Leave Stews, Soups, and Chili Peppers Overnight
I will not eat chili the same day it was cooked. This is not fair to the recipe and it is not fair to me. The same goes for stews, most stews, and (ideally) any meat-based pasta sauce. I do not allow these things to “rest” for only half an hour; I let them sleep well in REM sleep.
I’ve been eating a lot of chili lately, and the main thing I realized is that letting it cool overnight is the easiest way to improve the flavor of any chili recipe. Cooking juicy, meaty, stews has several advantages. First, the dish is not “done” just because you removed it from the heat. According to TASTE , while it cools down, all sorts of things happen in the pot:
Aromatic substances such as onions, garlic, chili peppers and spices release volatile oils during cooking, and while they cool, they continue to release. Meat releases collagen during cooking, but when it cools, it gelatinizes and traps more of these aromas.
Meat (and any beans) will also absorb moisture from the stew, making it (and them) more tender and soaking in any spices, seasonings, and flavorings you may have added.
Then there is evaporation, which has little effect on texture and taste. A steamed dish is a dish that loses moisture, but water will continue to evaporate from your chili, stew, or sauce even in the refrigerator, concentrating the flavor (albeit in small amounts). Reheating will result in even more evaporation, which means your second or third bowl will be more flavorful than the first.
Finally – and most importantly – even after removing the plate from the burner, there are still a lot of chemical reactions going on in this pot. According to Cook’s Illustrated , these reactions differ depending on what you put in your dish:
In the case of a soup or stew containing milk or cream, the lactose breaks down into glucose with a sweeter taste. Likewise, carbohydrates in onions are converted to sugars such as fructose and glucose. The proteins in meat are converted into individual amino acids that act as flavor enhancers. Finally, the starch in potatoes and flour breaks down into aromatic compounds.
Try it next time you’re making a large batch of beef stew, chili, or stew. Take one bowl of fresh produce, then refrigerate the rest overnight and see if you notice a difference. Waiting may be the hardest, but it’s one of the easiest ways to improve stews.