There are countless varieties of Latin American Chiles. Capsaicin is the compound in chiles and hot peppers that make them hot. Chile heat is measured in Scoville units, which is the amount of water and time it takes to neutralize chile heat after ingestion.
Since many don’t agree on the measurements for each chile, we will use a rating from 1 to 10 from now on, with 10 being the hottest.
Dried chilies, pickled chiles, chile hot sauces, and even fresh chiles can be ordered online. Or consider growing your own. Chile seeds may be available at garden shops and are available online.
Here’s a list of the major types of hot chile peppers to use when creating hot peppers sauces and spicy recipes.
(7-8) The Aji Chile is fiery hot. It is fruity yellow and is from South America. The Aji Chile measures about ¾ of an inch in diameter and 3-5 inches in length.
(2-3) The Anaheim Chile, also called “California chile pepper” and “chile verde” ranges in color from pale to bright green. It is a mildly hot chile measuring about 6 inches in length and 3 inches in diameter.
(10+) The Habanero chile pepper is about 30 times hotter than the jalapeno chile pepper. This capsaicin-rich chile pepper is the hottest chile in the world. The Habanero is lantern shaped, 2 inches long on average and range in color from deep green, yellow, orange, red, to completely ripe crimson.
(6.5) Jalapeno chile peppers originated in Jalapa, Veracruz, Mexico. They are the mostly widely recognized chile pepper in the U.S. Ripe jalapeño chiles measure about 1 to 1.5 inches in diameter and 3 to 3 inches in length. They have medium hot, thick flesh. Red jalapeños are the fully ripe version of the green ones and have a sweeter flavor.
(9) Malagueta chiles are fiery hot from Brazil. These are light green to medium green in color and may only be available online.
(3-5) New Mexico chiles are related to the Anaheim chile. They are a medium hot chile pepper. These chiles are green when immature and red when mature, and they measure 6 to 9 inches in length and about 2 inches in diameter. These are grown most predominantly in New Mexico so they can often be found at the supermarket as well as online.
(7-8) Peruvian chiles are green, yellow, and ripe red chiles which measure about 1.5 inches in diameter and 2.5 inches in length. These chile peppers are quite hot and have a tropical fruit flavor. This one is hard to find. The Peruvian chile can possibly be found online but not in the local supermarket.
(3) The Poblano chile is a mildly hot green-black chile with a thick flesh which measures 2.5 to 3 inches in diameter and 4 to 5 inches in length. This chili is rarely available.
(7-8) A Rocoto chile is slightly fruity and very hot. It ranges in color from pale green to golden yellow to deep red at its ripest and averages 1.5 inches in diameter and 1 inch in length. This chile is not sold in US markets but can be cultivated by gardeners in the US.
(9-10) Jamaica’s most celebrated chile, the smokey flavored Scotch bonnet, is a yellow, green, orange, or red 1 inch long chile that resembles a miniature bell pepper. The heat of this one is surpassed only by the Habanero pepper.
(9) The Jamaica Hot looks remarkably like the Scotch bonnet and the Habanero, but it is harder to find.
(7) The Serrano chile is one the hottest chiles that is widely available in the US markets. But Habanero hot chile peppers which are much hotter, can now be found at many supermarkets.
(9) A Tobasco chile is about an inch long, intensely hot and range in color from pale yellow to orange to bright red. These are made almost exclusively into Tabasco Brand Pepper Sauce and are rarely available fresh.
(8) The Tepin chile pepper is very hot. It is the size and shape of a cranberry. Tepins range in color from immature green to orange to very ripe brick red. This pepper grows wild in the southerly regions of the Southwest.
There are several varieties of the chile peppers listed above. The hotness varies just a little from the main chiles listed above. There are also variations in hotness depending in whether a chile pepper is used immature green or ripe red.
It is important to learn a little more about chiles such as how to use dried chiles (there are some chiles not listed here which are only available dried), handling chiles, selecting and buying hot chile peppers and pepper sauces and much more.
Check back often for hot sauce and hot pepper how-to, tips and more.
Tags: hot peppers, hot sauces, recipes, salsa, spicy gourmet foods
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