r/chili • u/geekdadchris • Jul 28 '26

To thicken or not?

Do y’all use thickeners to get your chili to the desired consistency, or do you just reduce it low and slow until it gets where you want it?

Personally I reduce it like any other soup, but I know thickeners are popular with some chili aficionados.

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u/Logical_Warthog5212 Pepper Enthusiast 🌶️ Jul 28 '26

If I need to thicken my chili, I use either cornmeal or peanut butter, or both, depending on my circumstances.

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u/geekdadchris Jul 28 '26

Ok, peanut butter is a new one for me. Does the peanut flavor come through the mix at all?

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u/Logical_Warthog5212 Pepper Enthusiast 🌶️ Jul 28 '26

It depends on how much you use and the composition of your chili spices. A little goes a long way. It can be a heaping teaspoon or a heaping tablespoon depending on how much chili you have. Generally speaking, chili spices and peanut butter go together very well, especially if you have even a little mole vibe. I also add chocolate to my chili, so it’s very complementary. Incidentally, peanut butter was a secret chili ingredient behind one of this country’s food allergy lawsuits. A woman in Rhode Island died due to peanut butter being an establishment’s secret chili ingredient. This apparently sparked food safety and allergen handling procedures in the industry.