Chili powder
Posted by shelloid on Sep 14, 2008 · Member since Nov 2006 · 4427 posts
I was wondering what's in chili powder in the US and is it different from the UK.
Whenever I make a recipe from Vegweb that contains chili powder, I have to cut it down to about a quarter of what the recipe states. If I don't cut it back the recipe can end up unedible as it's way too hot. Now, I'm not afraid of hot food at all, in fact I love spicy hot food so I don't think it's because I can't handle it.
So my theory is that the chili powder here in the UK is somehow spicier than the stuff in the US. In the UK chili powder is just that - ground hot chili peppers - does the US stuff have other spices in it?
Thanks in advance.
Hi!!
Most chili powders are a mix of spices here in the states (at least as far as I know). Besides ground chili's, they can include any of the following (depending on what brand you get): cumin, salt, pepper, cinnamon, cloves, coriander, nutmeg, turmeric...etc etc.
You must have pure chili powder on your hands as you say it is really spicy.
You could just be more sensitive to chili. Some people have little to no tolerance for it and other people can't get enough. :) So it might depend on your tolerance and the tolerance of whoever's writing the recipe.
In the US what is labeled chili powder is just a blend of spices (like lauren the goodie lover mentioned). I understand what you mean though because I buy chili powder at the Indian grocer and it is actually chili pepper powder. I don't like the flavor of the "chili powder" blends in the states but to make a substitution you can mix 1 teaspoon paprika, 1 teaspoon cayenne pepper, 1 teaspoon dried oregano, and 2 teaspoons cumin. You can also add some garlic powder.
Maybe your chili powder is our cayenne powder?
Thanks for the info.
Our chilli powder is just dried ground up chilli peppers. And our cayenne pepper is also quite hot and spicy too - but not as hot as chili powder (or at least the stuff I bought, but I think I went for extra hot!).
At least it means that I'm not being a completely baby when I find things are too hot when I use the stated amount of chili powder - so cutting it down to a quarter seems about right!
i didn't know this information. i feel dumb.
I buy my chili powder from the Indian Grocery store and it is literally just ground chilis. So unbelievably hot! And very delicious :)
I also have some other chili powders (regular american chili powder, ancho chile powder, chipotle chile powder). Those are not spicy at all, but instead add a nice little kick in flavor.
I always assumed that our american style chili powders were named for the fact that they were a seasoning for "chili" and not that they were the powder of ground up chili peppers. It hardly has any heat at all...especially when compared to an actual ground up chili powder.
wiki post;
The spice mix may simply be pure powdered chilis, or it may have other additives, especially cumin, oregano, garlic powder, and salt. Some mixes may even include black pepper, cinnamon, cloves, coriander, mace, nutmeg, or turmeric. As a result of the various different potential additives, the spiciness of any given chili powder is incredibly variable. As a rule, the purer the chili powder is, the spicier it is.
Today they are especially popular in American cuisine, where they are the primary flavor ingredient in chili con carne. The first commercial blends of chili powder in the U.S. were created in the 1890s by D.C. Pendery and William Gebhardt for precisely this dish.