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.
Katie Youngs
I’m always looking for new chili recipes. This was delicious and everyone loved it!
Gloria Duggan | Homemade & Yummy
Hope you give this chorizo chili a try soon.
Toni
This is seriously hard to resist!! My family loved it and it was a huge hit!
Gloria Duggan | Homemade & Yummy
Thanks so much. So glad your family enjoyed this delicious chili recipe.
Marcellina
Oooh I just purchased some really nice fresh chorizo and was wondering what to do with them. Luckily I found your recipe – this is going to work perfectly!
Gloria Duggan | Homemade & Yummy
This chili recipe is the perfect place for that chorizo. ENJOY!
Nora
I love that you are adding chorizo! So, so delicious! Can’t wait to try it out myself!
Gloria Duggan | Homemade & Yummy
Chili is so delicious, and it is fun to switch things up.
Natalie
I love chorizo. It gives such a nice flavor to any dish. I will definitely make this. Looks very delicious, comforting, and perfect for cozy fall evenings.
Gloria Duggan | Homemade & Yummy
This chorizo sausage chili ticks all the boxes for sure.
Monica | Nourish & Fete
We’ve had really nice weather as soon as fall “officially” arrived, as well. How ironic! This looks fantastic, I’ve been on a big chorizo kick lately, so this looks extra tempting to me! What a terrific flavor combination.
Homemade & Yummy
Yes chorizo works so well for this recipe.
Julie
Maybe chorizo is how I can finally get my husband to eat squash, haha!
Homemade & Yummy
Well the two go great in this dish…give is a shot…he might be surprized!!
Christine
Looks delicious! Such a creative and fun idea to use chorizo in chili. Perfect for the upcoming cooler temps and fall!
Homemade & Yummy
Yes we will be making this again for sure.
Kimberly @ Berly's Kitchen
This is a wonderful, cold weather chili. We’re in Florida, so it doesn’t get “cold” here. We don’t make heavy, hearty meals too often, but when we do, it’s usually chili, stew, or soup. This sounds like a great one to try, especially with the chorizo. Yum!
Homemade & Yummy
Yes the chorizo really adds a lot of flavour…and so do the roasted tomatoes.
Donna
Oh no your summer sounds horrible! We had the total opposite, and I can’t wait for some rain as we haven’t had a drop in months. This chili looks just delicious, love the harvest flavors!
Homemade & Yummy
Summer WAS horrible….and now that Fall is officially here….we have had record breaking temperatures…even hotter than hot summer days. Go figure!!!!
Gunjan
This bowl is loaded with the goodness of fall ingredients. Looks so delicious and comforting.
Homemade & Yummy
It sure is full of flavour and a nice kick of heat too.
Marisa Franca @ All Our Way
I’ve never made chili using chorizo but there’s always a first time. I believe the spiciness of the meat would really compliment the sweetness of the butternut squash. Roasting the Roma tomatoes first enhances their flavor and makes the chili even richer and heartier. YUM. I hate winter but I look forward to the soups and stews!! Great recipe, Gloria!
Homemade & Yummy
Thanks so much. Yes I totally agree the roasted tomatoes add so much flavour…my freezer always has a great supply.
Abby @ WinsteadWandering
This recipe is such a fun, fresh take on regular chili. I’d love to get my hands on some if the weather ever turns cool.
Homemade & Yummy
We have had a heat wave this last week…and for the next few days. We will for sure be eating more of this when the weather cools down.
Kate
I love the flavors of fall, too! I just bought my first winter squash of the season and I am so excited!
Homemade & Yummy
Yes fall flavours are so good. ENJOY!!
mira
This looks amazing! Can’t wait to try it!
Homemade & Yummy
Hope you do. Let me know how you like it.