Over the years we’ve trialled many different varieties of chillies and I really think our selections have been primarily motivated more on ‘ornamental’ appeal rather than their ‘edible’ appeal. Monkey Face and maybe even Lemon Drop are a couple of varieties from the past few years that come to mind.

This year I’m excited about one of the new varieties we’re trialling and, in terms of ‘culinary appeal’, I think it could be argued this chilli is in a league of its own . “Chilaca” [chih-LAH-kuh] is the chilli dried to make “Pasilla” and Pasilla is used in literally dozens of traditional Mexican recipes. Just Google “Pasilla recipe” and you’ll get a flavour of what I’m talking about. My mouth is watering just thinking about it.

Here’s a pretty good description of Chilaca which comes from the lacosechaensucocina.com website:

“The etymological meaning of the word Chilaca is related with the word “sugarcane” in the Nahuatl language Catl, which may be considered a good description of its form. It also has other names such as “Negro” (black), “Prieto” (dark), or “Chile para deshebrar” (to tear in strands). The high quality Chilaca is long, slender and undulated. Some reach up to 30 cm. and they grow in a semi-circle. It is dark green in its tender state but becomes a dark brown when ripe. When dried, the Chilaca is called “Pasilla” chile and it becomes a very dark red. Sometimes referred to as Cuernillos or Big Horns. About 3 thousand acres are planted in the states of Aguascalientes, Jalisco, Guanajuato, Zacatecas and Michoacan. (Capsicum annuum).” ( lacosechaensucocina.com)

There is a version of smoked Chilaca which is called “Pasilla de Oaxaca” which is another fantastic ingredient used in some amazing recipes such as Mole Negro and is sometimes combined with fruits in other recipes. I intend to try drying them and smoking them…not to mention eating some fresh and cooking some on the barbecue. We might as well give the Chilaca a full road-test.