Question about chilis


 
Jeff R

Jeff R

TVWBB Pro
I have read countless discussions about using other chilis and I am looking to give them a try to. When wanting to get away from paprika and plain ol chili powder, is it a 1-1 swap?

I have a recipe that I want to tweak that has the following in it.

2 tablespoons paprika
2 tablespoon chili powder
2 teaspoons cayenne

Would these substitutions work.

Ancho for paprika
Aleppo for the chili powder
reduce cayenne to 1 tsp.
 
OK, I think I see where you are going with this. Since "chili powder" is a blend of chilis and spices, you don't just swap a straight chili for a "chili powder"?

Is mixing straight chilis and spices needed if you already have onion, garlic, thyme in a rub as most do.
 
Jeff, as you say, chili powder is a blend of pure chiles and other spices. You could easily add your choice of any chile or a combination of chiles (toasted & ground) to a rub with other spices. Subbing an equal amount of one or more chiles for chili powder will not round out the flavor of the rub and you will wind up with a one-dimensional flavor profile.

Rita
 
Jeff,

Also consider what the intent of this rub is for. That way you can pair specific chiles to your recipe. Ancho chile is a good base chile - virtually no heat; just flavor. Aleppo is somewhat fruity with mild heat. Cayenne has no flavor really - just heat. There are chiles out there that give you both heat and flavor (Arbol, Serrano, Mirasol, etc.)

Paul
 
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