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Everything You Wanted To Know About The Chilli Varieties G - LOn this page we'll investigate cilli varieties G to L. Guajillo (Capsicum annuum)
Heat Level: 3-4 out of 10 (4000-6000 Scovilles) Flavour: Wow. Just open a bag of these wonderful chillies and the rich aroma of raisins, prunes, and dried apricots will surprise you. Not at all what you expect from chillies - particulalrly here in Australasia where our dominant chilli influence comes out of Asia which does not have these varieties at all. The flavour is the same as that beautiful aroma. Use: Use wherever you want a deep, rich chilli flavour with a mild heat. They are almost always re-hydrated in hot water for 15-20 minutes before use. Growing: Guajillos will grow in the general conditions set out in our growing chillies page. Typical yield for a plant is in the order of 15 fruit though 25+ is not unheard of. Once you've harvested the fruit, head to our preserving your chillies
preserving your chillies
page to learn how to dry them.
Heat Level: 7-9 out of 10 (100,000-500,000 Scovilles) Flavour: Habaneros are famous for their unique, tropical fruit flavours which accounts for much of their popularity. To experience this without experiencing just the burn, cut one open, remove all the pith and seeds and try a few slivers of the flesh. You should be able to pick such flavours as papaya, mango, possibly coconut, and sometimes apricot. Just beautiful. Use: Fresh, whatever you do, use them fresh wherever possible. The flavour loss in dried fruit is massive. Ms Kennedy advises that in Mexico, habaneros are never skinned,never deseeded and never used dried. While I wholly agree with her on the last one, don't feel limited by the first two. Habaneros in general are too hot for me with the pith in, so I always remove it and simply enjoy the flavour in salsas. I also make an extremely simple sauce blending the flesh with balsamic vinegar and have always loved the result. Growing: Habaneros will grow in the general conditions set out in our
growing pages
Typical yield for a plant is in the order of 15 fruit though 30+ is not unheard of.
Heat Level: 6 out of 10 (20,000-40,000 Scovilles) Flavour: The flavour is generally reminiscent of jalapenos though not with as much capsicum background. Use: They can be used in any chilli recipes but because of their fresh flavour they are commonly used in salads. We don't really see it here in Australia but in the USA they are commonly available in stores as a pickled chilli. Growing: Wax chillies are a hardy variety and will easily grow in the conditions set out in our
growing your chillies
page. The plants are multi-stemmed, compact and prolific fruiters. I had one in the vege patch in 2005 and it produced in excess of 35 fruit.
Pronounced halapenyo by Mexicans and halapeeno by the rest of the world, they have an instantly recognizable shape and a wide range of uses. Heat Level: 5 out of 10 (10,000-15,000 Scovilles) Flavour: Big flavour that is strongly capsicum and something else that is distinctly jalapeno. Use: The most common use in Australia is in pickled form and used in nachos and tacos. The enthusiast will grow or purchase fresh ones and chop them into a fresh salsa. Many non-asian style chilli or picante sauces use jalapenos as a source of medium level heat. Because of their thick flesh they are virtually impossible to dry to preserve them, which is why they are so commonly pickled. This difficulty in preserving is however a blessing as it was because of this that the Teotihuacan indians (they were around before the Aztecs) developed the process of smoking the jalapeno to preserve it. Thus, the chipotle was produced. When I have the time I am going to dedicate a full page to the chipotle -stay tuned. In the interim, check out the smoking your chillies page if you would like to try and make your own. Growing: Jalapenos are a hardy variety and will easily grow in the conditions set out in our growing your chillies pages. The plants usually grow from 60cm - 90cm in height and produce the thick fleshy pods around 5cm-8cm long and 2cm-3cm wide. Jalapenos are grown commercially in Western Australia, Queensland, and New South Wales. While there are a number of different jalapeno varieties being grown, they are all simply labelled under the collective, jalapeno. They are easily grown in most areas of Australia, but the further south you go, the longer the plant will take to reach maturity and full yield.
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Description: The guajillo is one of the most commonly grown chillies in Mexico, particularly in the north. In they southern hemisphere they are only available in dried form (whole or powdered). They are a thick, leathery, dark red-brown fruit requires a longer soaking period to rehydrate that contain mild to moderate amounts of heat.
Description: The habanero ripens from a light green through yellow to an eventual orange or red. One of my food idols, Diana Kennedy, also describes in one of her books From My Mexican Kitchen seeing eggplant coloured and apricot coloured fruit in Mexico.It's skin is smooth, shiny and undulating.
Description: There are a number of chillies that come under the wax label and all have shiny skins from which the names are derives. They are predominantly yellow though I have seen an orange variety - there are no red wax chillies that I am aware of.
Description: Named after the city of Jalapa in Veracruz, Mexico, the jalapeno is perhaps one of the best known chillies amongst Australians.
