Pepper School: Chile de Árbol
Welcome to Pepper School, take a seat. Today we will be learning about the Chile de Árbol aka the Árbol Chile pepper.
Chile de Árbol translates to tree chile, referencing its long woody stem. You might hear this pepper also called a Bird’s Beak Chile or Rat’s Tail Chile. As the thin pepper grows on the plant, it elongates to about 3 inches long and turns bright red when it is ripe for picking.
Heat Level? The heat level of Chile de Árbol ranges from 15,000-30,000 Scoville Heat Units, that’s a medium heat, similar to Cayenne Pepper.
Chile de Árbol peppers can be found fresh, dried, or ground into a powder or rehydrated paste. As dried chiles, they are often used to create the decorative ristra wreaths because they do not lose their vibrant red color after dehydration. These peppers also bring that same beautiful color to recipes when they are dried.
We like to use these chiles in marinades, salsas, hot sauces, infused chiles oils and more. With a smoky-acidic heat, you can try adding these peppers to brines, bean chilis and spicy curries.
Which of our recipes use the Árbol Chile? You can find Chile de Árbol used in our:
So where do we find these high-quality Árbol peppers? Obviously we aren’t a farm, but we have some pretty great connections to hard-working pepper farmers. GC Produce, our Colorado neighbor, connects us to these growers. Started by a family of farmers, GC Produce is our Morita and Árbol supplier and has been a business partner with us for over 20 years.
They provide over two million pounds of dried peppers to Ready Foods each year. The GC family started farming in the 1940’s near the beautiful city of Mazatlan Sinaloa in Mexico. Today, they operate a state-of-the-art screening facility and use their experience to travel the world and source high-quality peppers and spices.
Great peppers and chiles start in the field and that’s where GC Produce begins, sourcing and screening the peppers while they are still growing. GC Produce is the eyes and ears for a company like us, they are on the ground, working with farmers to make sure the peppers are flavorful and sanitary. From seeds to the time a pepper comes through our doors, they have been auditing the process the whole way. They are the bridge between us and the farmer, connecting us with quality ingredients.
Once an Árbol pepper crop is approved by GC Produce and harvested, it heads to GC’s facility in Colorado where it goes through rigorous screening under metal detectors, sifters, and the important human eye test. Once the peppers come to Ready Foods, we put them through additional screening and then grind them to order and make them into delicious sauces and more.
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