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annuum Annum recommendations

Fresno and Fish! Some don't like the Fish flavor, but I really enjoyed them this year. They look cool too.

Man, do they ever look cool! Mine were really hot, too!

True, except this variety is an F1 hybrid. http://gardening.abo...-Holy-Mol--.htm
Technically, calling it a Pasilla is like calling a Mule a Horse. Not trying to pick a fight... just mentioning it because I like the flavor of Pasillas, but these grow better for me here (up north in zone 5)

I don't think you were the one trying to instigate a fight, FWIW. :rolleyes:

I think most of us "got it", whether you were correct or not.
 
I grew a good number of Negro De Valle and Vallero chilies this year. Talk about the best tasting Chile Colorado (made in the Sonoran style)! I bought the seeds at Native Seed Search. The Chile Colorado made from these chilies is a little hotter than the Chile Colorado made with Guajillos (which I love) or the New Mexico red chilies (which is so-so in my opinion). If you or someone is interested, don't get both varieties, as the Negro De Valle is the same as the Vallero except that it is mostly the prized darker chilies. The only down side is they require a little longer season.

I plan on planting several Negro De Valle plants this Spring, just for the Chile Colorado.
 
The Chile Colorado made from these chilies is a little hotter than the Chile Colorado made with Guajillos (which I love) or the New Mexico red chilies (which is so-so in my opinion).

"New Mexico red chillies" is a pretty broad generalization. There is considerable variation in flavor and heat between a Chimayo, Barkers, and Sandia for instance. Not trying to be nitpicky, just a little nitpicky lol.

As for annums I've enjoyed Korean Gochu, Fresno, Hungarian Hot Wax, Shipkas, Barkers XXX, Santa Fe Grande, Chimayo, and Espanola Improved. And I've never met a Jalapeno I didn't like. ;)
 
"New Mexico red chillies" is a pretty broad generalization. There is considerable variation in flavor and heat between a Chimayo, Barkers, and Sandia for instance. Not trying to be nitpicky, just a little nitpicky lol.

I guess I should have been a little more clear. When you go to a grocery store (including the Hispanic grocers) here, you typically find the commercial New Mexico chilies. When you go to a restaurant or taqueria here, they typically use commercially grown New Mexico chilies, both red and green.

In Sonora, just a little over an hour away, they sell Guajillos (which they call Chile Colorado) as one of their main dried chilies. And the red sauces down in Nogales are typically made with these chilies. I've read that the Guajillo is one of the most used chilies in Mexico.

Back early 98, I was travelling across the country a bit. Three times I stopped in El Paso and walked across the bridge into Juarez. That is where I fell in love with Chile Colorado (the dish). But when I got home to Oregon and ordered the same dish at a Mexican restaurant, it wasn't the same. And when I moved to Tucson over 8 years ago, I fell in love with most of the food here, except I find the Chile Colorado (dish) and Chile Rojo burritos to be a disappointment.

I'm not knocking New Mexico chiles at all. A Chile Verde burrito is one of my favorite lunches here, and the sauce is made with commercial Hatch green chilies. What I meant to say is that when it comes to me eating or making a dish of Chile Colorado, for my tastes the commercial New Mexico red chilies are only so-so. Now, if there is a New Mexico variety (heirloom or commercial) that is very similar to the Guajillo, I would give it a try. But I don't know any. Guajillos have a very distinct flavor.
 
Jalapeno, Serrano, Indian Jwala/Pusa Jwala, Any of the Thai varieties, Chile de Arbol. It really depends whether or not you are looking for fresh use, powder, or pickling though in terms of what to choose.
 
Can't go wrong with Hungarian Hot Wax and Serrano. Prolific, tasty, and useful in many different dishes as well as raw. PM me if you need seeds...
 
Annums I have for growing this winter/spring:

Jalapenos- a couple varieties
Peter pepper
Cayanne
Poblano
Thai orange


Even though this one isn't an Annum it does fit the heat level requirements, I'm going to suggest it. I was reading that this pepper makes great stuffed peppers so I will have a couple plants growing this spring. Yellow Manzano Pepper.
 
I know I'm a little late to the party, but since the discussion has veered towards the NuMex chiles, I thought I would comment on them. I've grown several NuMex types, including Big Jim, Espanola Improved, College 64, Joe E. Parker, and Sandia. College 64, and Joe E. Parker had no heat at all, and Big Jim, and Espanola Improved had lots of problems with BER. Sandia was the most productive, and consistent heat wise, with no BER issues. I highly recommend it if you are looking to grow a NuMex type.

Some of my other favorite annums include Santa Fe Grande (similar to a jalapeno, but sweeter), Fresno, and Alma Paprika.

None of these come anywhere close to 100K. If you're looking for more heat than flavor, you would need to go with a cayenne or Thai variety.
 
Anaheim, Poblano, Fresno, Pasilla Bajio.

Here is a personal favorite: Chinese 5 color. Gorgeous, productive plant and the pods taste pretty good...and they have heat, but not too much (SHU 5k - 30k).
 
I'm not knocking New Mexico chiles at all. A Chile Verde burrito is one of my favorite lunches here, and the sauce is made with commercial Hatch green chilies. What I meant to say is that when it comes to me eating or making a dish of Chile Colorado, for my tastes the commercial New Mexico red chilies are only so-so. Now, if there is a New Mexico variety (heirloom or commercial) that is very similar to the Guajillo, I would give it a try. But I don't know any. Guajillos have a very distinct flavor.

Been away a while but wanted to reiterate that I wasn't being hostile, just pointing out "NM Chile" encompasses a large number of peppers. If I prefered Chimayo over Guajillos for instance, I would try to avoid saying my Chimayo sauce is delicious and preferred over the "mexican chiles". While I understand you were referring to the Anaheim types, there are a few others and even among the Anaheims there are variations. I don't disagree about Guajillos. They are abundant in dried form here, as are Poblanos (Ancho), Pasilla (Chilaca aka Chile Negro), Chipotle(Jalapeno), and Chiltepin. All from our friends south of the border, along with probably a dozen others I'm unfamiliar with. Between the latin and asian population along with a sizeable chile industry there's no shortage of peppers to choose from.

Anyway back to the original question... In addition to the varieties I mentioned previously, I could also add Thai Dragon or Kung Pao. Both of these were quite productive for me and are great for spicy asian dishes. The Kung Paos remind me of green beans when unripe both in appearance and taste. Also reconfirming the Jalapeno. I grew Chichimeca Jalapenos last year and they produced some fine peppers. The ripe ones made some tasty chipotle powder.

It's difficult for me to imagine not growing a few every year. I wouldn't survive without them. Still my favorite all around pepper. ;)
 
I'm another big fan of the Fresno as a general-purpose kitchen pepper. About the same heat as a good jalapeno, but thinner-walled, not as oily, and more of a sweet rather than vegetal flavor; and on top of that, they produce pods like it was going out of style.

So far I've found that the thick cayennes are less hot but more flavorful than the thin ones, but I'm not sure how universally true that is. It seems like there's a lot of vagueness and some pure disinformation in cayenne labelling, especially at retail nurseries.

-NT
 
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