How do I make vegetarian chili thicker?!
How do I make vegetarian chili thicker?
I've been trying to make vegetarian chili but it always comes out too watery. What can I do to make it thicker like regular chili?
Answers:
You've already got some good answers. Here's mine: you make a roux by heating 5 TBSP olive oil in a heavy saucepan, add 5 TBSP flour ( now I add 5 TBSP chili powder and all my other seasonings) cook and stir this "paste" or "roux" over med-lo heat for a few minutes to bring out the flavors, being careful not to scorch it, then pour it into your chili--adjust amounts depending on how much chili you are making.
Also I use a can of refried beans instead of the roux which was already suggested in the form of putting beans in the food processor but a can of refrieds is easy easy easy--this tastes really good too--
boil and puree some potatoes, or make a roux or add some corn-starch mixed with veggie broth.
Add some masa- corn based flour that acts as a thickener. Mix 1/2 cup masa with 1 cup cold water and then add- it should thicken it up!
more lentils and tomatoes without juice :)
meat
Throw in a handful or two of Minute Rice.. the rice will soften up and be ready to eat when the pot of chili is done cooking.. and the rice will also absorb some of the loose liquid....thus tighening up the batch. I have used this method many times ... Manga!
Mash up some of the beans
A couple of things I do is:
Add boxed mashed potato flakes (quick & easy fix)
Add Boca burgers to it to give it a meat type substance - this makes it seem less runny
You can also rinse, then salt and let your veggies sit before you put them in the chili - this will dehydrate them a bit and cause less of their natural water to come out during cooking.
tomatoe paste
Take one or two cups of the beans you are going to add in the chili and food process them into a paste. Stir this back into the chili and it will be thicker. I do this with all the beans in my chili because my husband will not eat beans but what he doesn't know will not hurt him!
You can use Veggies that are cooked and blend them to a puree in blender or stick blender and add the veggies to the chili. Tomato paste is you best bet though.
There are a couple of suggestions here that will thicken the chili, but some of them will ruin the flavor. Using tomato paste for instance will do the trick, but it wont taste like chili.
Mesa flour is the way to go for several reasons. It will thicken the chili almost immediately and you dont have to use much. But the most important thing is that the corn flavor of the flour is part of most real chili recipes. So you are thickening the chili AND adding a classic flavor at the same time.
Rice, lentils, even beans are not included in classic chili recipes. )Although it's different for a veggi chili!) Go to chilicookoff.com to see some "competition" recipes!
Masa(corn flour) is added to thicken it. You can use Arrowroot, cornstarch, even pureed pre-cooked potatoes.
Another way is to strain out the liquid, & slowly reduce it down, then add it back in. This will also concentrate the flavors.
MAYBE SOME CORNMEAL??