Food and Recipes Dish Chili What To Serve With Chili: Our 26 Best Side Dish And Topping Ideas Discover the perfect pairings for your chili supper. By Jenna Sims Jenna Sims Jenna is a Senior Digital Editor for Southern Living and joined the team in 2014. She writes, produces, and assigns content with a focus on email growth and commerce content. She covers a range of topics in the lifestyle space from holiday gift guides to new product launches to tips for cooking with your air fryer. Southern Living's editorial guidelines Updated on August 6, 2024 Close Photo: Caitlin Bensel; Food Stylist: Torie Cox Chili is a comforting dish on its own, but it can be made even more comforting when served with the right side dishes. If you're wondering what to serve with chili, we're here with plenty of ideas. These delicious toppings and side dish recipes will take chili night to the next level. No matter how you make your chili or what recipe you use, these are our best side dish and topping ideas that will pair perfectly with your pot of homemade chili. 18 Hearty Chili Recipes That'll Warm You Right Up 01 of 26 Cornbread Crostini Greg Dupree; Food Stylist: Micah Morton; Prop Stylist: Ginny Branch This genius recipe takes all the comforting flavor of cornbread and pairs it with a crisp texture that’s perfect for scooping your go-to chili recipe right up. Get The Recipe 02 of 26 Quick Baked Potato Greg Dupree, Food Stylist: Chelsea Zimmer, Prop Stylist: Claire Spollen You can serve these easy baked potatoes alongside your favorite chili or pour the chili right over them. Our simple recipe only calls for potatoes and olive oil, but you can’t go wrong with adding some butter before serving. Get The Recipe 03 of 26 7-Layer Salad Jen Causey; Food Stylist: Emily Nabors Hall; Prop Stylist: Caleb Clarke Pull out your trifle dish to showcase this retro delight of a side dish. To make things easier on you if you’re hosting a crowd, you can prepare it a day in advance and let it chill in the fridge until serving. Get The Recipe 04 of 26 Cilantro-Lime Crema Caitlin Bensel; Food Stylist: Torie Cox This refreshing sauce is a major upgrade from plain sour cream when it comes to topping your chili. You will find plenty more dishes you want to pair with it after trying it, though. Get The Recipe 05 of 26 Southern Cobb Salad With Cornbread Croutons Victor Protasio; Food Styling: Rishon Hanners; Prop Styling: Audrey Davis Our Southern-fied Cobb salad recipe is the ultimate side dish for any main. The star of the show, of course, is the cornbread croutons. Get The Recipe 06 of 26 Corn Fritters Caitlin Bensel, Food Stylist: Torie Cox Similar to a hush puppy, corn fritters have a slight sweetness from a bit of sugar. Go ahead and make a double batch—you can’t eat just one of these little bites! Get The Recipe 07 of 26 Leafy Green Salad With Sunflower Seed Dressing Victor Protasio, Food Stylist: Chelsea Zimmer, Prop Stylist: Christine Keely This versatile green salad will go with basically any dinner recipe, including a hearty bowl of chili. “This salad was amazing,” wrote one reviewer who gave the recipe five stars. “The sunflower seed dressing was really delicious. I loved all the fresh herbs in the dressing and salad and gave it more flavor than the lettuce alone.” Get The Recipe 08 of 26 Air Fryer Grilled Cheese Caitlin Bensel, Food Stylist: Rebecca Cummins The Air Fryer is your secret to the crispiest, gooiest grilled cheese ever. “The buttered bread gets super crispy, without flattening out as it does in a pan,” wrote one reviewer who gave this recipe five stars. “Flavor is amazing!” Get The Recipe 09 of 26 Cornbread Casserole Caitlin Bensel; Food Stylist: Torie Cox Cornbread and casseroles are two Southern staples, so we combined them into one cozy side dish that will pair beautifully with a warm bowl of chili. Basically all you have to do is stir the ingredients together and bake! Get The Recipe 10 of 26 Southern Skillet Cornbread Robby Lozano, Food Stylist: Emily Nabors Hall In our opinion, cornbread pairs perfectly with almost any dinner and chili is no exception. This classic skillet cornbread will help scoop up every last drop or can be crumbled on top of a bowlful of chili. Get The Recipe 11 of 26 Blooming Quesadilla Ring Victor Protasio, Food Stylist: Chelsea Zimmer, Prop Stylist: Lydia Pursell How much fun is this recipe? “I love a quesadilla, but this is next level,” says Senior Food Editor Josh Miller. You can switch up the filling to fit your preference, but we can’t imagine leaving out the pimiento cheese. Get The Recipe 12 of 26 Ivy Odom’s Lacy Cornbread Victor Protasio; Food Styling: Margaret Monroe Dickey; Prop Styling: Audrey Davis This recipe is a staple on Senior Producer Ivy Odom’s family’s Thanksgiving table. She likes to use the crispy pieces of cornbread as a “chip” to scoop up the various side dishes on the plate, and you can do the same with your chili. “It adds the perfect chef’s kiss amount of crunch,” she says. Get The Recipe 13 of 26 Grilled Cheese Sandwich Caitlin Bensel; Food Stylist: Torie Cox A bowl of chili and a grilled cheese is perhaps one of the most comforting dinner duos of all time. They're easy to make while your chili simmers. Get The Recipe 14 of 26 Chopped Salad Caitlin Bensel; Food Stylist: Torie Cox A fresh chopped salad will balance out the hearty chili. If your chili is heavy on meat, you can always omit the ham from the salad and focus on the veggies. Get the Recipe 15 of 26 Guacamole Caitlin Bensel; Food Stylist: Torie Cox A dollop of homemade guacamole will add brightness and freshness to any bowl of chili. Plus, it can also be scooped up with the chips you serve on the side. Get The Recipe 16 of 26 Jalapeño Cheddar Cornbread Caitlin Bensel, Food Stylist: Torie Cox While classic cornbread is great, if you want something a little more special to serve with your chili, this jalapeño cheddar version is just the recipe you need. Of course it's still made in a cast-iron skillet. Get The Recipe 17 of 26 Microwave Baked Potato Caitlin Bensel, Food Stylist: Torie Cox Whether you want to spoon the chili on top of a baked potato or simply leave it on the side, you can't go wrong with this classic side dish. Plus, it can be made in the microwave so there's no need to turn on the oven. Get The Recipe 18 of 26 Broccoli Cornbread Robby Lozano; Food Stylist: Jasmine Smith; Prop Stylist: Josh Hoggle What if we told you the secret to this moist and fluffy cornbread is actually cottage cheese? Just trust us on this one and we bet you'll be pleasantly surprised. Get The Recipe 19 of 26 Cheese Sauce Caitlin Bensel; Food Stylist: Torie Cox If you serve your chili with tortilla chips, this cheese sauce will elevate the meal by being drizzled on top of both chips and bowls filled with chili. Get The Recipe 20 of 26 Cornbread Salad Caitlin Bensel; Food Stylist: Torie Cox If you're entertaining and are looking for an elevated side dish to serve with chili, look no further. This layered cornbread salad just may outshine the main dish. Get The Recipe 21 of 26 Fried Mashed Potato Balls Jennifer Causey; Food Stylist: Melissa Gray; Prop Stylist: Christina Daley These poppable bites of mashed potatoes will likely begin to disappear before the bowlfuls of chili make it to the table. Get The Recipe 22 of 26 Corn-And-Tomato Salad Caitlin Bensel, Food Stylist: Torie Cox This salad gets more tender and flavorful as it sits, so it's a great make ahead option so you can keep it in the fridge until you're ready to serve while you focus on the chili. Get The Recipe 23 of 26 Cornbread Muffins Caitlin Bensel; Food Stylist: Torie Cox Buttermilk and a little bit of sugar help these muffins stay tender and moist while baking. The sugar adds just a touch of sweetness and helps the muffins achieve their golden brown color. Get The Recipe 24 of 26 Mexican Corn Jen Causey; Food Stylist: Emily Nabors Hall; Prop Stylist: Caleb Clarke This classic Mexican corn, also known as elote, comes together in just 20 minutes. Even though it comes together quickly, there's no shortage of flavor thanks to Cotija cheese, lime zest, and more. Get The Recipe 25 of 26 Hot Potlikker Cornbread Greg Dupree, Food Stylist: Chelsea Zimmer, Prop Stylist: Shell Royster Collard greens and potlikker add even more comforting flavor to this take on hot water cornbread. Since they're closer to the size of fritters, they're golden brown and crispy on every side. Get The Recipe 26 of 26 Grilled Cheese & Tomato Roll-Ups Southern Living Both kids and adults will love this fun take on a classic grilled cheese that makes dipping even easier. Get The Recipe Was this page helpful? Thanks for your feedback! Tell us why! Other Submit