Humans are naturally curious. We wouldn’t look at the ocean and think, “Water can be a road” if we weren’t. It’s also why many people wonder if chili is a soup. We are happy to settle the debate.
Cayenne Someone Tell Us What Chili Is?
*Pushes up glasses* Webster’s dictionary defines soup as “a liquid food … with a meat, fish, or vegetable stock as a base … containing pieces of food.” Great! Chili is a soup. But wait. A stew is “fish or meat … with vegetables.”
*Lowers glasses and rubs eyes* Back to square one.
We’ve Bean Wondering: Is Chili Neither a Soup or a Stew?
Our friend Webster defines chili as “a thick sauce made of meat and chiles.” This is like saying a salad can only be Caesar – very limiting. Soup can’t be put on a hot dog. And if you use chili as a spaghetti topping, is it really a stew? Besides, how can the various ways to cook chili be defined as just a soup or a stew?
It can’t.
Chili: A State of Mind
Chili is not a soup, or a stew, but rather, a state of mind. Does this mean psychology professors will teach the Art of Chili? No. It means that whoever makes the chili defines what it is. After all, isn’t cooking about transforming dishes into our own? As that viral TikTok corn kid once said, we can’t imagine a more beautiful thing.
