Vegetarian Pumpkin Chili with Red Beans, Smoked Paprika and Cocoa

Step-by-step recipe

1. Pumpkin chili is usually served with boiled white rice, corn tortilla chips, or as a thick, goulash-like soup. I like the last option best. Choose a good ripe pumpkin with nice orange flesh. For the hot peppers, a mix of varieties with different heat levels is best. Cayenne, jalapeño, mild ones like padrón, or even some sweet bell pepper will all do; it's up to you.
   
2. Peel the pumpkin and scoop out the stringy center and seeds. By the way, I always warn: don't use a ceramic knife, pumpkin is a very hard vegetable. Cut the pumpkin into cubes. Peel and dice the onion. Heat 2 tbsp of olive oil in a frying pan and fry the onion until soft, then add the pumpkin. Cook the vegetables covered over medium heat until a knife tip easily pierces the pumpkin cubes.
   
3. Clean all the chili peppers for the dish and cut them into pieces; we usually cut them into thick strips or rings. Add the peppers to the pumpkin, stir and fry everything together for 4-5 mins so the peppers soften and release their heat into the dish. Add salt to taste, 1 tsp of smoked ground paprika, and ground cinnamon and nutmeg to taste. Also add ground cumin; you can add quite a lot, but go by your own taste.
   
4. Drain the liquid from the can of red kidney beans and rinse the beans under running water. Add the beans to the pumpkin chili. Blend the crushed tomatoes or just squash them by hand, then add them to the pan. No need to add water: the tomatoes give enough liquid. But if you want the dish more like a soup, add a little water or vegetable stock.
   
5. Bring the chili to a boil, turn the heat down to medium and cover the pan. Simmer gently for about half an hour, so all the vegetables become very soft and the flavors and aromas come together. At the same time, all the pieces should keep their shape. At the very end, add ground chili to taste to adjust the final heat. Also add 1 tsp of cocoa powder: it's optional, but very tasty. In 2-3 mins the dish is ready.
   
6. Spoon the chili into bowls; earthenware ones are perfect. Before serving, sprinkle the chili with finely chopped cilantro. You can add tortillas or corn tortilla chips. It's often served with a little sour cream. If the dish is thick enough, you can serve it with boiled rice.
   
7. Whether to use beans is up to you: there are plenty of opponents and supporters of beans in chili. For me, they improve the taste and make it more nourishing, since beans are high in protein. Fire-roasted tomatoes instead of canned ones can give it a special flavor. Many lovers of spicy food don't hold back on the kinds and amount of chili; it's all up to you.