Secret ingredients are a tale as old as time. From the quirky things Grandma used to put in her dishes to some ingredients that make perfect sense as elevating agents, we love a good surprise addition to a dish. Here are some of the most unusual and unexpected ingredients that make us scratch our heads — while some might simultaneously make our mouths water.
1. Chili con Carne
Secret ingredient: Dark chocolate
We’ll admit, this isn’t the most earth-shatteringly shocking secret ingredient. After all, chocolate isn’t an unheard-of ingredient in Mexican cuisine (mole, anyone?), and chili recipes are notorious for including some off-the-wall flavor boosters, from molasses to coffee grounds. Still, the dark chocolate in this chili con carne recipe does give off a bit of jump-scare when scanning the list of ingredients.
Recipe: BBC Good Food
2. Black Magic Chocolate Cake
Secret ingredient: Tomato soup
Alright, let’s get ready to bake a chocolate cake. Flour? Check. Cocoa powder? Got it. Buttermilk? Right here. One can of condensed tomato soup? Excuse me, what? Weird, right? Tomato soup is just the tip of the iceberg when it comes to strange secret ingredients found in chocolate cake recipes. You might also stumble upon mayo or sauerkraut (yes, really) on the hunt for the tastiest chocolate cake.
Recipe: Food.com
3. Pot Roast
Secret ingredient: Gingersnaps
You might think Diane’s ginger pot roast (that’s the name of this particular recipe, folks) calls for some ground, grated, or minced ginger. But you’d be wrong. It specifically calls for thirteen crushed gingersnap cookies — using twelve is evidently a culinary crime.
Recipe: My Kitchen Memories
Related: 14 Hearty and Creative Pot Roast Recipes for an Easy Sunday Dinner
4. Garbanzo Bean Stew
Secret ingredient: Hard-cooked egg
This garbanzo bean stew recipe gets its thickness from an unexpected source. It requires the home cook to prepare a hard-cooked egg and add it to the mortar with garlic and some baguette pieces, pounding them into a paste.
Recipe: Spain on a Fork
Related: Five-Ingredient Soups and Stews for an Easy Meal
5. Molasses Cookies
Secret ingredient: Black pepper
Who doesn’t love a good batch of molasses cookies? While we’ve always loved the tried and true spice blend that Grandma swore by, this recipe brings black pepper into the mix in a surprise twist.
Recipe: Good Dinner Mom
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6. Burgers
Secret ingredient: Cola
Never mind forming plain ol’ ground beef into a patty and charring it on the grill to ultimately place it between a bun with ketchup, mustard, pickles, and the other usual suspects. Instead, this recipe brings saltine crackers, egg, French dressing, and — drumroll please — cola to the mix. We’re going to go out on a limb and guess that these burgers probably don’t taste very bland.
Recipe: Taste of Home
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7. Chocolate Pudding
Secret ingredient: Avocado
If you want to sneak some healthy fats and vitamins into your indulgent chocolate pudding, this recipe embraces avocado, which adds creaminess and since the fruit’s (yes, avocado is a fruit) flavor is pretty mild, this is one of those ideas that kind of makes perfect sense.
Recipe: Allrecipes
8. Smoked Ribs
Secret ingredient: Dr. Pepper
Not only is Dr. Pepper a part of the braising liquid used in this recipe for smoked ribs, but it’s also a key component of the barbecue sauce. However, we will say we think the pairing of buffalo sauce with Dr. Pepper in a braising liquid is more unusual than the Dr. Pepper in and of itself. Still, we’re on board for this one because the flavor profile of Dr. Pepper fits smoked BBQ like a glove.
Recipe: Hey Grill Hey
Related: Fantastic Regional Rib Recipes
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9. Apple Dumpling Bake
Secret ingredient: Mountain Dew
Jeez Louise, we’ve just about covered all of the key pop players as secret ingredients at this point, but we have to say, Mountain Dew in apple dumplings has to be the most unhinged of them all.
Recipe: Taste of Home
