30-Minute Chocolate Chili Recipe with Coffee and Black Beans (2024)

FAQs

What does coffee do to chili? ›

This is why adding coffee—or even beer—to your chili will produce a result that works. Using coffee in the mix adds all the subtle flavor notes you love—like the subtle hints of chocolate and cherry from Death Wish Coffee. Beer, meanwhile, incorporates a light, malty sweetness.

It adds richness, deeper flavor, and umami. In vegetarian or vegan recipes where there is no meat, unsweetened chocolate can be an especially important way to add that depth. The chocolate makes the ground chiles and other spices perk up and taste more like themselves.

If you're familiar with mole or Mexican hot chocolate, you know the power of chocolate and spice; adding cocoa to your chili boosts the flavors, allowing you to get the most out of minimal spices, without adding a noticeable chocolatey-ness.

Finely-ground espresso beans or espresso coffee are popular in chili for adding flavor - many competitive chili makers swear by it. If you do use beans, make sure they're ground well and add no more than 1/2 tbsp per liter.

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.

The brown sugar gave it a sweet/tangy flavor that reminded me of BBQ-sauce! Th chili was so good - it was hard to stop eating it! I did had some extra veggies (1 cl. garlic, 1 celery stalk, 1 carrot, 1 bell pepper, 1 hot pepper) and used a can of diced tomatoes rather than tomato juice.

Much like adding chili powder and other common chili spices, cinnamon is a super versatile spice that adds warmth without the heat to Firecracker chili.

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.

Using dark chocolate in this Chilli Con Carne recipe adds a delicious depth of flavour that enriches the dish.

The Chocolate Habanero pepper is a cultivar of the habanero chili, which has been selectively bred to produce spicier, heavier, and larger fruit, ultimately more potent than its derivative. Chocolate Habanero.

Should I put cocoa powder in my chili? ›

Cocoa Powder and Chili Go Very Well Together

That's especially the case for vegetarian and vegan chilis, when the hearty flavors from meat aren't part of the equation. The key is to reach for unsweetened cocoa powder and use it judiciously — for a typical batch, you'll only need a tablespoon or two.

I do add a little cocoa powder to chili, a teaspoon or two per pound of beef. I find this adds a mellow touch to the taste but is not identifiable as chocolate. Chocolate and chiles have a long relationship as in Mexican moles.

The best beans for chili are pinto, kidney, and black beans, like in this easy and tasty recipe. This 3-bean chili freezes great for meals later in the week. If you prefer thinner chili, add an extra can of tomato sauce. The green chiles are not hot and add a wonderful flavor, so don't be afraid to use them.

Cocoa powder adds a rich depth of flavor to chili. There isn't a prominent chocolate taste, just extra deliciousness from something that you can't quite pinpoint. Use unsweetened cocoa powder or cacao powder so it doesn't make the finished dish sweet.

During flowering and fruiting, it is also good to water your chillies with diluted liquid nettle tea fertiliser (dilute in a ratio of 1:10). This is easy to make yourself and provides the plant with extra nitrogen and potassium. Another sustainable method is fertilising with coffee grounds.

Add a tablespoon or two of instant coffee to your favorite chili. You will get a depth of flavor you didn't think possible. For the same reason, add some to a tomato- or red wine-based beef stew. Coffee plays so well with the savory meat and acidic-sweet tomatoes.

In fact, the opposite reaction is more likely to occur, where your coffee can actually enhance the spicy flavor. Why does this happen? While a cup of joe brings acidity instead of spice, both are strong flavors — so, when combined, they can easily saturate your tastebuds.

High-fat foods like nuts and nut butters can help dissolve the oils in capsaicin, making the spice feel less potent. Adding a scoop of nut butter can not only help neutralize excessive spice, but also adds protein, healthy fat and nutrients to whatever you're making.