New Mexico Chile for Dummies!

Everything you need to know about New Mexico Red and Green!

The world has discovered what we've known all along here in New Mexico ...chile is habit-forming! Whether enjoying dishes made with pungent green chile or mellow dried red peppers, we're hooked! And while the same ingredient in chile that supposedly makes it slightly habit-forming (capsaicin) is also the one that may burn your tongue, it's the delicious variety of flavors in chile cuisine that we love, not just the heat. For our purposes here, we're not going to explore Jalapenos, Habaneros, Cayenne, or the multitude of other peppers preferred mainly for their heat. When we say "Chile", we'll be talking about the long New Mexico Green/Red types, with names like "Big Jim", "Rio Grande","Sandia", etc. In other parts of the country you'll see similar (but not quite the same!) chile peppers called "Anaheim" peppers. In our neck of the woods, it's "Hatch" or "Mesilla Valley" chile that we crave. (By the way, for a brief treatise on various names used to market chile, go   HERE.)

Two Great Chiles - Both From The Same Plant!

The heat in a chile pepper comes from a chemical called Capsaicin, concentrated in the membranes surrounding the seeds, and extending down the pepper like "veins". The heat can be somewhat reduced by removing the membranes and seeds. Green chile is rich in Vitamin C.
The green pods are normally roasted so the tough skins can be removed. The roasting process also imparts the delicious flavor and aroma that we love! See the video below for instructions on roasting chile at home.

By Summer's end the green pods are ripening and turning to a rich, deep red color. The chile flavor is changing also, becoming sweet and mellow, with a completely different taste from the green peppers. Some of the fresh red pods are picked and tied into the colorful Ristras you'll see hanging all over Southern New Mexico this time of year, but they're not just pretty to look at. Once the peppers are dried they become the starting point for the rich red chile sauce used in a multitude of red chile recipes.The video below will show you how!

SOUTHERN NEW MEXICO'S "CHILE TRAIL"

Okay, what's the difference between "Chile" (with an "e"), and "Chili" (with an "i")? Order "chile" in New Mexico and the immediate response is usually "Red or Green?" Chile as we know it here is a variety of dishes where the major ingredient is either fresh green chile, or a sauce made from rehydrated dry red chile pods. Don't get us wrong...we occasionally enjoy a "good steamin' bowl of Chili", but we've come to demand much more than ground beef, beans, and cheese of our Chile!

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