Vent: My own chili recipe nearly took out my kitchen ceiling

I was making my usual 3-bean chili in a stockpot last Sunday and forgot about the cornstarch slurry until after I'd already added 2 extra cups of broth, so the pot boiled over and coated my stove, counter, and three cabinet doors in tomato sludge. I spent 45 minutes scrubbing every surface with a sponge and still found a dried splash behind the toaster this morning - has anyone else ever had a chili eruption that sent sauce halfway across the room?

2 comments

2 Comments

henry_martinez9d agoMost Upvoted

Man, my 3-bean chili blew tomato sauce all over the ceiling last year, what a nightmare.

grant.nina9d ago

Henry said his 3-bean chili blew tomato sauce all over the ceiling. I think you might mean it splattered or bubbled over, not literally blew up like a bomb. Cornstarch slurry can cause a real mess if it hits a hot burner and expands fast, but it's more of a slow boil-over than an explosion. I've had chili crawl up the sides of the pot and dribble down the handles, but never shoot sauce across a room like a geyser. That would take some serious pressure buildup, like if you sealed the lid on tight. So it's probably just a figure of speech, but it still sounds like a sticky situation you had to clean up.