Not long ago I shared adding cocoa in tomato-based chili. Many have found it to be delicious, and several have been curious how it came to be. Cocoa in my chili was an accident. I wish I could say my culinary adventuresome spirit, or spice knowledge was responsible. Sorry, no. It was purely an accident. I have a small cupboard right above my kitchen stove. While cooking chili one day I was rummaging for another bottle of chili powder which I had run out of while making the kettle already simmering away on the stove. Frustrated, I was moving things around without alot of finesse, digging through jars and boxes. In my haste I knocked my can of baking cocoa out of the cupboard. Plop, plop, into the chili it went. The can landed upside down. Of course it artistically spattered chili in every direction, leaving red freckles on the stove, the wall. You get the idea. Relieved the plastic lid was on I picked up the can, and low and behold the lid stayed in the chili, and the can came out dumping cocoa in a beautiful heap in the center of my chili pot. I quickly attempted to spoon the cocoa powder out of my chili, but of course some had already dissolved into the mixture. Nothing left to do but stir the cocoa I could not remove into the pot of chili. Instantly the color and texture changed. Hesitantly I tasted the now unique chili and it was delicious. I did not say a word when chili was on the island for supper. Everyone loved it! It was a hit. Not believing the change was the cocoa the next batch I made had no cocoa. Disappointed eaters!!! So what was once an accident, now finds cocoa a staple ingredient in my chili. Adding chili at the very end is the trick, works every time! Cooked salsa, not fresh salsa, also really benefits from baking cocoa. For salsa I add about a teaspoon for 3 cups of salsa after the cooking is completed. Try it!
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