Adding Dark Chocolate To Your Chili Isn't As Wild As It Seems — Here's Why

Dark chocolate is usually linked to sweet mocha coffee drinks, desserts, and bonbons. However, adding a dash of cocoa to your pot of sizzling spicy chili isn't such a bad idea. This unconventional ingredient may have some people raising their eyebrows, but it's actually a pretty normalized practice in Mexico. Because chocolate comes from cocoa beans, it is not naturally sweet until you add sugar. Therefore, when cocoa powder is unsweetened, it is a delicious way to enhance your chili. Dark chocolate is also more bitter than milk or white, therefore it can give a more nutty and umami flavor to the chili.

Mixing unsweet baking chocolate or powder into pots filled with beans, tomatoes, onions, chiles, ground beef or soy meat, and sour cream will intensify the dish. It will enrich the savory flavors, ensuring that the meaty taste and the spices are magnified. For vegan chilis, chocolate brings out a nice twist and will add faux-beefy flavor to the meal. Just a tablespoon goes a long way. It's best to add the chocolate after the chile spices and the onions in your pot have been sizzling and letting them roast together. Once those have cooked, pour in water, beans, and the tomatoes and mix it all up.

Introducing different ingredients will heighten chili in distinct ways. Using Mexican chocolate in your dish is another mouthwatering method. The cinnamon-and-spice dark cocoa is already very picante and will provide a more fiery kick to the chili. Because its earthy flavor profile is less saccharine than milk chocolate, the bowl will taste caramelized when paired with the chili's already blossoming amount of spice.

Alongside the spoonful of cocoa, putting a sprinkle of cinnamon  into the boiling chili pot is also a delectable idea. The cinnamon can cut the acidity from the chiles and the tomatoes, giving the bowl a touch of sweetness without the added sugar. Its elusive velvety but warm taste can give the chili a delicate and strong aroma. To be extra dramatic, adding toppings such as shredded cheddar, avocado slices, pineapple cubes or sweet potato chunks to your chocolate-enhanced soup is chef's kiss.