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In my pantry I have 3 bottles of cayenne powder, and one bottle of paprika powder. I DON"T have "ground chile" nor "chili seasoning/powder".
I also have tons of cumin powder and garlic powder.
So, with what I have and don't have, can I still cook beef chili tonight? I heard cayenne is 8 times hotter than "ground chile"... our family is not into hot food.
Yes. Go easy on the cayenne pepper if your family is not into hot. You can always add a little more if it needs to be spicier, but you can't take it out.
Yes...however, in Colorado no longer $1.
What was once 5 bags, by Fiesta, for $5, is now $10!(Had to buy 5 for a friend in NY.)
And I did find then in the Herb/Spices aisle by the jars.
The orig question is a toughy... Chili Powder has such a definite flavor, compared to
Mexican Ground Hot Pepper.
You can find various types of Chile powder
Some are darker than others because they come from different types of chiles
I have dark and regular chili powder—the dark one is more flavorful—takes less but is also little bit hotter
If you want HEAT, you need the seeds—
In a pepper that is the hottest part
If you want an excellent source of spices—not just good chili powder— then try Pendery’s in FTW TX
Ship pretty much anywhere
Yes...however, in Colorado no longer $1.
What was once 5 bags, by Fiesta, for $5, is now $10!(Had to buy 5 for a friend in NY.)
And I did find then in the Herb/Spices aisle by the jars.
The orig question is a toughy... Chili Powder has such a definite flavor, compared to
Mexican Ground Hot Pepper.
That is true almost nothing is a dollar today. Only things I see for $1 were 50 cents a couple years ago.
My understanding is "chili" can refer to a hot pepper, or the Mexican meat stew dish. “Chili powder" thus also has two meanings: the grounded form of the hot pepper, or a mixture of spices including the hot pepper, cumin, garlic powder, among other things, used in the stew.
So if a recipe calls for chili powder, what is it referring to?
It's not the ground hot pepper. It is the mixture of spices you referred to.
Nowadays, I just buy packets of Chili Seasoning or Taco Seasoning. One of them will be enough spice to make a pot of chili. I like the stronger flavor of cumin in the Taco one.
I carry a very wide variety of spices in my pantry as well as a number of chili pastes.
I do NOT generally purchase ground chili powders as you never really know what is in them. It is rather difficult to control the heat levels. When I make chili con carne, I generally mix my own using ground ancho chilies, chipotle chile powder and ground cayenne peppers. Then, I add in the ground cumin and coriander.
I have purchased most of my chili powders from Hatch, NM on recent trips. I have NOT used the local Santa Cruz Chili Company much as they have never been able to answer even basic questions about some of their spices such as the country of origin of their cinnamon and oregano.
In New Mexico we use the term "powdered chile" to refer to red chile powder. We use it to make a red chile sauce. Chimayo is the best kind of powdered chile. Chili powder is for making Texas or Midwest-style chili. In New Mexico we also use the spelling of the word to differentiate between the two. Chile is from New Mexico, chili is from everywhere else.
Bueno Foods is an Albuquerque institution, celebrating their 70th year in business, and they have the best powdered chile, chile pods and chile purees, IMO. Their frozen green chile is also pretty good. Their corn tortillas are the absolute best. They don't have that nasty sour/bitter taste like Guerrero or every other national brand, they instead have a great corn flavor. They also do not break when using them for enchiladas, flautas, etc. Their flour tortillas similarly are the only mass-produced kind I will ever buy or use. They also don't have that nasty sour/bitter taste of every other flour tortilla brand. They are the closest to homemade I've ever tasted.
Last time I bought chili powder, they had changed it, bleh. So havent bought it since, though not like I ever used much of it. It never was hot like cayenne pepper, it was more cumin based.
I hate when they change things, dont have time to run my own latest greatest taste tests. Leave the formulas and sizes alone, if you have to raise price, raise the price. Jeesh. Guess why I went back to 8 o'clock coffee, cause they dont constantly mess with it to try and fool people for that extra half penny of profit.
I'm going to a add this: it is getting more and more difficult to find a good chili powder, so mostly I make my own blend. Brands I used to buy have gradually switched to cheaper peppers and then removed some peppers and replaced with salt, and the good flavor is no longer there.
Good chilies are expensive and getting harder to find and the spice companies don't want to pay for the high quality chilies to put into their blends.
Chili peppers are one of the easiest vegetables to grow even in pots on a porch. doesn't take many plants to keep you supplied.
I've tasted a lot of chili powder blends over the years, and I have to say, Gebhardt is still the best to my taste buds. Not overly hot, beautiful salt-free flavors, lovely dark red color -- love it. It's a blend of ancho chilies (dried poblano), cumin, oregano, garlic, and pepper.
If your local stores don't carry Gebhardt, you can buy it on Amazon.
OBTW, the Phoenix Saloon in New Braunfels is still going strong, and yes, they use Gebhardt in their dishes requiring chili powder.
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