     |
Everything You Need To Know About Chilli Varieties M - ROn this page we will investigate chilli varieties in the alphabetical group M-R. Mulato (Capsicum annuum)
The shape is the broad heart/leaf shape as you can see in the photo (5-10cm across) and the colour is extremely dark red-brown to black. Heat Level: 3 out of 10 (1500-2000 Scovilles) Flavour: Wow. Just open a bag of these beauties and the rich aroma of raisins, figs, prunes, dried apricots, molasses, and even choclate will surprise you. Not at all what you expect from chillies - particulalrly here in Australasia where our dominant chilli influence comes out of SE 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 10-20 minutes before use. Growing: Poblanos will grow in the general conditions set out in our growing chillies page. They may require some shade to prevent sun burn on the large fruit surfaces if your garden gets a lot of direct sunlight throughout the day. 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
page to learn how to dry them and produce your own mulato chillies.
As you can see in the graphic this chilli is a squat, 'boat' shaped fruit that is widest in the middle and tapers to a sharp point at the base. The colour varies from orange to red when ripe. Heat Level: 10 out of 10 (1,000,000 Scovilles!) Flavour: I haven't tasted these myself, and I'm pretty sure I don't want to because of the heat level - that's just too hot for me. I haven't read anywhere else about the flavour - everyone is still hyped up about the heat level. However, as a member of the chinense family the flavours are probably along the lines of the usual glorious tropical fruit flavours experienced with habaneros. Growing: Again, not a lot of information available at this point, though the bits that I have found indicate that they are not easy to grow outside of the tropics. That doesn't mean they won't, just that the plant needs more attention than some of the hardier varieties when in the cooler climates. Obviously greenhouses and other techniques discussed in the growing will help make the task easier. If any readers do successfully grow these chillies I'd love to hear about your experiences.
The skin is a distinctive glossy black and as a result they are sometimes referred to as chile negro in Mexico, which gets confusing as the term is also used for dark ancho chillies. Now, because this is a common chilli in Mexico it, of course, has different name for the fresh and dried forms. Chilaca is the term for the fresh fruit while pasilla is used for the dried fruit. The name pasilla poses a bit of a mystery for me as two different sources, both of which I respect and trust, provide totally different meanings for the name. One says the Spanish translates out as large while the other says it means little raisin. Punching the name into 6 different online Spanish-English dictionaries only yielded 6 "word not found" results. So to be honest with you - I don't know what the hell the name actually means. I'll just have to move on. Heat Level: 2 out of 10 (1,000-2,000 Scovilles) Flavour: The pasilla is one of the classic chillies in the legendary mole sauces. When rehydrated it has a dark chocolate, dried fruit flavour with a distinctive astringency similar to that of tamarind (common in Asian and Indian cooking). Growing: I've never had the opportunity to try and grow them, nor know anyone that has, but from what I read they have adapted well to the more temperate parts of Mexico so should be quite comfortable growing in the general conditions set out in the growing your chillies page. The plants grow to about 1 metre high, have smooth, ovate leaves, the fruit grow erect (point up) and a happy, healthy plant shoud yield somewhere between 15 to 20 fruit.
The term piquin covers a variety of wild and domesticated species that are generally less than 3 cm long. The piquin is also some times called a chiltepin. Though the names are used interchangeably, generally the term piquin is used for for the domesticated varieties (conical) and chiltepin used for the wild varieties (spherical).
Heat: 7 out of 10 (50,000-100,000 Scovilles) Flavour: They can be used fresh or dried. The team here are extremely partial to the dried form with it's distinctly smokey aroma - even though they are not smoked! When fresh they are great in salsas, and when dried, they are great crushed and sprinkled into soups and casseroles. Growing: The plants are easy to grow and will thrive in the general conditions discussed in our growing your chillies page. We have never grown them ourselves, but friends have reported their growing to six feet high and there are reports out of the USA of them achieving 15 feet in glass houses. The small fruit are usually erect (point up).
Heat: 3 out of 10 (1500-2000 Scovilles) Flavour: Fresh poblanos taste much like a capsicum but with a little heat as well. When dried they are know as either an ancho or a mulato (see further up in this page), depending on the colour. Use: Fresh poblanos are commonly roasted and peeled and then preserved . Dried they are used as for anch or mulato chillies. Growing: Poblanos will grow in the general conditions set out in our growing chillies pages. They may require some shade to prevent sun burn on the large fruit surfaces if your garden gets a lot of direct sunlight throughout the day. 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
page to learn how to dry them and make your own ancho and mulato chillies.
|
Description: The mulato chilli only exists in dried form. How is this possible you ask ? Because the mulato is one of the two dried forms of the poblano chilli (see lower down this page). The other is the lighter of the two,
Description: Also known as Bhut Jolokia, Bih Jolokia, Naga Jolokia, Naga Morich, Raja Mirchi and Dorset Jolokia.
This is is the chilli that has been certified by a number of independant tests and by The Guinness Book Of Records as the hottest chilli in the world. At around 1,000,000 Scovilles this chilli has the same heat level as found in many of the extreme hot sauces that have distilled chilli extract in them.
Description: The pasilla is a long, narrow chili with a blunt, or slightly pointed tip, and have an average length of about 15cm and width of 3 cm. The surface is usually puckered with vertical ridges.
Description: This chilli is not well known in Australia. This is a shame as they are a great chilli and one that is on my must grow list.
The piquin (or pequin) is an early member of the annuum species and is believed to be closely related to the original chilli plants.
Description: Poblano chillies are pendant (hang down) and are 8-15 cm long and approx 10 cm wide at the stem. They are short, stubby conical shaped fruit and have indented shoulders. Initially dark green, they ripen to either a red or brown colouring.
