# Chili and jelly really aren't bad together **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [October 24, 2019, 10:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/chili-and-jelly-really-arent-bad-together/842257 "2019-10-24T22:08:30Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 13\ **Page:** 3
**Author:** ![Ukulele\_Ike](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/u/df788c/32.png) [@Ukulele\_Ike](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ukulele_Ike)\ **Post date:** [October 28, 2019, 12:39am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/chili-and-jelly-really-arent-bad-together/842257/41 "2019-10-28T00:39:45Z")
> [@asterion](#): > > You people are nuts. Some sort of jam made out of green chile? Good. Some of the things listed in this thread? No way. Yeah, like I said back at #7, and several have echoed, spicy chile preserves are delicious, especially paired with something creamy and mild to cut the buzz. Grape jelly hasn’t crossed my lips since I was six years old. Mixing meatballs into it…oy gevalt. ---
**Author:** ![pulykamell](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/pulykamell/32/3166_2.png) [@pulykamell](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/pulykamell)\ **Post date:** [October 28, 2019, 12:57am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/chili-and-jelly-really-arent-bad-together/842257/42 "2019-10-28T00:57:06Z")
> [@Ukulele\_Ike](#): > > Grape jelly hasn’t crossed my lips since I was six years old. Mixing meatballs into it…oy gevalt. This is weird to me, as I’ve always thought this was just such a basic middle-American dish. But, yeah, I guess “middle American” is the key there. Seriously, though, I thought this was a pan-USA-an easy appetizer. ---
**Author:** ![Ukulele\_Ike](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/u/df788c/32.png) [@Ukulele\_Ike](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ukulele_Ike)\ **Post date:** [October 28, 2019, 1:01am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/chili-and-jelly-really-arent-bad-together/842257/43 "2019-10-28T01:01:04Z")
Don’t forget, I’m a Cleveland boy. Although my family didn’t do those Jell-O salads, I KNEW about them. But the grape jelly with meatballs is completely new to me. ---
**Author:** ![Alpha\_Twit](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/alpha_twit/32/265_2.png) [@Alpha\_Twit](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Alpha_Twit)\ **Post date:** [October 28, 2019, 11:20am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/chili-and-jelly-really-arent-bad-together/842257/44 "2019-10-28T11:20:09Z")
> [@Ukulele\_Ike](#): > > But the grape jelly with meatballs is completely new to me. I’ve been reading about it here on the boards for years and it always seemed completely vile to me. It seems like something created by (random disparaging comment aimed at some subset of people deemed less smarter than myself) for (slightly less random disparaging comment aimed at some even smaller subset of people deemed _much_ less smarter than myself). (Insert non-sequitur regarding my political antagonists) As a thought experiment though, I mentally replaced the grape jelly (shudder) with orange marmalade. Maybe add some grated ginger and red pepper flakes? For some reason, this sounds much more appealing to me. It’s absolutely worthy of an experiment. I think I need to get over my fear of the grape and get off my damn high horse. I certainly like my share of improvised and improbably simple foods that arguably could be considered ‘low-class’. ---
**Author:** ![DCnDC](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dcndc/32/2842_2.png) [@DCnDC](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DCnDC)\ **Post date:** [October 28, 2019, 11:29am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/chili-and-jelly-really-arent-bad-together/842257/45 "2019-10-28T11:29:04Z")
The purpose of the grape jelly is to add sugar for sweetness, and gelatin, which keeps the meat soft and moist. It just happens that grape jelly conveniently contains them both in about the ratio you’re looking for. You’d get identical results by adding sugar and a little powdered gelatin to your meat mix. ---
**Author:** ![Alpha\_Twit](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/alpha_twit/32/265_2.png) [@Alpha\_Twit](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Alpha_Twit)\ **Post date:** [October 28, 2019, 11:34am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/chili-and-jelly-really-arent-bad-together/842257/46 "2019-10-28T11:34:28Z")
> [@DCnDC](#): > > It just happens that grape jelly conveniently contains them both in about the ratio you’re looking for. It also contains…_grape_ (shudder). ---
**Author:** ![DCnDC](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dcndc/32/2842_2.png) [@DCnDC](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DCnDC)\ **Post date:** [October 28, 2019, 11:42am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/chili-and-jelly-really-arent-bad-together/842257/47 "2019-10-28T11:42:39Z")
> [@Alpha\_Twit](#): > > It also contains…_grape_ (shudder). Yeah, but the primary flavor in grape jelly is just sugar. I’ve never had commercially produced grape jelly that tastes anything like grapes. And you’re adding it to something that already contains a lot of strongly flavored ingredients like chili sauce and cayenne pepper, not to mention the meat itself. I admit I had a similar reaction when I first heard of it, and I was picturing meatballs with a big dollop of raw grape jelly on top, and yeah, fuckin’ gross, but mixed in with everything else, it pretty much completely disappears, except for the sugar. ---
**Author:** ![pulykamell](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/pulykamell/32/3166_2.png) [@pulykamell](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/pulykamell)\ **Post date:** [October 28, 2019, 12:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/chili-and-jelly-really-arent-bad-together/842257/48 "2019-10-28T12:01:42Z")
> [@DCnDC](#): > > The purpose of the grape jelly is to add sugar for sweetness, and gelatin, which keeps the meat soft and moist. It just happens that grape jelly conveniently contains them both in about the ratio you’re looking for. > > You’d get identical results by adding sugar and a little powdered gelatin to your meat mix. Wait, you add your jelly _to_ the meat mix? I’ve never seen it done that way. The jelly is just for the sauce. Most people I know start with premade frozen meatballs, anyway. It’s supposed to be a quick “oh shit, the guests are coming over in 30 minutes!” type of appetizer. Or at least that’s how it’s always been in my experience. > [@](#): > > Yeah, but the primary flavor in grape jelly is just sugar. I’ve never had commercially produced grape jelly that tastes anything like grapes. This puzzles me, too. Grape jelly has a distinct Concord grape flavor. You know, that “purple” flavor. ---
**Author:** ![DCnDC](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dcndc/32/2842_2.png) [@DCnDC](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DCnDC)\ **Post date:** [October 28, 2019, 12:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/chili-and-jelly-really-arent-bad-together/842257/49 "2019-10-28T12:05:24Z")
> [@pulykamell](#): > > Wait, you add your jelly _to_ the meat mix? I’ve never seen it done that way. The jelly is just for the sauce. Yeah, sorry. I meant the sauce mix. ---
**Author:** ![Alpha\_Twit](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/alpha_twit/32/265_2.png) [@Alpha\_Twit](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Alpha_Twit)\ **Post date:** [October 28, 2019, 12:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/chili-and-jelly-really-arent-bad-together/842257/50 "2019-10-28T12:19:07Z")
> [@pulykamell](#): > > This puzzles me, too. Grape jelly has a distinct Concord grape flavor. You know, that “purple” flavor. That’s my take on this as well. Grape jelly has a distinct and not particularly pleasant flavor to my palate. ---
**Author:** ![pulykamell](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/pulykamell/32/3166_2.png) [@pulykamell](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/pulykamell)\ **Post date:** [October 28, 2019, 1:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/chili-and-jelly-really-arent-bad-together/842257/51 "2019-10-28T13:48:15Z")
> [@Alpha\_Twit](#): > > That’s my take on this as well. Grape jelly has a distinct and not particularly pleasant flavor to my palate. You don’t have to use grape. That’s the traditional jelly used, but I suspect it would work just as fine with strawberry or apricot jelly/jam. (I sometimes add apricot or peach preserves to my Buffalo wing sauce for a bit of sweetness to temper the acidity.) ---
**Author:** ![Alpha\_Twit](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/alpha_twit/32/265_2.png) [@Alpha\_Twit](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Alpha_Twit)\ **Post date:** [October 28, 2019, 1:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/chili-and-jelly-really-arent-bad-together/842257/52 "2019-10-28T13:57:49Z")
> [@pulykamell](#): > > You don’t have to use grape. That’s the traditional jelly used, but I suspect it would work just as fine with strawberry or apricot jelly/jam. (I sometimes add apricot or peach preserves to my Buffalo wing sauce for a bit of sweetness to temper the acidity.) Hence my post in #44 about trying this with orange marmalade. ---
**Author:** ![pulykamell](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/pulykamell/32/3166_2.png) [@pulykamell](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/pulykamell)\ **Post date:** [October 28, 2019, 2:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/chili-and-jelly-really-arent-bad-together/842257/53 "2019-10-28T14:15:48Z")
> [@Alpha\_Twit](#): > > Hence my post in #44 about trying this with orange marmalade. Yeah, I saw that. I think the texture and mild bitterness of the marmalade with its rind might take away from it, but, I can’t see that it would necessarily be bad. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/chili-and-jelly-really-arent-bad-together/842257.md?page=2)