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What I find more interesting than the simple heat of chiles is their very distinctive flavors. Each of them imparts a unique taste which enhances the flavors of other foods. All chiles are great sources of vitamins A and C and good sources of folic acid, potassium and vitamin E.
Text & Photograph Copyrighted © KO 2006

Chile Ancho Capsicum annuum
This is the dried version of chile poblano (see chile poblano below). The chile ancho is reddish in color, mild in heat and has a fruity sharp flavor.
Text Copyrighted ©KO 2008

Chile Cascabel Capsicum annuum
This dried chile is used in making a terrific salsa. Its name, cascabel, means little rattle in Spanish. They are small, almost round and from about 1 to 2" in length. The color is almost the same as an eggplant, a dark brownish black.
Photographed: We bought these chiles in the market and took them home to photograph them at our apartment in Taxco, Mexico. To see some of the foods available in Taxco's market and some of our favorite people click here.
Text & Photograph Copyrighted ©KO 2006

Chile Chipotle Capsicum
This is a dried smoked jalapeno and it smells divine. The jalapeno does not lose its piquancy when smoked.
Photographed: In the Benito Juárez Market in Oaxaca, Mexico.
Recipe:

Salsa Chipotle

Put 1/4 kilo (about ½ pound) of chipotles in a pot and cover them with water. Simmer gently until the chiles soften, but not long enough for them to break apart. In a separate pan, soften a cone of piloncillo in a small amount of water, add ½ cup of vinegar and ½ of a small stick of cinnamon. If you don’t have access to piloncillo, use about 1/2 cup of molasses. Cook these together till it smells wonderful. Drain the chipotles and add to the other mixture. Stir gently over low heat to blend the flavors. Serve with meats as a side dish.
Text and Photograph Copyrighted ©KO 2006/2010

**Chile Guajillo Pulla Capsicum
This is a narrow long hot chile normally dried when it has turned red. These chiles grow plentifully on plants reaching to about two feet in height. The chiles have a wonderful mild flavor when first appearing, but heat up as the season gets longer.
Photographed: Growing in our mahogany garden at our home in Montserrat.
Planting and Care: We had good luck with this chile in Montserrat.The plant is prolific and hardier than some other chiles we’ve planted.
Recipe:
Try some chopped in a tomato juice cocktail with sticks of celery to quench the heat.
Note: These chiles get hotter as the plant matures.
Text & Photographs Copyrighted ©KO 2006/2010

**Chile Habanero, chile macho Capsicum chinense
These are small 2" green, yellow or red fresh chiles. A bit misshapen, the habanero is extremely hot.
Photographed: We bought these chiles in the market and took them home to photograph them at our apartment in Taxco, Mexico (on the right). To see some of the foods available in Taxco's market and some of our favorite people click here. On the left is a fresh green habanero growing in our mahogany garden at our home in Montserrat.
Planting and Care: The habanero plant is not distinctive from other chile plants, growing at its best to over three feet tall, but bearing even when smaller in about 85 days. Surprisingly we found worms in some of our first habaneros and couldn’t imagine how anything could live in one of these chiles! We had good luck with this chile in Montserrat giving it the same care as all of our other chiles and sweet peppers -- sun and routine rainfall or watering. We prepared the soil well adding compost and lime, waiting a week before transplanting the habanero plants.
Text & Photographs Copyrighted ©KO 2006/2010

Chile Jalapeño Capsicum annuum
These are a great standby, whether fresh or pickled, and are used almost every day in Mexican cuisine. Their heat can vary greatly according to where and how they are grown, but the heat is clear and sharp and their flavor is wonderful. When pickled with onions and carrots, we use them chopped or sliced on nachos most commonly or on cold pureed black beans as a dip served with totopos which are homemade fried tortilla chips (much better than anything that comes in a bag).
Photographed: In our mahogany garden at our home in Montserrat.
Planting and Care: The jalapeno is a pendant chile growing on a plant that will be about three feet tall. Plant seeds in trays and transplant to the garden for best results. Give them full sun and a reasonable amount of water and fertilizer and you won't be disappointed. In the Caribbean, they don't seem affected much by insects, though we have had problems with some sort of wilt. The chiles will mature in only about 70 days.
Text & Photograph Copyrighted ©KO 2006/2010

**Chile Mira el Cielo, Chile Parado Capsicum frutescens
This is the hot chile used in making Tabasco. When growing, the peppers stand up on the plant, hence the apodo or Mexican nickname “chile parado.” Parado technically means stopped, but the nickname amusingly refers to an aroused male. The plant itself is very attractive, a deeper green than most peppers.
Photographed: We bought these chiles in the market and took them home to photograph them at our apartment in Taxco, Mexico (on the left). To see some of the foods available in Taxco's market and some of our favorite people click here. On the right is a fresh green habanero growing in our mahogany garden at our home in Montserrat.
Planting and Care: The leaves on these bushy deep green plants are puckered and distinctive from those on other pepper plants. We had good luck with this chile in Montserrat.
Recipe:
Dried or fresh these chiles are used in making a salsa picante or hot sauce. The salsa is used in making huevos divorciados or divorced eggs. In this dish, two fried eggs are served, one with salsa picante and one with a mild tomato salsa.
Text & Photographs Copyrighted ©KO 2006/2010

Chile Morita Capsicum
Shaped like a dried jalapeno, or chipotle, the morita is about 3 to 4" long. It is almost always used dried, most often in making salsa.
Photographed: We bought these chiles in the market and took them home to photograph them at our apartment in Taxco, Mexico. To see some of the foods available in Taxco's market and some of our favorite people click here.
Text & Photograph Copyrighted ©KO 2006/2010

Chile Mulato Capsicum
Photographed: We bought these chiles in the market and took them home to photograph them at our apartment in Taxco, Mexico. To see some of the foods available in Taxco's market and some of our favorite people click here.
Text & Photographs Copyrighted ©KO 2006/2010

Chile Poblano Capsicum annuum
This is a fresh green chile as large as a green pepper, but narrower and elongated. In Mexico it is considered mildly hot or medio picante, though we find it quite mild. This is the most popular chile for making the famous dish called chile relleno though we've heard in Oaxaca that a more spicy version of the dish is made with chile de agua pictured above. When dried the poblano is called chile ancho which are a major ingredient in making puerco adobado.
Photographed: We bought these chiles in the market and took them home to photograph them at our apartment in Taxco, Mexico To see some of the foods available in Taxco's market and some of our favorite people click here.
Planting and Care: We did plant these peppers in Montserrat, but they didn't thrive as did many other chile varieties. The plant is about three feet tall, bushy and ever bearing at its best.
Text & Photograph Copyrighted ©KO 2006/2010

Chile Serano Capsicum annuum
The serano is a relatively small chile, narrow and only 2 to 4" in length. It is a standard item in any Mexican kitchen, used to add a spike to many dishes while not affecting the flavor much. While it is often rated as hotter than the jalapeno, I would have to say the heat is the same – hot, but not fiery.
Photographed: On the left in our kitchen and on the lower right in our mahogany garden at our home in Montserrat. On the lower left we bought the chiles in the market and took them home to photograph them at our apartment in Taxco, Mexico To see some of the foods available in Taxco's market and some of our favorite people click here.
Planting and Care: The serano grows erect on a plant that is about three feet tall. Plant seeds in trays and transplant to the garden for best results. Give them full sun and a reasonable amount of water and fertilizer and you won't be disappointed. They don't seem affected much by insects, though we have had problems with some sort of wilt. Mature chiles can be harvested in about 80 days.
Text & Photographs Copyrighted ©KO 2006/2010

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