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02.23.2021

How to Use Dried Chiles

How to Use Dried Chiles

Cooking with dried chiles is like unlocking a new taste bud. Stirring peppers from their dried slumber awakens uniquely savory, sweet, spicy, and fruity flavors that aren’t found in their fresh forms. Rehydrating whole dried chiles is an essential part of authentic Mexican and southwestern cuisine that dramatically enhances your favorite recipes for salsa, chili con carne, beans, and stews.

For this demonstration, we’re working with guajillo chile peppers. Guajillos have a bright, fruity flavor that is reminiscent of cranberry and tomato. We chose this pepper because it comes up frequently in recipes calling for dried chiles. To discover more dried peppers, browse our entire collection of gourmet chiles.

SHOP ALL CHILE PEPPERS

Step One: Cleaning the Chiles

Chile peppers are often dried in the fields they’re grown in. So it is normal for them to arrive with some dust or dirt on them, just like produce from the grocery store. Simply wipe them clean with a warm, damp towel.

Step Two: Remove Seeds, Stem, & Seed Veins

This step is easiest to do by hand. We recommend wearing gloves to protect your skin from stains and any spicy heat from inside the chile. Tear off the top and stem, before tearing along the sides to open the pepper and reveal the inside. Some cooks consider removing the seeds as optional, but chile seeds tend to be bitter in flavor, so we like to remove them.

Step Three: Toasting Chiles

Chiles develop even richer flavors when they are lightly toasted. (Just like toasting whole spices before grinding them, like cumin seed or coriander seed.) Toast your dried chiles in a dry pan or skillet on medium heat to draw out flavor from the essential oils.

Step Four: Rehydrating Dried Chiles

Chiles need to be reawakened with boiling water. Make sure the peppers are fully submerged under water, and the bowl is covered with plastic wrap or a tight-fitting lid. Let the chiles steep in hot water for 15-20 minutes.

Step Five: Pureeing Chile Peppers

Add rehydrated chiles to a blender or food processor. Save some of the soaking water from the previous step and add that as well. Extra water helps the peppers puree. Plus, there’s lots of flavor in that chile pepper broth. Pulse and blend on high until reaching a smooth texture.

Step 5. Strain the Puree

This step is optional, but necessary if you want a sauce with a silky smooth texture. Once you’ve pureed the peppers, you can run them through a wire sieve to filter out any large pieces of skin or stray seeds that didn't get removed. Use a rubber spatula to push the puree through the sieve.

6. Start Cooking!

Next time a recipe calls for a few tablespoons of ground chiles, you can enhance the flavor by replacing it with a quick puree. It doesn’t take much to turn simple pureed chiles into a tasty sauce or condiment either. (You also don’t have to follow a recipe.) Adding a little salt, lime juice, and freshly minced garlic to a cup of guajillo chile pepper puree makes a simple, but tasty sauce for tacos. Lime zest and a couple pureed chipotle chiles mixed into mayonnaise makes an incredible spread for sandwiches and hamburgers. Another fun and easy way to experiment with dried chiles is by making salsas in a blender, like in the recipe below.

Roasted Tomato Salsa Recipe

This salsa comes together in less than 25 minutes and the bulk of the prep work is done by the blender. Toasting the dried chiles and roasting the fresh vegetables gives this salsa a special depth of flavor. This salsa truly completes any steak taco, but will disappear just as fast next to a bowl of tortilla chips.

ROASTED SALSA RECIPE

 

Article by Geoff Marshall, Staff Writer

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Spice House on April 29th, 2022

Hi Myla,

You can freeze the chile puree and keep it for up to 6 months.

Myla Oslund on April 29th, 2022

Can you freeze the chili purée?

Bonnie Bates on March 31th, 2022

Thank you, love learning how to actually prepare things properly. Much apprciated.

Spice House on March 28th, 2022

Hi Bonnie,

Our recipe pages are printable, via the orange “print” button below the recipe photo.

Unfortunately our blog articles do not have the same function. However, most web browsers will allow you to print the article via File > Print.

Spice House on March 28th, 2022

Hi Bob,

Pureed chile paste can keep in the fridge for up to one week.

Bonnie O'Neill on March 28th, 2022

Do you have a “printable” PDF version of how to prepare the dried chilis, and the recipes. I really need to work from printed Recipes.

I am sure that I am not the only customer who would appreciate printable recipes.
Thank You, Bonnie

Bob on March 28th, 2022

How long does the pureed guajillo keep?

Tom Johnson on March 24th, 2021

I’d like to try these in my rib rub. Normally I would just grind them (seeds and everything) and mix them with the other spices. I’ll try toasting all the chilies before grinding next time. Thanks!

Jennifer A Rabinowitz on March 23th, 2021

Wonderful instructions! I wonder if you might have classes that people can sign up for to teach how to use spices from various culinary traditions? For instance I am always trying to learn how to use Indian spices best. It would be neat if you had an instructional course that people could sign up for using your spices. Jenny

Julia Povala on February 24th, 2021

I learned many years ago how to prepare chilis but they didn’t tell me about roasting. IMPORTANT! I use to simmer chilis FOREVER and still have flakes. After roasting flavor stronger and no need to sieve! I do add several garlic cloves and sometimes use chicken stock. Thanks!

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