25+ Leftover Chili Recipes » LeelaLicious (2024)

FAQs

What secret ingredient will deepen the flavor of your chili? ›

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.

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.

Balsamic is uniquely qualified from a flavor perspective. When adding vinegar to your chili, a little goes a long way, so start slow and small and add as needed to taste. It's also important to note that vinegar will cook off, so to get the most impact, be sure to add the splash toward the end of the process.

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.

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.

Only Add Flavorful Liquids. Instead of adding water to your chili, add some more flavor with chicken or beef broth, red wine vinegar, Worcestershire sauce, or even beet or wine. Each one of these options brings out different notes and levels of sweetness that will enhance your culinary creation.

Cooking chili low and slow is the way to go

Although the internet abounds with recipes for quick-cooking chilis that take as little as 20 minutes (via MyRecipes), this stewed dish truly benefits from a longer cook time that will gently coax all the flavors out of the meat, legumes, vegetables, and spices in the recipe.

Cinnamon. The beauty of ground cinnamon is that it brings a warmth to your chili, without being spicy. It works well with other flavors commonly found in chili (like tomato, cumin and chile powder) so you only need a little bit to achieve the desired balance.

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.

A little bit of vinegar goes a long way, so as a rule of thumb, stick with 1 tablespoon of vinegar per pot. Our top picks are apple cider vinegar, red wine vinegar, balsamic vinegar, or sherry vinegar, though any kind of vinegar on hand will get the job done and give your chili the boost it needs.

What is my chili missing? ›

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.

There's some quick science going on here: Aromatics like onions, garlic, chiles, and spices release their volatile oils as they cook, and while they cool they continue to release. Meats release collagen as they cook, but when they cool down, they gelatinize and trap more of those aromatics.

Chillies freeze reasonably well, retaining most of their flavour and heat. Freezing is the best way to preserve fleshier chillies like Scotch Bonnets and Habaneros. To freeze chillies whole, spread them out on a baking tray so they are not touching, freeze and pop into a sealed bag or container.

We're all about adding some cocoa to your chili, especially in the early stages of cooking when you're blooming your spices, but I like to drop a few pieces of dark chocolate into the pot too.

Spices like black peppers, cinnamon, ginger and cumin add depth to foods. Aromatic vegetables, such as onions, garlic and pepper, add complexity to dishes without adding salt. Boost flavor with fruit, such as citrus juice and citrus zest.

Beef Broth: Provides liquid and enhances the beefy flavor of the chili. Crushed Tomatoes and Tomato Paste: Adds a rich tomato flavor and contributes to the chili's thick texture. Molasses: Offers a touch of sweetness to balance the heat and spices.