enjoy some beautiful sunny days! Chili is such a great comfort food! Love this one with chorizo (my favorite) and roasted tomatoes!
Homemade & Yummy
The roasted tomatoes really make this dish great.
Kaitie
What a festively fall recipe! I love this twist to on classic comfort food
Homemade & Yummy
So much fun to experiment in the kitchen, and with comfort food you can never have a bad dish.
Emma @ Supper in the Suburbs
I LOVE chorizo! Would eat it at every meal if I could – now why have I not paired it with squash before?! Great idea!
Homemade & Yummy
Well…I hope you give this a try soon.
Sarah Newman
Ooh I can’t wait to make my first batch of chili this season! Love how you included butternut squash. Yum!
Homemade & Yummy
Yup…this is a winner in our house for sure.