Here’s an interesting read spelling out why ‘Anaheims’ are an inferior chile: https://www.hatch-green-chile.com/chile/
I’m definitely looking for something better, having grown these for years and then giving up on them. I’ve found the heat and flavor levels on Anaheims to be wildly inconsistent. Likewise for some of the stock seed company Poblanos I’ve grown.
I would trial a bunch, it’s really the only way to tell for your location. Green Chiles should be excellent in your area, I would think!
If you find something here, please report. I have yet to find any I like. I have not grown many though.
All of mine except for two are from there too. Excellent peppers they have developed. Inhanced flavor for sure. The best one for my environment is Big Jim Legacy, it is a beast of a plant and outperforms for two years now Heritage Big Jim. As far as flavor, well since I mix them up with others, not sure? I did eliminate one due to poor taste, Big Jim, Heritage 6-4, and Joe E Parker to me all taste decent. A few others they have I have yet to try. I’m happy so for now I have no plans to try more. Oh their NuMex Vaquero did well too for jalapenos. I have Sandia for a hot chili pepper, I have not grown it yet.
I like the Big Jim best as I use most for green chili not red, and they roast and peel extremely easy, and are huge too! They might not be the best choice for red?
I just placed my order:
NuMex Big Jim > Hoping to replace Poblano
NuMex 6-4 > Hoping to replace Anaheim
NuMex Las Cruces Cayenne > I put ground cayenne on just about everything and put whole pods in my olive brine
Peppers grow year round here with some protection, so I may start the seeds as soon as they arrive.
A friend of mine was collecting various Cayenne cultivars, she had about 60 of them! I have been trying numerous hot pepper. I really like the fish pepper for hot peppers. It is about as hot as a cayenne. The plant is striking. Also I have seeds to many peppers, Always a chance of cross pollination, but so far they have been coming up true. Big Jim and 6-4 are stabilized I think? I just asked them to make sure. I have only been growing those a couple years.
Anyway I like the fish pepper because it is prolific here, serves as my cayenne, and is very ornamental to boot. I also use a lot.
Their Scovilles may be a little low for what you’re looking for, but I really like the flavor of the NuMex yellow and red Suave. If you go back for more, you might consider adding them.
You may be right. If I can get a little bit more consistency, I’m willing to err on the mild side. Heat is easier added than taken away. Chile rellenos can be a real challenge when the heat levels run the gamut. .
As a follow-up:
These pepper plants were the most vigorous large peppers I’ve grown. The branches where braking due to the weight. In my climate peppers usually are only modestly productive.
Now the bad news. When green the taste is terrible. When red they are edible but certainly not tasty. Another failure.
A few years ago I grew some mild banana peppers that I liked so I saved the seeds. Evidently they cross pollinated with some hot peppers so the next year’s crop, from the saved seeds, was a mixture of hot and mild peppers on the same plant. Is that normal?1 I like the taste of the the peppers but I have to taste each pepper to determine if it is hot or not when cooking with them.
Well, let me explain. Some peppers, like banana and wax can vary in heat a lot. I don’t grow them because they naturally vary. Most peppers do not. If cross pollinated the year before the saved seed should also look like a new kind of pepper! If it still looks like a banana or wax pepper, it is. Sometimes when a hot pepper does cross pollinate a sweet pepper, the seeds are hot, so removing the seeds should make them sweet again.
Any time you eat seed, cross pollination is a problem, like with corn. Fruit will always come true to the genetics of the mother plant. A peach tree pollinated by an almond tree will not have almond tasting peaches. The flesh will be exactly the same no matter what pollinates it.
What are we looking at here? Are those yellow ones in the middle habaneros? And the almost black one?
Are yer Reapers done? I saw that video of those two guys eating those and then not drinking anything for ten minutes. You could almost feel their pain. Hilarious. I might do it an a dare, but I’d need a gallon of milk closeby. I kinda enjoy that burn, guess I’m a bit of a sadist…
We’re still harvesting our peppers, hopefully there won’t be a freeze before we get a bit more. Our Red Marconi’s are tasty, but they have to be red not green, or they taste bad. A lot of our jalapeños turned red, and weren’t as hot as the green ones. I don’t know why they did that, I’ve rarely seen red ones before. Any explanation?
They are Scotch Bonnets that didn’t form a bonnet well. This strain only formed a few actual bonnets. Good guess though as they are very closely related. One of my favorite peppers, I like the taste a lot. Even though very hot, they have a distinct taste different from habanero. [quote=“subdood_ky_z6b, post:111, topic:6802”]
And the almost black one?
[/quote]
Poblano. I use them to make red sauce with red chili peppers, and for chili powder. The long red ones are either Carmine Sweet or Red Chili peppers for sauce.
Almost, but still producing. All are being dried.Right in the center of the plate, under the scotch bonnets is one of them. At 4 O’clock the dark yellow is a Lunch Box pepper, and at 8 O’clock is a red round Tennessee Cheese pepper.
No, as they are usually hotter when red, at least what I thought? All peppers turn color, no such thing as a green pepper! Even Poblanos turn red eventually. I didn’t grow any this year, I still have pickled ones from last year. I like them a lot. I made a powder out of the green ones, and it is just about my favorite powder. I have been making fresh salsa, and adding the powder for heat. A nice taste.
I save seed and only save from ripe peppers, so I let some jalapenos turn red, although as green, I’m sure the seed is good.
Some Elephant Ears (Slonovo Uvo, also called Donkey Ears, may be the same pepper) ripened on this wet and dreary day. I’m still evaluating these, so far a thumbs up. A medium to low producer that is steady at least. Early peppers, late peppers, not bad. A better spot might produce better results.
So, do you ever eat any of those Bonnets or Reapers straight up? Or are the only for drying to be used later? You said the Bonnets have a better “flavor” than Habaneros. At over a quarter mill Scovilles, how can you tell the difference? I like hot peppers, but with something that hot, I don’t think I’m going to notice the subtleties when my tongue is getting fried…
I found this list of hotties, looks like Reapers are the hottest of any natural pepper. The other substances above it are extracts.
I use the peppers in sauces like jerk, and also dishes like adobo chicken. I start with dried halfs flaked or diced and add more as needed. Taste is more obvious at this point.
i’m having a hard time posting with my phone! We like hot food and make various dishes all the time. Yesterday I made jerk chicken. I mix the jerk sauce into a chicken gravy. It’s also great over fries. So good!!
@Drew51, those bonnets look really good to me! I make a “tub” of pico de gallo at least once a week (1/2 a large onion, bunch of clilantro, 10 tomatoes, some fresh chiles, salt, pepper, splash of olive oil and fresh lime or lemon juice). Lately I have settled on adding one habenaro and a couple of various other less hot chiles in the mix. One of those bonnets would really work well.
I liked them because they were edible hot peppers, meaning that I could cook them and eat and I’ll survive after that . The range changed as they matured, the large ones were quite hot for me. They are good for staffing too. But they are late peppers. I did not see any red ripe peppers this season. I collected the seeds from the green ones and hope that they can sprout.
The last of Jimmy nardello peppers. These are small and thin walled, very sweet when ripe. I dried these green ones and poblano peppers to make green hot mix.
Maria, the peppers look good
. I have been out of town and the wife has been managing the garden. I have 2-3 weeks of work before I can get back full time
.i’m coming in today to finish planting garlic and harvest the last of my green chili’s. I will miss the fresh dishes. No complaints it’s been a good year.
@Drew51, I’m confused by several members referring to Carmine sweet peppers. As far as I can tell there is no such pepper, only Carmine hot peppers. Are you referring to Carmen sweet pepper or is there a Carmine sweet pepper?
. The range changed as they matured, the large ones were quite hot for me. They are good for staffing too. But they are late peppers. I did not see any red ripe peppers this season. I collected the seeds from the green ones and hope that they can sprout.