Chile de árbol

Chile de árbol
Fresh mature chile de árbol peppers
Species	Capsicum anuum
Origin	Mexico
Heat	Hot
Scoville scale	15,000 - 30,000 SHU

The Chile de árbol (Spanish for tree chili) is a small and potent Mexican chili pepper also known as bird's beak chile and rat's tail chile. These chilis are about 5 to 7.5 cm (2.0 to 3.0 in) long, and 0.65 to 1 cm (0.26 to 0.39 in) in diameter. Their heat index is between 15,000 - 30,000 Scoville units. The peppers start out green and turn a bright red color as they mature. Chile de árbol peppers can be found fresh, dried, or powdered. As dried chiles, they are often used to decorate wreaths because they do not lose their red color after dehydration.

File:Mature Chile de arbol peppers.jpg

Outdoor grown Chile de árbol peppers

In cooking substitutions, the Chile de árbol pepper can be traded with Cayenne pepper (30,000–50,000 Scoville units) or Pequin pepper (100,000–140,000 Scoville units). The seeds and white arches can be removed from the pepper to tone down its hotness.

See also

• List of Capsicum cultivars