Chile de Arbol, Mexican chile

Chile de Arbol is a small, thin Mexican hot chili pepper, typically red. The peppers are naturally dried, and can be used whole, crushed, or ground.

chile de arbol

What is chile de arbol?

Chile de Arbol is a Mexican type of red chili pepper that is commonly used in many dishes, especially when you want ot make your food spicier. It has a spicy, earthy flavor that is often used to make salsa, sauces, soups, and stews.

The chile de arbol pepper is a thinner Mexican pepper than a jalapeño pepper, and is usually dried and ground into a fine powder. It is also known by the name pico de pájaro -bird’s beak chile, tree chili or rat’s tail chile. Be sure not to confuse it with bird’s eye Thai chili.

How spicy is the chile de arbol?

The Scoville scale measures the heat level of chili peppers, with higher ratings indicating a higher level of spiciness. Chile de arbol is considered a very hot pepper, with a Scoville rating of 15,000 to 30,000 units.

To give you an idea, chile de arbol’s heat level, it’s much hotter than a jalapeno pepper, which typically has a Scoville heat units of 2,500 to 8,000 units.

How do chiles de arbol taste like?

Chiles de arbol have a very distinct and intense flavor, which is described as smoky, earthy, nutty and a little bit fruity. When dried, Chile de arbol tend to lose some of their fruity flavor and gain a sharper, smokier flavor.

diffrent ways to use chiles de arbol

Salsa: One of the most common ways to use Chile de arbol is to make a salsa. I love to combien different dried chiles when making dried chile salsa, one of my favorite is salsa tlaquepaque. Use this salsa to finish sopes, enfrijoladas, migas or any of your favorite Mexican dishes.

Soups and stews: Chile de árbol can also be added to soups and stews as a part of the flavor base or just simmered with the rest of the ingredients to give it a spicy kick. Make birria or my birria ramen recipe which is to die for.

Chile oil: If you pour hot olive oil or vegetable oil, over the chilis you will get the most flavorful chili oil that can be used as a condiment or cooking oil.

Alejandra Graf
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