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• History - and general information
• Buying, Storing & Working with Chilis - Methods and Hints
• Varieties, Fresh & Dried - descriptions and pictures
• Ground & Powdered Chilis - including mixes
• Sauces & Potions - common and uncommon varieties.
• Health Considerations - are hot chilis safe?
• Hotness - heat scale and chart
• Links - to other Chili sites

The chili, including bell peppers ("capsicum" in GB) are all descended from plants native to Central and South America. They were in general use there when Europeans first landed in the New World. A botanists named one species "chinense" but that was a mistake on his part.

The Portuguese are most responsible for inflicting chili peppers on the world. They took to them right off and transported them to Africa and to their trading post in Goa, India. Dried red chilis are light, long lasting and contain mature, eager to sprout seeds so chilis quickly spread everywhere traders traded.

Some maintain, particularly regarding Eastern Europe, that some chilis came to there from China and point to differences between paprika and pimento peppers, but those chilis probably entered Eastern Europe through India and Turkey, descendents of those brought from Brazil by the Portuguese (and would differ from Spanish chilis brought from Mexico).

The hottest chilis are particularly appreciated in the tropics because they induce sweating which makes the body feel cooler. This is less appreciated in the frozen north but heat-free bell peppers are appreciated everywhere.

Today it's as difficult to imagine Thai or Indian cuisine without chilis as it is to imagine Italian cooking without tomatoes or Irish without potatoes, but chilis, tomatoes and potatoes were all unknown in Europe and Asia before 1500.

Our list covers only chilis you are likely to find available for purchase in the U.S. (particularly California) or which are important to a particular cuisine. It's just a fraction of the known varieties - trying to list them all is as futile as the ancient Egyptian priest's trying to catalog all the gods and goddesses of the Nile valley - new ones appeared and the old ones changed before the catalog was done. That doesn't stop some people from trying though (A7).

The chilis pictures and the hotness ratings (H#) are from Southern California and Mexican grown examples and results may differ elsewhere. Caution: the heat ratings are typical, but actual variation is wide depending on soil, weather and the perversity of chili plants. Always test to avoid disappointment (or devastation).

Anaheim - [Long Green, California Green, Chili Verdi, Chili Colorado (when ripe), California Chili (when red ripe and dried)]
Fresh green or red ripe (Chili Colorado) or dried red (usually called California), 6" to 11" by 2". These mild (H2) chilis are most comon gree but are also excellent red, with a taste and sweetness similar to a red Bell Pepper but with a definite bite to them. They are similar to New Mexico and several other chilis that fit the same "long green" description.

Anaheims are often used by restaurants for Chili Rellanos and other recipes that should be made with Poblanos because they are large enough to stuff, available, low cost and because Poblanos can sometimes be hotter than they think their customers want. The Anaheim lacks the dark flavor of the Poblano, but is otherwise a fine chili.

Ancho
Dried black H1-H2, 2" to 4". This is the dried from of the Poblano, (shown to the left) and is one of the sweetest and most flavorful of the dried chilis. They are often used in Mexican sauces and recipes often in combination with other dried chilis. They are sweeter, hotter and brighter in flavor than the Mulato which is very similar in appearance.

Arbol (rat tail chili)
Shown fresh green, fresh ripening and dried red, H4, 2" to 5" and very slender with a sharp point. Dried arbols are excellent when you want a bit more heat than the commonly available Japone provides. The Arbol is easily recognized from its long slender form (similar to Thai chili but larger).

Armenian
Fresh yellow-green, up to 8 inches by 2 inches diameter but more commonly stubbier at 5 to 6 inches by 2 inches diameter, tapered with a usually blunt end. These are noticeably sweet when they start to yellow but can have detectable hotness (H0 to H1). They have thinner walls and a more subtile flavor than Bell Peppers but can be used in similar ways. With thin skins they are good for frying and roasting..

Bell Peppers - [Capsicum (British), Capsicum annuum var. grossum]
- fresh ripe red, yellow and orange, H0. Bells are always available fresh and are only dried for use as industrial food additives. Box shaped to heart shaped, these large (up to 5" across) chilis feature thick, crisp and flavorful flesh with no heat, making them popular in nearly every cuisine worldwide.

Baby Bell Peppers - [Capsicum (British), Capsicum annuum var. grossum]

Fresh red, green, yellow and orange, H0. These look a lot like Gypsy Peppers and other frying peppers but have much thicker walls, more flavor and are usually very sweet. The photo specimens were 4-1/2 inches long, 2-1/4 inches across and weighed 3-1/4 ounces.

Cascabel [Chili Bola]
Dried red, H4 - a smallish round or heart shaped chili up to about 1-1/2 inches diameter that gives a nutty flavor to sauces. Used mostly in Mexican cooking.

California
Dried red, 4" to 8" x 2", H2. California chilis are usually dried red Anaheims but can be a number of similar varieties. They can be used in mild Mexican sauces and are a major ingredient in California Chili Powder. Subst: New Mexico Chili.

Capsicum

1. The scientific family name for all chilis.
2. Bell Peppers in England.

Cherry Pepper
Cherry Pepper - Hot
Fresh red spherical to slightly pointy, 1" diameter, H0-H1. Cherry peppers are used for salad plates and mild pickles. Hot Cherry Peppers look exactly the same but will knock the socks off the unwary at H4 or hotter and can be used same as Fresnos.

Chilaca - see Pasilla.

Chiltepe
Tiny (about the size of a pea) but intensely hot chilis popular in Central America.

Chipotle
Pronounced Chee-POT-lay, this is a smoked Jalapeno. The common versions are pictured above, from left to right:
•   Jalapeno:   fresh green - what chipotles are made from.
•   Brown Chipotle:   [Chipotle Meco, Tipico] the most common kind in Mexico, but not so common in the U.S.. It is a green jalapeno smoked and dried, properly over a smoldering pile of jalapeno foliage.
•   Chipotle in Adobo Sauce:   the most common version in the U.S., red ripe jalapenos smoked, smothered in red Adobo Sauce and put up in tiny cans. Usually smaller varieties are selected for this version, see Morita below. The sauce has been wiped from the photo specimen.
•   Chili Morita:   a red ripe jalapeno smoked and dried. Usually smaller varieties are selected for this version which, due to the small size, is often mistakenly called "smoked serrano".

Chipotles will generally be somewhat less hot than the H5 jalapenos, so figure around H4. Chipotles with Adobo Sauce, with their smoky flavor, are absolutely wonderful with scrambled eggs and in other egg dishes.

Coban
Small dried red smoked chilis popular in Guatemala and southern Mexico. They're about 1/2 in diameter and have a smoky flavor similar to Chipotles but are hotter.

Colorado (Chili Colorado) - this is a red ripe Anaheim Chili - not nearly as common as the green ones.

Curd Chilli
India. These are green chilis soaked in yogurt and salt, then sun baked for nearly a week. Fry them in a little oil and serve as a condiment. They are used most on the west coast of India. Actually pretty tasty, hotness about H3.

de Arbol - see Arbol.

Dutch Red - see Holland Red.

Fresno - ["Red Jalapeno" (supermarkets)]
Fresh red ripe, almost never green, H4-5. A conical, medium walled chili about 2 to 3 inches long and 1 inch in diameter. Fresnos are fast becoming the standard for hot red chilis and are found in all the Southern California ethnic markets (as well as in the big supermarkets where they're often called "red jalapenos").

Fresnos are highly available, have good flavor and a hotness that's close enough to hot chilis used in Korea, Southeast Asia, India and other regions. I have also seen Fresnos listed on European sites so they are apparently becoming common there as well (Fresno is 220 miles north of Los Angeles). The less commonly available Holland Red is a good substitute though it is thinner walled and seems more perishable.

Greek - see Italian.

Green Chili - the mythical "green chili", H0-H10. One of the most common stupidities of cookbook writers, particularly ethnic cookbooks, is to call for "three green chilis". Really? What kind of green chilis do you have in mind? I propose cookbook writers use a "Serrano equivalent" so we have some idea where we're supposed to be on the heat scale at least.

Guajillo
Dried red, 4 to 7 inches by 1-1/2 inches, H3-H4, this chili is notable for its smooth skin and the flavor of chocolate. It is used in a number of Mexican sauces and as a substitute for Chili Negro which is harder to find.

Guero - [Yellow Hot, Caribe, Goldspike]
H4. These appear similar to the red Fresno, though often not as pointy, and are about as hot but the flavor is not nearly as good in my opinion.

Gypsy
A bluntly conical thin walled non-hot (H0) pepper which passes quickly through colors from medium green to medium red as it ripens. They are generally about 4 inches long and 2-1/4 inches diameter weighing 3-1/2 ounces.

Gypsys are currently much admired by chefs and yuppies though I really don't see the point. They have thin skins so can be fried and roasted and cook quickly (important in restaurants), but also have less flavor and a less favorable skin to flesh ratio than the much more flavorful Baby Bell Peppers which are available in a similar range of even more intense colors. Select dark red ones carefully, they tend to go quickly to rot after achieving that color.

Habanero
This is a family of very hot chilis native to the Yucatan peninsula and surrounding areas. It was so quickly carried worldwide by explorers and merchants that early botanists thought it was native to China, thus the mistakenly named chili genus C. chinense. They are typically thin walled and have a unique fruity flavor. Ripe they are commonly red or orange but white, pink and brown varieties also exist.

Habaneros have a unique fruity flavor, which, combined with their intense hotness (H10), makes them popular for hot chili sauces. They have very thin walls but tend to rot quickly so are difficlult to dry and seldom seen in that form. When you buy them keep them loosely wrapped in the refrigerator and plan to use them up rather quickly.

Holland Red
Fresh red, 4" to 6" x 5/8" bright red and tapered to a sharp point, hotness H4-5, fairly thick flesh and sweet taste. These are popular in Holland and it's former colonies in Indonesia as well as other parts of Europe and California. Probably would be about right for Sichuan and Hunan recipes and are a good choice for most ethnic cuisines. Substitute Fresno if they're not available.

Hungarian Wax
Fresh yellow green, 4" to 5" by 1-1/2" with roundly pointed tips, Hotness H4. Extensively used in European cuisines, particularly that of Hungary, but also in Thailand and by Thais in the U.S. as a substitute for a Thai yellow chili that's difficult to find even there.

India
Fresh green, H2-H4. Pictured left are H2 from a produce market, and and right are H4 from an Indian grocery. With these, you'll just have to try them and see. Subst: Korean Chilis

Italian - [Pepperoncini, Tuscan Peppers, Greek Peppers].
Fresh green, 2 to 7 inches long by 3/4 inch diameter, H0-H2 and easily recognizable by their wrinkly tops. Shorter varieties are most commonly seen pickled (Pepperoncini), but most are far more vinegary than hot and have a generally disappointing flavor. The Greek varieties are said to be better. Italian peppers are fine for munching fresh and raw or for use in Italia recipes. Red ones are sweeter but not nearly as available as green.

Jalapeno
Fresh green, 2 to 3 inches by 1 inch diameter, dark green with blunt tip, H5-H6. The skin is dark green (or red), smooth and shiny but often has faint "stretch markes". The Jalapeno, with its thick flesh and distinctive flavor is the preferred chili for many Mexican salsas and for hot pickled peppers.

Red ripe Jalapenos are very rare even in Southern California, probably because Huy Fong Foods buys them all up to make their famous (though not precisely authentic) Sriracha sauce. They don't have jalapenos in Vietnam but the owner of Huy Fong loves them.

Plant breeders have recently developed a special "low heat" variety of Jalapeno so "Mexican" restaurants in New York can advertise "real Jalapeno peppers" without devastating the population. Fortunately, if we grow any of those here we export them all to New York.

Japanese - [Shishito Chile]
Fresh slightly yellowish green, 2" to 3" by 1/2", H1. These chilis have unique lengthwise ridges and blunt ends. They have good flavor but practically no heat.

Japone
Dried red, hotness H3.This is the most common dried red chili and seems to be sold everywhere in the Mexican section of markets. In SoCal they are often available bulk from bins. Note that they are almost always missing their caps and stems.

Japones have good flavor and darken easily in hot oil, but most I've found aren't really all that hot, so I use something else (like Arbols) if I want to spice up food. Japones are the accepted dried red chili to use in Chinese cooking except for the Hunan and Sichuan.regions.

Korean
Fresh green, 3" to 5" by 3/4" tapered to a slightly blunt point, H2-H4 Found in Koran groceries, these chilis vary rather widely in hotness. Most have very little heat but I recently bought some red ones that were about as hot as Holland Reds. Subst: Indian Chilis.

Long Green Chili
Fresh green, 6" to 11", H2. Commonly Anaheim in SoCal, but could be New Mexico or any other variety of large mild green chili. Often used for stuffing in "Mexican" cooking, but I prefer Poblanos (hotter and deeper flavor). Long greens are excellent though for just munching raw.

Manzana
Fresh orange, red, green; round to bell shape, 1" to 2",

Mirasol - Fresh red, 4" to 5" by 1" tapered to a sharp point, hotness H4. This chili has a unique fruity flavor but is not commonly available in SoCal.

Morita - a variety Chipotle (smoked Jalapeno) but smoked when red ripe rather than green. Usually a smaller variety is used, about 2-5/8 inches long by 7/8 inch wide. See Chipotle for more information.

Mulato - dried
Dried black to 2-1/2" x 4" (variable), heart shaped, hotness H1. The flavor of this chili is suggestive of licorish and is darker and less sweet than that of the brighter flavored Ancho but they are used similarly and sometimes in combination. This is a flavoring chili with almost no heat.

Negro (Chile Negro) - see Pasilla.

Naga Jolokia - [Bih Jolokia, Bhut Jolokia Borbih Jolokia, Nagahari, Naga Murch, Raja Mirchi, Dorset Naga, C. frutescens / C. chinense]
Currently the hottest chili known with a Scoville rating of around 1,000,000 (depending - it can be half that in a drier climates). This chili was found in north eastern India and grows to about 3 inches long and 1 inch across. It appears to be a cross between C. Frutescens and C. chinense. Photo by Gannon Anjo distributed under GNU Free Documentation Licence v2.1.

New Mexico
Dried red, 4 to 6 inches by 2 inches wide, H2. This chili is used as a major ingredient in New Mexico Chili Powder and in various Mexican sauces. Very similar to California Chili but tends to be a bit hotter.

Nora
A small heart shaped or spherical dried sweet pepper about 1-5/8 inch diameter or smaller. It's much used in Spanish cooking - quite sweet with almost no hotness and can be had from Spanish emporiums in the U.S. at a stunning $3.00 per ounce or so. Cascabels look similar but not as sweet and definitely have some hotness to them.

Pasilla - [Chile Negro]
Fresh green, red ripe, whole dried, ground powder, 6" long by 1" with a very blunt end - hotness H2 - H3. Called Chile Negro when dried. Only the dried form is commonly available in California. Poblanos are often called "Pasilla" in error so be sure which a recipe actually calls for - if it's for stuffing it probably actually wants Poblanos. This chili has a deep slightly smoky flavor and is often used for Mexican stews and salsa. Subst: for green pasillas, Poblanos (different shape, thicker flesh), for dried Ancho or Mulato (both sweeter, thicker flesh, so use fewer if by count).

Pasilla de Oaxaca
Pasillas that have been smoked in the manner of Chipotles. They are larger and not as hot.

Pepperoncini - see Italian.

Pequin
Red dried, 1/2 by 1/4 inch pointed. H9. A very small but very hot chili with a complex flavor.

Pimento
Red ripe, round or heart shaped to 4" diameter with thick walls making them substantial and attractive for food processing uses where appearance is a factor. Hotness H0, they are very tasty and sweet, similar in flavor to red bells but more intense. Unfortunately they are seldom seen in stores in the US.

Poblano - [not Pasilla]
Fresh green H3, rarely red ripe - dried red it is called Ancho. This large (4" to 6"), very dark green conical chili has fairly thick flesh with a unique flavor, but hotness and shape can vary widely.

Poblanos are the correct chili for Chili Rellano, but many restaurants use the less flavorful Anaheim for reasons of cost, availability and for fear of the somewhat erratic hotness of the poblano. When a recipe calls for "Pasilla" chilis it almost always actually means "Poblanos", particularly if it calls for stuffing them. Real fresh green Pasillas are not only hard to find even in California but are long, narrow and relatively thin of flesh.

Puya
Dried red chilis (hotness H4-H5) similar to Guajillo but much smaller and much hotter. The pictured examples are about 3-1/2 inches long.

Red Savina - see Habanero.

Scotch Bonnet - Nearly identical to the orange Habanero but a little more rumpled in shape.

Serrano
Fresh green, H6. This is our "standard" for hot green chilis. It is hot on just about anyone's scale, is widely available, reasonably reliable as to how hot it actually is, and has been adopted by many immigrant communities. The Serrano has a distinctive flavor, moderately thick flesh and generally is between 2" and 3" long by 1/2" in diameter with a rounded point.

Thai restaurants adopted Serranos for their condiment trays in the days before California started producing Thai chilis by the ton, People became so used to the flavorful Serranos many Thai restaurants have now added a fourth condiment bowl to provide Serrano and Thai chilis side by side. Now I hear they're starting to grow Serranos in Thailand - probably the tourists are demanding them. Their prominance in Indian markets indicates the Indian community has adopted them as well.

Mexicans use Serranos wherever Jalapenos just aren't hot enough to do the job. They also put up cans of pickled Serranos in the same manner as Jalapenos, but I consider pickled Serranos just a bit too hot to enjoy munching on.

Shishito Chile - See Japanese Chili

Siling-bilog - [(Philippine), Rounded Pepper, Capsicum annuum var grossum]
Basically these are medium size Bell Peppers used (generally green)in the Philippines as a vegetable and for stuffing.

Sili-haba - [,Siling-haba, Siling mahahaba, (Philippine); Long Pepper, Spanish Pepper; Capsicum annuum var. longum]
A long chili tapering to a point, it grows to about 2-1/5 inches long and a bit less than 3/4 inch wide at the stem end. Quite hot, it's used (usually green) in the Philippines for pickling and for seasoning food. Until I know better I'm substituting Serranos 1 to 1.

Thai Chili
Fresh green or ripening, 2" to 3" by 3/8", long thin and pointy, hotness H8-H9 (H5?).

This is the pepper that should be sliced up in the condiment tray at Thai restaurants, but its place is often taken by Serranos which are tastier and supposed to be milder. I have, however, eaten at Thai restaurants that served both, and where the Thai chilis were less hot than the Serranos. Apparently California grows some rather mild Thai Chilis, but the ones I get at Sunland Produce are hot enough.

If you pick out red ripe ones you can dry them successfully for hot dried chilis.

Tuscan - see Italian.

Verdi (Chili Verdi) - see Anaheim.

Yellow Hot Chili - see Guero.

Yellow Wax, Long
Yellow green, 6 to 9 inches by 2 inches diameter, H4. Similar in size and shape to the green Anaheim, but these are much hotter. These start out yellow-green, turn yellow at the point they're usually marketed, then turn orange as they fully ripen. Pretty much interchangeable with and easily confused with hot Hungarian Peppers.

Aleppo
Hotness H1 certainly one of the finest low heat powders, Aleppo is much sweeter, tastier and hotter than American paprika. Grown in northern Syria, it is suitable for Lebanese, Turkish and Persian cooking. Subst: Korean - hotter and less sweet.

Cayenne
Hotness H8 a distinctly hot powder with little flavor, Cayenne is the "standard" for adding heat to recipes without affecting the flavor, including adding heat to California and New Mexico chili powders. As a commercial product it may be made from Cayenne chilis or from some similar chili.

India Extra Hot
Well, Artesia CA India at least. H7. This is hot end of the four grades sold in Indian groceries around here (Paprika, Kashmir, Reshampatti and Extra Hot). It's nearly as hot as Cayenne but has better flavor. Use it for the cuisines of southern India and on the west coast from Goa on south, or wherever Cayenne is called for.

Kashmir - [Kashmiri Mirch (India)]
Hotness H3. Much less sweet and quite a bit hotter than Aleppo, Kashmir chili powder is used in Indian cooking, particularly in the relatively softly spiced meat dishes of the north.

Korean - Flake and Powder
Hotness H2, sweet and tasty chili flake and powder used liberally for kimchi and other Korean dishes. Less sweet and hotter than Aleppo.

New Mexico Chili Powder
This is a seasoning blend invented in Texas in the 1800s. It is available in mild and hot versions and is generally made from New Mexico chilis, paprika, guajillo chilis, black pepper, onion powder and garlic powder. Ceyenne may be added for hotter formulas.

Paprika, U.S.
Hotness H0. Undistinguished to slightly bitter in flavor and lacking any heat, U.S. Paprika is pretty much for decoration, but often dull in color too. Obtain genuine Hungarian paprika if possible.

Paprika, Hungarian, Sweet & Hot
Hungarian paprika is sweet, flavorful and brilliant red. "Sweet" (H0) and "Hot" (H2) versions are sold, but when a recipe calls for "paprika" it means sweet - hot is used mainly as a "sprinkle" at serving.

Though now the signature spice of Hungarian cooking, peppers were not planted there until around 1750 and paprika was little used until after 1850. It is said the technique for grinding chilis into fine powder was first developed in Hungary. It is probable these peppers came into Hungary through Turkey.

Reshampatti
Whole reshampatti chilis are common in India but not seen in the U.S., though the ground version is common in Indian groceries. This chili powder is a little less sweet and a bit hotter H4. than Kashmir and a good choice for all-around Indian cooking.

White Chilli Powder
This ground chili powder is used a fair amount in India to spice up recipes with white sauces. I'm not sure how it's made but it's an extremely fine powder and about as hot as Reshampatti (H4) but lacks a lot of the distinctive flavor of red chili peppers. Consider it a "hottening agent" only.

Hot Chilis are safe. Experiments have been conducted squirting chili oils directly onto the stomach lining and no adverse effects were seen. Scientists working with pure capsaicin do so in filtered rooms wearing hazmat suits, but the pure stuff is 16,000,000 Scoville and real chilis top out at about 500,000 Scoville (A2).

The pain of hotness is entirely a nerve signaling thing and is not a real pain from damage of any kind. Birds do not have appropriate receptors and are immune to chilis so eat them and spread their seeds efficiently. The upshot of this is you can treat the seed in your bird feeder with chilis so the squirrels can't eat it, but it doesn't bother the birds at all. There are commercial products for this.

Exit Sting: If you notice this problem a day or so after eating hot chilis you are not eating enough hot chilis. The digestion adjusts and this problem goes away. For instance, I eat enough hot chilis I was not bothered by exit sting after testing (and guzzling) hot sauces for the article above.

Vitamins: Hot red chilis are extremely high in vitamin A, but have good doses of vitamin C as well as folic acid, potassium and antioxidants. They are low sodium and very low carb (A3).

Endorphin Rush: Chilis have been found to provide many people with an "endorphin rush" similar to that achieved by joggers but with a lot less effort, risk and damage to the joints (A2). It is reported this can be achieved with hot chili varieties when they are too young to be hot so people who like this effect can get it without the pain if they plant their own chili plants.

Sweating and Digestion: Hot chilis are very popular in practically all tropical areas because they induce sweating which cools the body. They are also a digestive stimulant which helps a lot in hot weather (A4).

The official measure of chili hotness is the Scoville Unit, which ranges from 0 (green bell pepper) to 16,000,000 (pure capsaicin). The hottest actual chili peppers right now are between 350,000 and a bit over 500,000 Scoville.

Remembering big numbers is difficult and the chilis don't cooperate either, forcing you to remember a range of big numbers. A single variety can show wide variation in heat depending on soil, weather and the chili plant's mood at the time.

Here we use a simple 0 to 10 hotness scale with the 10 spot held by the Habanero family. "Close enough for government work", as the saying goes. Keep in mind the wide variation and the fact that when dried, ripe red chilis will lose some hotness.

Links

• A1 - Gernot Katzer's Spice Dictionary - Botanical details
• A2 - Chemical and Engineering News - What's That Stuff - Red-Hot Chili Peppers
• A3 - About.com - Nutrition: Peppers, hot chili, red, raw
• A4 - Southern Illinois University - Red Hot Chili Peppers
• A5 - History - YaleGlobal Online - Chili: A Small Fruit that Sets Global Palettes on Fire
• A6 - Gernot Katzer's Spice Dictionalry - Botanical details
• A7 - Chile-Head - "Database" for varieties alphabtically.
• A8 - Chipotles - Clay Irving.
• A9 - Chili Dictionary - Centro Mexico, S.A.