Blended Avocado Is The Creamy, Vegan Topping Your Chili Needs

A bowl of chili is one of the rare dishes that can be made vegan without raising a complaint from meat eaters. By skipping the beef and including a variety of beans, a vegan chili will be just as satisfying and flavorful as traditional meat versions. And when it comes to the finishing touches, there's no need to miss out either — let us introduce you to blended avocado.

Guacamole is a common enough topping for chili, but we see blended avocado sauce as more of a vegan substitute for sour cream or crema. Rather than a chunky mashed guac, this is smooth and creamy, providing a light and cooling contrast to your rich and saucy chili.

As the name suggests, you'll need a blender or a food processor to get the texture right. You'll also need to find avocados with the correct amount of ripeness: Soft enough to blend easily but without any brown spots. Avocados are the star of this sauce, and any overly ripe parts can add a bitter flavor.

The base ingredients for the blended avocado are avocado, lime or lemon juice, and salt. You'll need the juice from half a lime for each avocado. It's as easy as adding everything to a blender and whizzing it until smooth, adding a little water to thin it out to a saucy consistency.

When it comes to adding more flavors, fresh cilantro is almost a must-have. Just be sure to pick the leaves carefully to avoid adding stems that would ruin the smooth texture. If you don't like cilantro, you could use parsley, but that will change the flavor significantly. In terms of dried spices, ground cumin or coriander would go well with the Mexican flavor profile.

Jalapeños or red chili flakes are a perfect fit but consider these carefully if adding the sauce to spicy chili. Instead, you could blend in garlic, onion, or green onions to add some punch without that peppery heat.

If you want to make this into more of a crema, the simplest way is to add a vegan sour cream or vegan yogurt. For a truly homemade version, start with a base of cashew cream, made by soaking cashews in hot water for 30 minutes, then draining and blending with water.

This sauce is best served fresh, but leftovers can be refrigerated in an airtight container for 2 to 3 days. To keep it from browning, add extra lime juice to the top before putting on the lid.