Chili with Chipotle and Chocolate

My absolute favorite chili recipe. The dark chocolate at the end really adds an extra dimension to the taste. We do use ground beef in place of the ground turkey. I make it several times a year and it is always hearty and just what we need on a cold day. The leftovers are even better than the day of. It is always too much for us to finish even with leftovers so I freeze half of it to warm up on the nights I don't feel like cooking. I have also made it a dip for super bowl parties. Add fritos scoops and its a crowd pleaser. I totally recommend this recipe.

I’ve used this recipe as my base in Texas Chili Cookoffs. I do not add unsweetened coca instead I add chopped dark chocolate at the end of the cooking process. I used fire roasted crushed tomatoes instead of diced, chicken stock instead of broth. My Chili powder blend originates from Chimayo NM. I’ve placed in the top 5 several times out of 15 up to 35 entires. This recipe is a winner.

This is a very good chili recipe, but not really sure why there is sugar added, unless it is to appeal to those with a 

'sweet tooth'.  The sugar itself is responsible for 5 carbs per serving, so if you are carbohydrate conscious, you probably want to rethink adding sugar to this.

All these varying reviews speak to the difference in people's taste buds. I have made this a couple of times, with the latest time being this week and I had leftovers tonight. With every bite, I almost couldn't believe how good it was!! I made it exactly according to the recipe, and the flavors are simply overwhelming! I LOVE it!!

Thought this was very good for a relatively low calorie recipe! Will make again. As done by others, I used 3 tablespoons of the unsweetened cocoa instead of using unsweetened chocolate, mainly because I didn't want to buy additional chocolate. At some point, I may try exactly as written. We didn't find it too spicy at all, but we live in New Mexico :-)

Excellent, but you can really leave out the unsweetened chocolate - it's an extra expense and at least for me, didn't add much of anything, while for others it seemed to ruin the dish.

I wish I had read the reviews about adding more cocoa instead of the chocolate. I followed the recipe to the letter, and those 2 ounces of chocolate at the end ruined this for me. This tasted so chocolatey, not at all like any kind of chili. Will not make again.

This recipe is inedible.

Just made this but cut it in half as a sampler to start... I really like it so add an extra chipotle pepper ,also didn't have chocolate so added just coco.Will serve this to company and family this weekend

Terrible. Thew it all out!

Delicious and different, and definitely a keeper. I only made a couple of minor changes: I used 1 can of no-salt-added pinto beans and 1 of no-salt-added black beans as that's what I had, and ended up with probably 2.5 chipotle chiles instead of 2. The flavor of the chocolate was rather predominate (but a nice variation on regular chilies); after a day or 2 the flavors melded and the chocolate flavor mellowed to become part of the overall flavor. Served with a green salad. A note to reviewer AnnafromEurope: The 2 oz. of chocolate is equivalent to 56 grams, not 560! That might resolve the problem you were having with the calorie information.

Hearty and fairly easy to throw together. I didn't have unsweetened chocolate so used about 2 ounces of a Hershey bar. Still good and no one complained. I also prefer using fire-roasted tomatoes.

Yummm, we all loved this. I was afraid it was going to be too spicy, but it was fine. Definitely has a kick to it, but not crazy hot. Looking foward to leftovers again tonight. Served with some shredded cheddar cheese as well.

Love Love Love this recipe. The complex flavors of the chili and chocolate remind me of a mole sauce. We add a bit of extra chili powder and chlpolte pepper. After I prep the meat and vegetables, I put the whole thing in the crock pot and let the flavors simmer 6 - 8 hours. I add the final chocolate about 30 min before serving and let some of the extra liquid evaporate off..

Apologies to those who hate reviewers who alter the recipe, but I get good ideas by reading the suggestions. After reading the reviews, I halved the cocoa and chocolate, and ended up adding it back in! I wonder if they used sweetened? Which would be gross. I halved the chili powder (couldn't find ancho) and was happy with the result. I also added a flour slurry as another reviewer suggested. I removed most of the seeds from the chilies. I thought it was really good and can't wait for husband to try it. Can't wait to see how it evolves overnight too. I added 1/4 lb. ground venison, just so I could list it as an ingredient, and am entering it in the 'most creative' category in the cook-off tomorrow!! We'll see! Tied for second place!

This was good, but rather bland without modifications. I cut down on the chocolate, added some white vinegar, a small can of stewed and sliced tomatoes, and a healthy dash of cinnamon. Definitely better on day two - make it ahead and reheat.

My husband said this is the best chili I've ever made. He happens to love chipotle, though so I am guessing that makes a difference. If you don't like that flavor or are looking for a run-of-the mill flavored chili, don't make this recipe. One tip on making it not quite as spicy - remove the seeds from the chipotle pepper before adding to the chili.

The chocolate was far too overpowering for me. I like spicy and it was also too spicy (though it mellowed out a bit with the sour cream). I love the idea of putting chocolate and chili together, but going to try another recipe to see how it goes.

Overall this is good chili. I had to substitute a can of green chilis for bell pepper because it was the one ingredient I did not have on hand. I used 1 pound of dried pinto beans cooked and about 1.75 pounds of ground turkey. Other than these changes, I followed the recipe. My 2-star rating is because there is at least twice as much sugar in this as needed. We added 1 tablespoon of vinegar and then almost 1/4 cup of lime juice and about 1 teaspoon of salt and still couldn't eliminate the sugary taste to our satisfaction. Also, I think the chipotle chili overpowered the other flavors. I found the chocolate flavor pretty subtle and interesting so I will probably try this again but will start by reducing the sugar to less than 1 tablespoon and the chipotle by 1/2.

If you expect a " regular" chili, this won't do for you. But we like the favors in this. it's quicker & easier than traditional chilis and different.

The first time I made this I probably would have given it 5 stars. I did not have unsweetened chocolate in the house that time & so only used the cocoa powder. We all loved it. This time I made it properly. Too chocolate-y and I love chocolate! I am hoping if I add some tomato sauce or something today I can make the flavor a little less intense. It was unique as a one time trial, but definitely had the flavor of a mole sauce. A bit too rich to eat as is, unless you were serving it over rice or noodles or something. I will probably make it again, but it will definitely not be my go-to chili recipe for a family dinner.

Trust me on this recipe-- it is absolutely horrible. One other poster nailed it: bland except for the heat, which simply makes it blazing bad. The chili has NO taste that rings true of any chili I've ever tasted, (except for an overpowering chipotle smoke which is just a stupidly strong flavor with no subtlety) and that's everything from Texas State Fair Blue Ribbon winners to Cincinnati's best Chili, and everything in between. We made the full batch, ate 1/2 cup each, and promptly dumped a half gallon of a hot smoky mess down the drain. Find another recipe because this one is not worth a single star. I can't help but wonder about the taste buds (do they have any?) of all these people giving this 4 and 5 stars Read the postings of one and two stars, and Trust Them. Bad chili!! PS I cut both the chipotle chile peppers and the Ancho powder in half, still too hot/spicy to eat. And I like spicy!

I made this last night with expectations of serving it tonight (Halloween) to my family. Unfortunately, I'm going to end up throwing it away I'm sad to say. It is WAY too spicy and I even switched to chipotle chili powder from the ancho chili powder and cut it back by half as others suggested. It was still way too spicy. I thought I would love the chocolate flavor but it just didn't do it for me. So sad. I had really high expectations based on what others had posted.

Absolutely one of the best chili recipes I have ever tasted. I followed the recipe exactly, except for the ancho chili powder. I used half what the recipe called for, as many reviews stated it was fairly spicy. It was still spicy with half the chili powder, but not too spicy! The unsweetened chocolate added at the end takes this recipe over the top! I wish I had a chili cook off to enter this one!

very tasty the chocolate seem to give a good after taste i would make again

Outstandung! I just made this for a get together with friends and what a hit !!!

This has become my go to recipe for chili. Just love the complex layers of flavour created by the smoky chipotle chili and the addition of the chocolate. We like it hot! So we love this chili. Especially great with a cool, dark, beer.

I really liked this - I followed the recipe exactly. I will say it was a tad spicy for my family so I might cut down on some of the spicy ingredients the next time.

I made this and it came out great. I actually didn't measure anything because I was making less than the recipe called for and all I had was ground beef but it was delicious.

This was good and spicy! Very deep dark smokey flavor. I ended up adding some tomato sauce b/c I like a more tart flavor that got over powered by the chocolate, but it is very good!

This was just okay. I don't know if I'll try it again, or not. But, if I do, I'll try using bittersweet chocolate, instead of the unsweetened. The flavor of the unsweetened chocolate came through too strongly.

Really loved the depth of the flavor with a little tweeking towards my taste. I like my chili a little more "tomatoey" so I added an extra can of tomatoes.

I made this for 3 separate occasions in one month, it was that popular with my friends and I've shared the recipe with several.It was devoured each time. The second time I served it with "sturdy", big tortilla chips, like a dip. My friend took the leftovers home and used it to make "coney dogs" with hotdogs. I used unsweetened chocolate (the kind used for making brownies) and that was just right.I also used some of the "sauce" in the chipotle can to add more smokiness. Definately a keeper!

Found the chocolate flavor to be over powering. Will try again but with less cocoa and chocolate.

This is my go to chili recipe. I love the flavor of turkey instead of beef, and the chipotle and chocolate add a depth of flavor that makes it unique. I skip the actual chocolate and up the cocoa powder, otherwise I follow the recipe as is.

I am just about to prepare this chili and have to say, that it is NOT POSSIBLE that this chili has got not even 300 calories [=270] per serving. This means that there must be a mistake in ingredient's list. Adding 2 oz which means 560 grams [more less 1 pound] would increase number of calories dramatically [70 grams chocolate per serving gives much more than 270 itself]. Consequently I will add only 1 chocolate bar of 100 g i.e. less than 1/2 oz [but will try meantime how it tastes], will try to find a chocolate of 90% of cocoa greetings

Excellent recipe. A little spicy for me so I might cut back on chili powder. Added a chopped zucchini to up the veggie-ness. Lots of chili so leftovers in the fridge for next week. Served with corn muffins.

Wow! I've always wanted to try chocolate in a savory recipe...what a great first pick for our family. The only thing I left out was the bell pepper. This is now a family favorite recipe - even my 18 month old gobbled it down. Delicious.

Loved it. Easy too. My husband wanted to enter it in a contest ;) Will definitely make it again (even for company) - especially when it's cold out. It reheats well for leftovers. I served it with corn bread.

This is bland except for the heat. I decreased the ancho powder to 1 tablespoon and added only one chipotle. That was plenty of heat. I had to add 3 teaspoons of beef bouillon and a tiny bit of salt just to get some flavor other than heat. It was edible, but II will not make this again.

This was the best chili I've ever made! I'm not a huge fan of super spicy foods and this is pretty spicy, but its so delicious I didn't care! I did make some substitutions: I used 1 T of chipotle chili powder instead of ancho, just because I didn't have ancho in the house. I also forgot to buy pinto beans at the store so had to use 1 can of no salt added black beans and 1 can of fat free refried beans. The refried beans made it thicker and amazing! This is going to be my new go-to chili.

I just made this recipe now...as is and it's great! It's Friday here in Philly and I'm making this for our Sunday afternoon football and chili gathering! I can't wait to dive into it!

This was fabulous. Easy to make and the chocolate came through just perfectly. I did thicken it at the end with 2 Tbs flour mixed with some cold water.

Great on a very chilly day! We used dark meat turkey (turkey thigh) instead of breast, and regular chile powder (not being able to find ancho). The dish has a lot of heat, especially if you don't seed the chipotle chiles, but it's a slow burn heat rather than a fiery hot heat. Another great chili recipe!

Made a day ahead. Followed directions except added a bit more broth & cooked slightly longer. Probably should have reduced the brown sugar to taste. Served without garnish.

We made a vegetarian version of this recipe without the turkey, we added 2 carrots, 2 celery sticks, 1 can each black and red kidney beans, and reduced pink pinto beans to 1, it was TO DIE FOR!

Super yummy and perfect for the fall! This is the second time I've made it and the only change I made was reducing the amount of chocolate (as suggested by others). I will continue to make this as an easy weeknight dish that's delicious and filling.

Awesome! You cannot go wrong with chocolate and chili. This recipe is easy and fun to make. It's perfect for a cool evening and it makes great left overs.

Absolutely outstanding as described in the recipe. Hot, rich, complex, flavorful. I wouldn't change a thing--though I did use green bell peppers as I had them on hand. I think that this is an incredible recipe.

Ok, so I had relatively high expectations for this, even after reading the comments on here. For the recipe I seeded the chiles (as I'm sensitive to spice) and used only 1 oz. of unsweetened chocolate b/c of the reviews I read. It tasted alright. I think that even 1 oz was too overpowering. I could taste the heat from the chiles but not much else. Even the beans were flavorless after the addition. Use 1/2 oz. of unsweetened choc. or none at all. Hubby thought it tasted chalky (due to the bitterness of the choc) and we're both big chocolate lovers.

Such a great recipe, and it's even better over the next few days so I always pack it for lunch. I add in some extra adobo from the chipotle can for extra smokiness.

I followed other cooks; advice (thanks!) and added 3 tbsp of cocoa instead of the chocolate. I also kicked up the chipotle a bit, because my husband and I just love the stuff. I added some corn and went heavy on bell peppers (green). This is a fantastic chili. It fills the house with a wonderful warming smell and the taste is as satisfying as the smell. Goes well with a refreshing touch of lime.

This is a great simple chili recipe. I think I would add a little more heat by adding a couple more chipolte chilis, but I like hot chili. Great with a salad and crackers.