I entered a chili cook-off and WON 1st place! I halved the chili powder (actually I used a generous 1/4 cup), and used about 18oz of Hunt's Hickory Brown Sugar BBQ sauce. As for the sausages, I used hot (spicy sausages) and removed the casing before cooking the ground sausage meat. I cooked it for a total of 4 hours and have had several people ask for the recipe within hours of winning. It was just the right spiciness, just the right sweetness (not too sweet) and turned out fabulous! Great recipe!

This chili took second place at a recent chili cook-off that had fairly stiff competition (7 other decent entries). Of course, what makes this particular recipe a “winner” is its novelty. Who doesn’t enjoy chocolate? So here are my tips for taking a prize with this recipe: (1) Give it a good name that includes the word chocolate. No offense to Rick, but call it something like “Chocolate Chili Cha Cha”. This also warns away anyone who may be allergic to the key ingredient. (2) Offer two toppings only: sour cream and shaved chocolate. (Let the competition keep that dull cheddar cheese.) (3) Add a few dashes (or more) of cayenne pepper to give it a little pep. (4) Cut back on the BBQ sauce as others suggested, but consider adding ¼ cup of brown sugar. But be careful: don’t make it too sweet. (5) Add more beans (as I did) if you feel the meat to bean ratio is too large. (6) Make it 36 to 48 hours prior to the competition to allow the flavors to meld. Also, many people commented that the chili reminded them of a mole (MOH-lay) – a traditional Mexican sauce served over chicken or turkey that incorporates chocolate but is not typically sweet. So, you may want to consider serving it with hot corn tortillas (instead of corn bread). The idea is to set your chili apart from the rest of the competition. Good luck…and may the best chili win. Yours. [One last note: I sliced the onions into thin rounds and sautéed them in a little of the bacon grease. Delicious.]

I entered this recipe in a Chili CookOff and won two prizes. One for "Best" chili and the other for "Spiciest" chili. I reccommend adding fresh jalepenos and a little garlic. I also would change the BBQ sauce to a brown sugar based BBQ 16-18 oz. bottle. Overall it was a favorite.

I made this for a chili cookoff last night and won 3rd place! It really is good BUT all the reviews about decreasing the amount of BBQ sauce were right on the money. The chili tastes a little like BBQ. I would at least halve the amount of sauce. It is really flavorful!!

My husband loves Chili. Me...not so much. I generally make it when I want something fairly easy and need to stock up the freezer with left-overs for future busy nights. However, this recipe was excellent. I consider myself a pretty decent cook but chocolate? Well, I could not fathom this ingredient making so much difference in a dish but I read the reviews and decided to test. Very nice addition and now I'm dreaming of using in other recipes for depth. Spicy sausage was a very nice addition as well. Thanks for the post, this one is a keeper!

I made this for a Chili Cookoff and won the grand prize, 20 our of 23 votes! The BBQ sauce and bacon were wonderfull flavors! I also made a zapped in a food processer sour cream and cilanto for the top, soooooo good!

I've made this twice now, the last time was last month for a large family gathering. Everyone commented on how great it was and wanted the recipe. My husband and I both agree it was the best chili we've ever had. We froze a bunch of it and have been using it over nachos, and added to velveeta cheese dip for holiday gatherings. YUM! I made the following adjustments: - For the spicy sausage, I used one pound of hot and one of mild - Added one additional 12 oz can of diced tomatoes with jalapeno peppers - Added a dash of cayenne pepper - Used brown sugar bbq sauce instead of hickory smoked - Used three cans of kidney beans instead of four, was plenty! DELICIOUS!

Yum, yum!! I made this exactly as written and got rave reviews at my Halloween party. Made what I thought was a huge batch but 8 adults polished off almost all but a small bowl (I wanted some for the next day!). I made Absolute Mexican Cornbread which was soooo tasty and complimented it perfectly. I made the chili the day before, let simmer for 2 hours, then overnight in the fridge. Warmed up great the next day and was fantastic!

Using this recipe, I won 1st place at a church chili-cook off! I noticed that others have written about similar success. The only changes I made to the recipe were using half the amount of hickory barbecue sauce and using uncured bacon. I should also note that I used Asian Indian chili powder. Thanks for sharing this fabulous recipe!

I made this when it was my turn to host our bookclub meeting and "wow" what a winner! We all loved it and I have certainly put it up to them to serve a better supper when its their turn!!!