There's No Better Way To Repurpose Leftover Chili Than This Genius Combo

Leftover chili usually ends up being reheated as just that — more chili. Yeah, maybe with a little bread on the side and hopefully with some fresh rice, but it's basically the same affair all over again. But there's actually a pretty smart move you can make to turn leftover chili dinner from a rerun to something fresh — and that's to turn your chili into some crispy oven-baked tacos. The tortillas will crisp up beautifully in the oven, locking the chili inside like a pocket of molten flavor — and if you add some cheese before baking, you'll get golden edges with a gooey filling.

And the best part is, it couldn't be simpler. Just brush or spray each tortilla with a light coat of oil, spoon in a few tablespoons of your leftover chili (something full of flavor like a spicy slow cooker beef chili), fold it up, and then line them up on a baking sheet to go into the oven for around 30 minutes at 425 degrees Fahrenheit. They'll come out like sturdy and crunchy tacos that are perfect for dipping, a totally no-mess way to reinvent yesterday's meal. And even better, the tacos scale really easily: You can make a quick four as a dinner for one or a whole tray if friends swing by. 

Once those leftover tacos are crispy and hot, the right toppings are what can turn them from "leftover hack" into something worthy of a dinner to impress. Some shredded lettuce, diced tomatoes, and jalapeño slices all add freshness, but the real secret is piling on creamy extras like a spoonful of sour cream or a quick guacamole with pico de gallo to add that a cooling contrast to balance the chili's heat. Plus the more colors you add to the final dish, the more presentable they'll look, and as the expression goes: "the eyes eat first".

To push it even further, you could customize different tacos by trying various Mexican taco styles, and you've suddenly got a bit of variety to bring to the table. Maybe you can make four different taco styles for people to pick and choose from, or maybe you want to create a variety of toppings for everyone to customize their own in just the ways they like, from choosing different fillings to enjoying them with a side of rice or corn salad. This delicious little hack works because it takes what you already have and allows all those flavors that marinated overnight to come together in a brand new package that everyone (even the fussiest of eaters) will enjoy.