How do you make your chilli extra nice?

[TrillianSlasher]

Basic recipe is onion, garlic, mince, tomatoes, kidney beans, chilli flakes.

What extras do you add?

This is starting to sound like a list of 'everything that is in my kitchen and brown'.

lol trill

Cumin - a spoon when frying the meat

Sugar - a pinch when adding tomatoes

Lime/Lemon juice - 5 minutes before fully cooked

Chopped fresh coriander - to add to the plate

Optional: /dash of tabasco/grated cheese/plain yoghurt/sour cream

I make mine with jalapeno peppers instead of chilli flakes

itsmelord if you are adding 2 tspn of chinese five spice then you are not making chilli con carne, you are making Chinese spicy mince. Totally different thing

The real chillis I have are tabasco and thai red. I think flakes is safer. Whoever said that powder tastes different is right.

Honestly, it is chilli, tastes right and everything.......

Look, it's easy Trill. Mine is clearly the best.

Cumin and oregano are essential to stop it being, as someone said, hot bolognese. I also add paprika and, once the tomatoes are in, a good glug of dark soy sauce. Someone on another forum tipped me off about this and it adds a good richness of flavour.

Also second the lime - sometimes towards the end of cooking I squeeze half a lime in and then drop the shell into the mix to stew a bit. Remember to take it out before serving though, a friend once ate it thinking it was a pepper

Delia does a nice Avocado Salsa to serve with it as well-

Chopped avocado, red onion, chilli, coriander, lime, tomato.

How does oregano stop is being hot bolognese? I would think oregano would make it more like bolognese.

Glad to see I've stirred up a hotbed of disagreement

Oregano with cumin, lime juice, paprika etc.

A square or two of really dark, good chocolate. Don't laugh, it really makes a difference.

The rest of the chocolate, obviously, belongs to the cook as reward for their magnificent cooking

You have all made me crave chilli for tea tonight.

No oregano.

Cumin yes.
Tomato puree to make it rich.
Sometimes I caramalise the onion.

I like the idea of the lime, never done that before, will try that next time.

Thansk for all yur suggestions.

I definitely have cumin and worcester sauce (or balsamic vinegar) and tomato puree. I may have some cocoa powder too. Don't want to add too many extra ingredients, I'm not convinced they would all mix.