Low-FODMAP Chili

Michael Eisenwasser

Print Recipe

A thick, slow-simmered chili with ground beef, rinsed canned lentils, red bell pepper, carrots, and warm chili spices, finished with lime and cilantro.

Prep 15 min

Cook 1 hr

Serves 6

Gluten-free

Ingredients

Chili

• 3 tablespoons garlic-infused olive oil
• 1/2 cup scallion greens, thinly sliced (green tops only)
• 2 medium carrots, finely diced (about 1 cup)
• 1 medium red bell pepper, diced (about 150 g total)
• 1 1/2 pounds (680 g) ground beef (85/15)
• 1 1/2 teaspoons salt, plus more to taste
• 1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
• 2 tablespoons plain chili powder (check that it doesn't list onion or garlic)
• 2 teaspoons ground cumin
• 1 teaspoon smoked paprika
• 1 teaspoon dried oregano
• 2 tablespoons tomato paste
• 1 1/2 cups (300 g) canned diced tomatoes
• 1 1/2 cups (276 g) canned lentils, thoroughly rinsed and drained
• 2 cups water or low-FODMAP broth
• 1 bay leaf

To Serve

• 1 lime, cut into wedges
• 1/4 cup fresh cilantro, chopped
• 1/2 cup (about 40 g per serve) shredded cheddar
• 1/2 cup lactose-free sour cream

Instructions

Sweat the Vegetables

1. Warm the garlic-infused oil in a large Dutch oven or heavy pot over medium heat.
2. Add the scallion greens, carrots, and red bell pepper. Cook, stirring often, for 6 to 7 minutes, until the vegetables soften and the pepper loses its raw edge.

Brown the Beef

1. Push the vegetables to one side. Add the ground beef to the open space and break it apart with a wooden spoon.
2. Season with salt and pepper. Cook, stirring occasionally, for 8 to 10 minutes, until the beef is browned and any liquid has cooked off.

Bloom the Spices

1. Stir in the chili powder, cumin, smoked paprika, and oregano. Cook for 1 minute, stirring constantly, until the spices are fragrant and coat the meat.
2. Add the tomato paste and cook for another 1 to 2 minutes, until it darkens.

Simmer

1. Stir in the diced tomatoes, rinsed lentils, water, and bay leaf. Scrape up any browned bits from the bottom of the pot.
2. Bring to a gentle simmer, then reduce the heat to low. Cook uncovered for 40 to 45 minutes, stirring every 10 minutes or so, until the chili thickens and tastes more blended. Add a splash of water if it tightens too much.
3. Fish out the bay leaf. Taste and adjust salt and pepper.

Serve

1. Divide the chili into 6 bowls. Top each with a squeeze of lime, a scatter of cilantro, shredded cheddar, and a spoonful of lactose-free sour cream.

Tips & Substitutions

• Rinse the lentils really well. Canned lentils are low at 1/4 cup (46 g) per serving after a thorough rinse. The canning brine carries FODMAPs that drain off with a good rinse under cold running water for at least 30 seconds. Don't skip this step. Unrinsed, the same lentils can be moderate to high.
• Do not swap in black, kidney, or pinto beans. Most beans can be moderate to high at typical chili portions because of their FODMAP content. Canned lentils and canned chickpeas (rinsed, 1/4 cup per serving) are usually the easiest option if you're keeping it low-FODMAP. If you increase the lentils, keep drained lentils to about 276 g total (roughly 1 1/2 cups drained, depending on brand) to stay at ~46 g per serving across 6 bowls.
• Use a plain chili powder blend. Many supermarket chili powders include onion powder or garlic powder. Read the label each time. The only ingredients should be ground chilies, cumin, paprika, oregano, and salt. Formulations change, so check before you buy. If in doubt, mix your own from ground chilies plus the cumin, paprika, and oregano already in this recipe.
• Red bell pepper stops at 75 g per serve. This recipe uses one medium pepper (about 150 g) across 6 bowls, which works out to ~25 g per serving — well under the limit. If you scale the pepper up, keep it under 75 g per serving.
• Use water or a low-FODMAP broth. Most supermarket broths contain onion and garlic. Use water, a certified low-FODMAP broth, or homemade stock made without onion or garlic. Water works fine here — the chili builds its own depth from the spices and tomato.
• Use infused oil without garlic solids. Garlic-infused oil is safe only when the garlic pieces have been strained out. Don't use bottled oil with whole or minced garlic still in it, and don't use chopped garlic in oil.
• Canned tomatoes cap at 1/2 cup per serve. The 1 1/2 cups here is well under the limit for 6 servings. If you stretch the pot to 4 servings, swap in 1 cup to stay safe.
• Use scallion greens and garlic-infused oil for the onion/garlic flavor. No white scallion bulbs, no yellow onion, no garlic cloves. The garlic-infused oil and scallion greens carry the aromatic base without the fructans.
• Use leaner beef if you know fat bothers you. 90/10 ground beef works fine here. Fat isn't a FODMAP, but a high-fat bowl can trigger IBS symptoms on its own.
• Double the batch and freeze. Chili freezes cleanly in 2-cup portions for up to 3 months.

Why This Works

Rinsed canned lentils are a low-FODMAP option at the listed serving size. Canned lentils, thoroughly rinsed and drained, are low at 1/4 cup (46 g) per serve. The canning process leaches FODMAPs into the brine, and rinsing washes most of it away. Dried lentils cooked from scratch sit higher and need a smaller serve, so the canned-and-rinsed route is both easier and safer here.

Red bell pepper, carrots, and scallion greens replace the onion base. A traditional chili starts with onion and garlic — both high-FODMAP. Diced red bell pepper (under 75 g per serve), carrots, and scallion greens cover the same sweet-aromatic role, and the garlic-infused olive oil carries the garlic flavor without the fructans.

Plain ground beef is the cleanest protein. Unseasoned ground beef is unlimited low-FODMAP. Pre-seasoned taco blends, chorizo, and most sausage meat include onion or garlic powder, so start from plain and build the seasoning yourself.

The spices add most of the flavor. Chili powder, cumin, smoked paprika, and oregano are all low-FODMAP at culinary amounts. Blooming them in the fat for a minute before the liquid goes in pulls out deeper flavor than stirring them into a simmering pot.

Lactose-free sour cream and hard cheddar are safe dairy toppings. Lactose-free sour cream sits at typical dairy serves, and hard cheddar is naturally low in lactose at about 40 g per serve. Together they give you the creamy-tangy finish a chili wants without the lactose load of regular sour cream.

Storage

Refrigerate the chili in a sealed container for up to 4 days. The flavor deepens overnight, so day-two leftovers are often better than the first bowl. Freeze in 2-cup portions for up to 3 months; thaw overnight in the fridge or reheat straight from frozen over low heat with a splash of water. Add fresh toppings (lime, cilantro, cheddar, sour cream) at serve time — they don't keep well mixed in.

Not sure about an ingredient? FODMAP Tracker includes a database of 1,000+ foods with FODMAP ratings to help you cook with confidence.