Best Capsicum

Guajillo chile is a dried mirasol pepper (Capsicum annuum) widely used in Mexican salsas and mole sauces, with a tangy, berry-like flavor and moderate heat of 2,500–5,000 Scoville units.

Smoked paprika is made from Capsicum annuum peppers dried over oak fires, a technique developed in the La Vera region of Extremadura, Spain, giving it a deep, smoky flavor unlike sun-dried paprika.

Ancho chile is the dried form of the poblano pepper (Capsicum annuum), one of the most widely used dried chiles in Mexican cuisine, with a mild heat of 1,000–2,000 Scoville units and a rich, fruity flavor.

Aleppo pepper is a semi-dried, coarsely ground Capsicum annuum from the Aleppo region of Syria, with moderate heat around 10,000 Scoville units and a fruity, slightly oily character.

Urfa biber is a dark, sun-dried and night-sweated Turkish chile from Şanlıurfa province with a smoky, raisin-like flavor and moderate heat, produced through a distinctive two-stage drying method.

Powdered Capsicum chinense chile named for its bonnet-like shape, central to Caribbean cuisine and Jamaican jerk seasoning, rating 100,000–350,000 SHU.

A small, slender Capsicum annuum chile native to Southeast Asia, widely used in Thai cuisine, and registering 50,000–100,000 SHU with sharp, clean heat.

Sweet paprika is a mild ground red powder made from dried Capsicum annuum peppers, most famously produced in Hungary and Spain, where it became a staple seasoning from the 16th century onward.

New Mexico chile (Capsicum annuum) is the cornerstone ingredient of New Mexican cuisine, grown in the Hatch Valley and Rio Grande region, with both green (fresh) and red (dried) forms used in distinct preparations.

Pasilla chile is the dried form of the chilaca pepper (Capsicum annuum), a key ingredient in Mexican mole negro, with a mild to medium heat and a rich, raisin-like flavor; its name means 'little raisin.'

Maras pepper is a Turkish red chile flake from the Kahramanmaraş region with a moderately spicy, fruity profile and high oil content, widely used in Turkish cuisine and meze preparations.

Powdered Capsicum chinense originating in the Amazon basin, rating 100,000–350,000 SHU and notable for its distinctive floral, fruity aroma alongside intense heat.

Mulato chile is a dried variant of the poblano (Capsicum annuum) that ripens to dark brown before drying, producing a chocolate and licorice flavor and mild heat, essential to traditional mole poblano.

Kashmiri chile is a mild, vibrantly red Capsicum variety grown in the Kashmir Valley prized primarily for its intense crimson color rather than heat, essential to dishes like rogan josh.

Chile de árbol (Capsicum annuum) is a small, slender Mexican chile with intense heat of 15,000–30,000 Scoville units, used fresh, dried, or toasted, whose name translates to 'tree chile' for its woody stems.

Hot paprika is a ground Capsicum blend with a higher proportion of seeds and veins retained to increase heat, used prominently in Hungarian goulash and other Central European dishes.

A tiny wild chile (Capsicum annuum var. glabriusculum) native to Mexico and the southern US, registering 40,000–60,000 SHU and among the oldest cultivated chile varieties.

A small, round dried Mexican chile whose loose seeds rattle inside the pod, producing mild heat of 1,000–3,000 SHU with earthy, nutty flavor notes.

Powdered Bhut jolokia from northeastern India that held the Guinness World Record as the hottest chile from 2007 to 2011, exceeding 1 million SHU.