Are chillies interchangeable? I never know which variety to use, and when to go for fresh, dried, powder or flakes.
Emily, London E2
“The thing is,” says Adriana Cavita, chef-owner of Cavita in London, “we have hundreds of varieties of chillies in Mexico – there’s so much choice.” And that’s before considering those grown in other parts of the world (India, Thailand, Spain, for example). While this offers ample opportunity to get creative, it’s no wonder Emily is confused.
Different chillies perform different roles in cooking, and they’re not just about heat; chillies bring sweet, sour, fruity, earthy and smoky notes, too. So you need to understand why a chilli is there in the first place before switching it for an alternative. “Look at the dish as a whole and assess,” says Noor Murad, head of the OTK (that’s the Ottolenghi Test Kitchen) and co-author of Extra Good Things. “For stews and broths, you can generally go with whatever dried chillies you like,” she adds, depending on the heat. “If, for example, the recipe calls for habanero or scotch bonnet, and you’re like, ‘Hell, no’, use a milder chilli such as kashmiri or guajillo, if you don’t think it will massively affect the result.”
