Don’t worry—you don’t have to become a tomato farmer. Just grab a handful of whatever looks good at the store or market. Cherry tomatoes, Roma tomatoes, or even big beefsteak tomatoes all work great.
Here’s the easy win: Add them at the very end. If you cook fresh tomatoes for an hour, they’ll basically turn into sauce, which defeats the purpose. Throw them in during the last five to ten minutes of simmering, right before you serve.
You can also do what I call the “double tomato move.” Keep your usual canned tomatoes for the base of the chili. Then, right at the end, chop up a couple of fresh ones and stir them in. It’s like giving your chili a surprise party for your mouth.
But What About Winter? No Good Tomatoes?
I hear you. We don’t all live in a farmer’s market utopia year-round. When the grocery store tomatoes look like sad, pale rubber balls, don’t force it. Stick with canned.
Hearty Fresh Tomato Chili – A Bold & Flavorful Comfort Dish | Village
But when you see those fragrant, deep-red tomatoes in summer or at a good store, grab them. Cut them into chunks about the size of a dice. You don’t even have to peel them—the skin adds nice texture and a bit of fiber.
One of my favorite lazy moves is halving cherry tomatoes and tossing them in right as I turn off the heat. The warmth of the chili gently softens them without cooking them to death. It’s like a tomato spa treatment.
