Looking to Up Your Chili Game? Try One of These Inspiring Recipe Ideas (2024)

FAQs

How to elevate your chili? ›

Elevate with Extra Flavor

Elevate your chili recipe by adding an extra layer of flavor. Cocoa powder, bacon, cinnamon, ground coffee and tomato paste will all add a rich sweet & salty flavors that are sure to surprise and delight.

Winning chili must look good, smell good and taste good. Because the judging process takes a couple of hours, chili must retain its color, consistency, aroma, taste and afterbite while hot, warm, lukewarm and then cool in a styrofoam judging cup. The chili should be free of grease.

Sometimes after a long simmer, your chili will taste wonderful be maybe missing one little thing you can't figure out. Try a tad bit of vinegar or a squeeze of lime! The acidity in vinegar & limes bring a good roundness to the pot and binds all the flavors together.

More Secret Ingredients for Chili - Toasting Spices

Toasting the spices early in the cooking process before adding the liquid will provide more flavor to the stew. This process unleashes the aromatics in the ground spices. The spices will release more flavor by gently heating them in a bit of oil with the meat.

Make Sure Your Base Brings the Flavor Too

Instead of using plain water (please, never just use water), consider using stock, broth, or bone broth as your base to add richness and depth.

Stir some puréed pumpkin into your chili just after sautéing your aromatics (onions, garlic, etc...) and before adding any liquid. This will deepen and sweeten its flavor, making it a great balance for all the chile peppers and heat.

Chili cooks low and slow, so you need enough liquid to tenderize the meat and keep everything from drying out. That liquid should also add flavor to the chili, so use chicken, beef, or vegetable stock, or beer.

If you want more of a smoky flavor, add cumin, Spanish paprika, ancho chili powder, or a combination. If you are looking for more heat, add cayenne, crushed red pepper, or Hungarian paprika. If it's too spicy add a little brown sugar and some sweet paprika.

Spices: Freshly ground cumin is a must. If it's not fresh, then don't bother. Secret Ingredients & Technique: I like extra hot chili, so I round up all spicy ingredients. I cool it down by piling on lots of fresh fixins' including scallions, cilantro, and sour cream.

Texas Chili - Chuck

Most chili lovers will tell you that this is the ideal cut of meat for stew and chili. Chuck is initially a very tough cut of beef, but when you consider the fact chuck is highly marbled, it turns out this is perfect for the low-and-slow way to cook the perfect Texas chili.

Why put white vinegar in chili? ›

You won't need much. With only about 1 tablespoon per pot added toward the end of the cooking process, the vinegar will make the flavors more vibrant without overwhelming the dish with its biting tang. Through just a splash, everything becomes a little brighter, and the chili's flavors are more balanced.

Mix in cocoa for a deeper flavor.

Sometimes canned chili can lack flavor, but Dunleavy said cocoa powder can add a new level of richness. "Similar to a mole sauce, unsweetened cocoa will deepen the flavor of chili," Dunleavy said. "You don't need much — start with a dash and add more if desired."

Add cooling toppings and fun extras

Little extras that you've taken time over, like finely sliced spring onions, green crescents of ripe avocado or diced red onion, lend it another layer of freshness and flavour by elevating its texture.