Chilis

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Chilis

Postby michaelswarm » Sun Dec 04, 2022 3:05 pm

Anyone else love chilis and spicy food?

Chilis

Know your chilis. Chilis are foundational to Mexican foods. But have been adopted in many other cuisines, particularly Asian cuisines like Indian, Chinese and Japanese. All chilis come from wild ancestors in America, particularly central Mexico. Bell peppers are actually the mildest of chilis, and dried ground red bell peppers as paprika have been adopted in Middle Eastern, African and European cuisines like Spanish, Turkish and Hungarian. The English word for paprika comes from Hungarian. The Spanish call it pimenton. Before chilis, black pepper, originally from India, was the primary spice for adding heat. That’s why English chilis are called peppers. Chilis are one of the many culinary gifts of Mexico to world cuisine. How many chili types do you know and use? These are 10 common chilis that I use all the time.

FRESH
- Pimenton (used as vegetabe for color and flavor, not heat)
- Poblano (used as mildly spicy vegetable in Mexican vegetable dishes)
- Jalapeno (used in mild salsas)
- Serrano (used in spicy salsa)
- Habanero (used in hot sauces)

DRY
- Ancho (poblano)
- Guajillo (key ingredient in enchilada sauce)
- Meco Chipotle (extra smoked jalapeno, brown)
- Morita Chipotle (smoked jalapeno, key ingredient in adobo sauce, dark red)
- Arbol (used to add heat without much flavor in Asian dishes)

USES
- Besides fresh and cooked salsa for chips and tacos.
- Key ingredient in Mexican sauces like enchilada and adobo sauces.
- Mix and match to make your own chili powder, or chili paste.

If you don’t live in Mexico, you can find these in Mexican groceries, or order online.
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michaelswarm
 
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