I am a bit a chili-head. I love cooking a lot with Chili peppers, as it is a great way to add taste into what could be otherwise bland food. Sweet or spicy, they are as colorful as a Disney movie when fresh, but turn as dark and mysterious as Stephen King movie, hinting at complexity and nuance when dried.

Of course I have to make everything "mild" for my kids, and then add a few zesty touchs for the adults eating with us.

It has been said That If corn is the foundation of which Mexican cooking is built, its soul lies in its seemingly infinite number of peppers.  

How to work with dried chilies

The heat of chilies lies in the membrane of tissue within the shell itself. The seeds absorb some of this heat. Think about how the inside of a bell pepper looks. You can control the heat to the extent that you remove the membrane and by removing or leaving the seeds. In a dried pepper, I don't worry about the membrane as I only use mild type chilies, but I remove ALL the seeds always.

Always remember that chilies should be handled carefully: wear rubber gloves and do not rub your eyes or lips.

The best way to handle and seed dried chilies, use a sharp paring knife to make a slit down the side and carefully scrape out the seeds.

To toast, place on a hot cast iron comal or dry skillet (I just use my dry cast iron skillet) for 10 to 15 seconds, turning once or twice. Do not burn. You can rehydrate chilies, by soaking them in very hot water for 15 to 20 minutes or longer.

Fresh Peppers

Bell Pepper

The bell pepper is the most commonly grown pepper in the US.  Mexico has a large export business with bells, but doesn't use them as much in their own cooking. This falls into the area called a sweet pepper. The green ones are a little tart, but the longer the gardener / farmer leaves it on the bush, it grows sweeter and turns colors, usually yellow, orange, and red. Hence the reason they cost more, they grew longer by about a month.

(Note: write about Anaheim & California, and stuff about the Hatch New Mexico greens and the big reds separately. )

Poblano

A largish chile, 4 to 4 inches long in general.  It is dark green with a deep, mellow flavor.  This is the most popular chile for stuffing.  It is generally roasted and peeled before use.   This is a mere 1,000 -1,500 Scoville units.

Jalapeno

The best known of the chilies and readily available in market, the crisp jalapeno is complex in flavor.  It measures 2,500 - 10,000 Scoville units.   It is named after the city, Jalapa in Veracruz.

Habanero

Watch out for habanero which measures scorchingly high in Scoville units. This is the hottest pepper of all. It measures 80,00 to 150,000 Scoville units It is well to adjust the heat by eliminating seeds to taste the unique flavor of this chile, described frequently as 'fruity, sweet, aromatic.  

KEEP AWAY FROM YOUR EYES when working with habaneros.  I wear my goggles, the kind you get from Home Depot when I work on these, just to make sure I don't accidentally get a stray spray of juice from this baby. I will only use 1 of a Habanero in any recipe ever. I love adding it a fruity zesty coleslaw every once in a while.

Cayenne

This is long, thin pointed chile, on average 3 inches long.  It is not a Mexican native.  Though a native of South America, it has endeared itself around the world. It is like fire itself, you can't eat it alone. Cayenne mash and vinegar is what most hot sauces are made with.

Chilaca

A fresh form of the pasilla. I have never used it fresh, but love to combine passilla in with my homemade chili powder.

Chiltepin, Pequin and Tepin -

These are small, wild chiles, very attractive to birds.  The word chiltepin may had derived from the Nahuatl combination of chilli and tecpintl which translates to 'flea chile' referring both to its size and its bite. In Puebla, the piquin is called pichichi.  There are many varieties growing wild in Mexico and southwestern states in the US.  They say they do well in home gardens, but I haven't been able to get them to grow well. Legend has it that Texans eat them off the bush and use them instead of soap to wash their children's mouth if they use a bad word. I do use a few Pequins, that I get from New Mexico in my homemade chili powder.

Güero

This is a waxy yellow or yellow-green chile.  It is similar in appearance to the jalapeno, but is larger. I do mix one or two of these in when I making a larger batch of more mild fresh salsa, or pico de gallo.

Serrano

The serrano is the smallest of the fresh chiles, slim, narrow and firm. It can be a substitute for jalapenos, though it is harder to deseed.  It is medium green in flavor.  It is available canned in vinegar.  It measures 10,000 to 25,00 Scoville units.  This is fire.  Serrano means 'from the mountains' and was first grown in the mountainous regions of northern Puebla and Hidalgo.  They are often pickled en escabeche. I often only add one Serrano when I making a wild zesty salsa.

Dried Chili Peppers

Fresh peppers often change their name when dried.  They also change their flavor, as the flavors concentrate in the drying process.  Once dried, their interaction with other foods is increased. A small amount of ground dried chilie makes a significant difference n taste when added as  an ingredient. The flavors are often complex - much like wines and you will learn to apprecaite the subtle distinctions in flavor as you experiment with them in yoru cooking.

Ancho

This is a ripened poblano chile that has been dried.  It is dark brown with a red hue. The name translates as 'broad' for the width of its pods. They may be stored in air-tight containers or ground into powder.  They are part of a great mole sauce. They are used primarily in sauces,  salsa, soups, and stews as the main chile puree base. I always have a supply of Ancho & Chipotle on hand for cooking with.

Chipotle

Chipotles are dry smoked red jalapenos. The name is derived from the Nahuantl combination of chil and potle meaning simply smoked chile.  They originated in  Teotihuacan, present-day Mexico City, where they were easily found in the markets. They are so readily available that they have become trendy. They are smoke-dried, and often found packed in adobo sauce.

Pasilla

This is the dried chilaca.  It is bit hotter than the ancho. It is used primarily in chili powders.  It harmonizes well with other chiles.

Guajillo

The Guajillo is common in northern and central Mexico. They are used primarily in sauces,  salsa, soups, and stews, in complement with other chiles.  The Guajillo is a beautifully shaped, reddish brown, elongated chile about 4-6 inches long and 1 - 1 1/2 inche across. It is long, thin and smooth. The flavor is a subtle, sweet heat and can vary in heat from modestly hot to blazing.

Mulato

This is similar to ancho in that it is a dried poblano, though not one that has been ripened.  It is darker than the ancho. When in case of need, the ancho my be substituted, but it is readily available. I rarely use these or keep them on hand.

Notes:

I am sure there are lots of other Chili Peppers, as I would love to get that great big chili poster to frame and hang in the kitchen; however this is just a small primer.