19 Budget-Friendly Ways To Make Chili 10x Heartier And More Filling

Chili is the ultimate comfort food. It's hearty, filling, savory, and easy to make a big batch of so there's leftovers for days. It's also super nice on a budget because it's built around ingredients such as ground meat, canned tomatoes, and beans. But what happens when you need more chili, either for dinner tonight or to get by on those leftovers?

You can stretch a small pot of chili in many ways, and without having to double your ingredients. Beans are a good place to start, but they aren't your only option. We collected 19 ingredients you can use to really stretch your chili to feed more people without going over budget. These simple additions, such as rice, potatoes, and lentils, plus more clever ingredients you may not have thought of, such as pumpkin puree or quinoa, make chili more hearty and satisfying.

But it's not just about stirring a new ingredient into chili to make it heartier and more filling — it's also about how you serve it up. Spoon it over a baked potato or pile it onto a slice of cornbread to turn a small pot of chili into an entirely different meal, and for the better. This works well when you have a small amount of chili (usually leftovers) and need to make a bigger serving.

One of the easiest, and most affordable, ways to stretch chili is adding a can of beans, which also adds some protein and fiber. The best part is just about any kind of beans work in chili. Try white beans, black beans, pinto beans, or even some chickpeas — it doesn't have to be a can of red kidney beans. Just rinse your can of beans before stirring it into your pot of chili.

Instead of doubling or tripling the ground meat in your chili, try some plant-based protein with lentils. Whether you use canned lentils or dry, they're budget friendly. Lentils also have a mild, earthy flavor that pairs well with other chili ingredients and seasonings, including tomatoes and chili powder. Red lentils are softer than other kinds, so stay away from those for this purpose and stick to brown or green lentils, which hold their shape better, instead. You can even skip the meat and use just lentils to make a high-fiber, high-protein vegetarian chili.

Leftover rice is a great way to stretch chili and make it heartier and more filling. White rice is quite bland, but soaks up the tomato sauce and seasonings — as such, you might need to add some moisture to your pot. A little broth or tomato sauce helps. Stir in your leftover rice when there's about 15 minutes of cooking time left so the grains don't get too mushy, but so they still have time to get warmed through.

The fiber and protein in chopped sweet potatoes, whether fresh or canned, helps make chili more filling and satisfying. If you have time, roast them in the oven first with some olive oil before scooping them into your chili to really bring out the flavor. You can even skip the meat in your chili and swap it out for sweet potatoes alone to make a hearty, satisfying vegetarian chili.

It's easy to add a little sunshine to your chili with some corn, whether canned or frozen. Besides the texture and color, the sweetness provides a nice contrast to the heartiness of the tomato base, and the extra fiber and carbohydrates make your bowl even more satisfying. For even more flavor, use a can of fire-roasted corn, which adds a subtle smoky flavor that works well with the seasonings in chili.

Using various inexpensive vegetables is a great way to add more nutrition to chili while making it more satisfying. Bell peppers, onions, celery, and carrots work well with the seasonings and tomato base. They also provide some additional fiber, which helps keep you feeling full and satisfied after a meal by slowing digestion.

Barley, an inexpensive grain, has a nice, chewy texture that makes your pot of chili feel more like a delicious stew. Barley provides some extra fiber, protein, and carbs to make chili more filling without needing to add more expensive ingredients. You can add dry barley right to the pot, but cook it separately if you want more control over the consistency, then stir it into the chili toward the end of cooking. It absorbs some liquid while cooking, so you may need to add some to your pot.

When you need to stretch a pot of chili a little further, pasta can come to the rescue. It's super cheap, but adds a good amount of volume. The classic choice is elbow macaroni, but you can use any type of pasta. Only have rotini in your pantry? Use it up. Small shells work well here, too. You get a good amount of carbohydrates with pasta that help fill you up, but if you want something a little more nutritious, you can also use whole wheat pasta, red lentil pasta, chickpea pasta, edamame pasta, or black bean pasta.

Refried beans are a bit unexpected for a chili addition, but they provide you with more protein and fiber while melting into the broth, giving your chili a creamy, satisfying texture that makes it heartier and more filling. Spoon some into your pot, adding more as you go for your desired consistency. Just use plain refried beans instead of seasoned since this can change your chili's flavor.

Got some potatoes to use up? Chop and add them to your chili for additional fiber and carbs and a heartier, more satisfying dish. Just about any type of potato works here: red, russet, yellow, white, even canned. Just don't add them until the last 20 minutes or so of cooking. Otherwise, they sort of melt into your broth, creating a mushy consistency. 

If you have a bag of quinoa in your pantry, you can put it to work in chili. These little seeds get fluffy and tender, which adds some bulk to chili, helping stretch it for several more people depending on how much you use. It has a slight nutty flavor that pairs well with tomatoes, beans, and chili seasonings. Quinoa is also a great source of protein and fiber, making it a good meat substitute if you're making vegetarian chili. While quinoa costs a little more than rice, you only need a bit to make chili heartier and more satisfying.

Cornbread is a super-affordable treat you can serve with chili, adding some substance to your meal. You can cook up a fresh batch so it's warm, whether you make it from scratch or use a boxed mix, or you can use leftover cornbread, warming it up in the microwave or oven first. Regardless, place a square of cornbread in the bottom of a bowl and spoon the chili over it.

Stir in a savory, meaty flavor with chopped mushrooms. Their umami flavor pairs well with ground meat, making it a great addition to a pot of chili. Mushrooms also provide a good amount of B vitamins, potassium, iron, copper, and phosphorous. Use white button mushrooms since they're usually the most affordable and easiest to find, but you can also use cremini (aka brown) mushrooms or portabella mushrooms, although they're a bit more expensive.

An easy and convenient way to make your chili heartier and more filling is by baking up some potatoes. Just toss some whole potatoes in your oven or air fryer, bake them until tender, make a cut longways on each potato (without cutting all the way through), place in a bowl, spoon the chili over your potato, and add toppings, such as shredded cheese, green onions, and a dollop of sour cream or Greek yogurt. This makes a satisfying meal with the addition of carbs, fiber, and vitamins and minerals.

Grab a bag of dried split peas to make your chili more substantial with plant-based protein, fiber, iron, zinc, magnesium, and potassium. Rinse them first, then add to your pot early in the cooking process so they have time to soften and break up a little, creating a creamy texture that blends in with the tomato base of the chili. They also absorb some liquid, so check that throughout and stir in some more tomato sauce or broth before finishing.

Bulgur wheat is a whole grain with a nutty flavor and a good amount of protein and fiber, as well as various vitamins and minerals, that adds some bulk to chili so you can feed more people. It's a perfect addition when you're sick of pasta or rice, but it's just as affordable. It has a firm, chewy texture, making it a great meat substitute as well. Use it as an addition to the meat in your chili, or as a replacement.

Canned pumpkin puree isn't just for pumpkin pie. This budget-friendly pantry staple can make your chili thicker, creamier, and more satisfying. Pumpkin has a tasty, mild flavor that works well with the smoky seasonings and tomato base of chili, just keep in mind that chili can thicken up as it cooks with the addition of pumpkin puree. Add a little at a time, and remember that you can always add some broth to thin the chili out if needed.

If you want more plant protein and fiber without adding more beans, textured vegetable protein can help. It's usually made from soybeans and is sold as dry crumbles that resemble meat that you need to rehydrate. Pour some into your chili and let it cook and absorb the tomato base and seasonings, adding more liquid as needed. Use textured vegetable protein as an addition to your meat, or in place of it for a veggie or vegan chili.

Eggplant probably isn't the first vegetable that comes to mind when making a pot of chili, but hear me out. It's a good source of fiber, vitamins, and minerals, works well with its mild flavor, and soft, tender consistency, plus it soaks up some of the tomato base, garlic, and smoky seasonings. Use fresh eggplant by chopping it into small, evenly sized cubes. Fry it up with a little olive oil until browned for the absolute best flavor, then scoop it into your pot of chili.