Chili is a perfect cold-weather food, yet it has been two entire months since the last installment of the Skillet Chili Cook-Off, which featured the chaotic-yet-surprisingly-delicious Pizza Chili. I have excuses, of course—I was moving, and Christmas happened—but the important thing to focus on is that we’re back with more chili, and this time it has onion dip in it.
If I learned anything from the Pizza Chili incident, it’s that some people have no sense of humor when it comes to chili. One man even went so far as to say that Pizza Chili (or any chili that strays from the “con carne” format) “appropriated Texas culture,” which is one of the most Texas things I’ve ever read.
That guy is going to hate this, but that guy isn’t the senior food editor around here, so he doesn’t get to pick the chili—I get to pick the chili and, all trolling aside, I really do like a good chicken chili. This one caught my eye because of its “secret ingredient,” which is Dean’s French Onion, one of my favorite store-bought dips.
If you know me at all, you know that I love dip, even the kind that comes in room-temperature glass jars and refrigerated plastic tubs, and I’m already an enthusiastic advocate of using store-bought onion dip in mashed potatoes. As I have explained previously, “the emulsified oil product helps marry the hydrophilic with the hydrophobic, creating a velvety, creamy bowl of spuds with a surprisingly subtle oniony flavor and just enough umami,” and I don’t see why it wouldn’t do similar things in chicken chili. And it worked even better than I expected, but before we get to that, let’s all take a moment to read the recipe as it was written by threedayante:
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This recipe leaves a lot open for interpretation, which makes it extremely customizable. It’s also very easy to break up, so you don’t have to do everything all at once. I prepared the chicken first, choosing to bake it in 24 ounces of garlic and herb pasta sauce with 1/2 a teaspoon of cumin, 1/2 a teaspoon of garlic powder, 1/4 teaspoon cayenne, and 1/4 teaspoon salt. I then let it rest in the fridge overnight, and prepared the rest of the chili the next day.
I caramelized the onions as instructed but, when I went to add the garlic, found that I was out and—due to a bunch of snow—could not procure any more, so I added another 1 1/2 teaspoons of garlic powder along with the tomato sauce, as well as more cumin, more cayenne, and some black pepper (all to taste). I added the beans, let them get hot, then added enough Dean’s dip to make it “look orange and delightful” (about half a cup). I stirred until all the little white dip streaks disappeared, brought it to a simmer, and gave it taste, then I added even more cumin and cayenne.
I got the chicken out of the fridge, chopped it into bite-sized pieces, and chucked it into the pot (along with the pan juices), then let that simmer and reduce for about 15 minutes before covering, cooling, and letting rest in the fridge overnight, as is my custom.
Folks, I’m happy to report that this chili is delicious, and the onion dip is a certifiable hack. The Dean’s gives it a creamy, luscious body and—thanks our friend, MSG—a little extra kick of umami, but it’s so shockingly subtle that you wouldn’t know it was there unless someone told you. The chicken was just as tender as promised, and remained tender even when I reheated the leftovers in the microwave.
If I have one criticism of this chili recipe, it’s that I wish the ingredients had been listed beforehand, if only because it would have made writing my grocery list a little bit easier. But I appreciate the lack of chili prescriptivism and choose-your-own-adventure spirit of this recipe, and would recommend it to anyone who was looking for a good chicken chili. Chili should be fun, and few things scream “fun!” as loudly as onion dip.
