The shiny appearance of the pods of these varieties is the reason the type is called wax. They vary greatly in size, shape and pungency.

The Plant
Wax peppers have multiple stems growing up to thirty inches high. The leaves are ovate, medium green, and up to five inches long and three inches wide. The pods are conical but tapering, and bluntly pointed at the end. Yield is twenty-five or more pods per plant and the heat scale varies from zero to 40,000 Scoville Units.

Agriculture
The growing season is seventy or more days. Recommended varieties are 'Banana Supreme,' 'Caloro,' 'Gold Spike,' 'Hungarian Yellow Wax Hot,' 'Santa Fe Grande,' and 'Sweet Banana.'

Usage
The milder wax varieties are used fresh in salads. All varieties can be pickled, which is the most common use of commerically grown wax peppers.

In Spanish, serrano is an adjective that means "from the mountains." The chile described by this adjective was first grown in the mountains of northern Puebla and Hidalgo, Mexico.

The Plant
Serranos have a number of stems and grow from one and a half to five feet tall. The leaves vary from light to dark and measure three and a half to five inches long. Serranos measure between 10,000 and 15,000 Scoville Units.

Agriculture
Mexico has about 37,500 acres of serranos under cultivation, compared to only 150 acres in the United States. Despite the proliferation of canned serranos, only 10 percent of the crop is processed. The vast majority is used fresh. A very small amount of red serranos are dried out for sale in markets.

Usage
Relatively unknown in the United States until a couple of decades ago, serranos have become popular because of their pickling. Many different brands have gained favor in the Southwest, where they are consumed as a snack or d'oeuvre. The most common use of serranos is in fresh salsa.

Did you know the jalapeno chile is named after the city of Jalapa in Veracruz, Mexico? Even though the pepper is no longer commercially grown there, we should be thankful to the city that started it all.

The Plant
Jalapeno plants usually grow from two and a half to three feet tall. The leaves are light to dark green and measure about three inches long and two inches wide. The brown streaks, or "corking" on the pods are desirable in Mexico but not so in the Uniter States.

Agriculture
In Mexico, commercial cultivation measures approximately 40,000 acres in three main agricultural zones. Approximately 60 percent of the Mexican jalapeno crop is used for processing, 20 percent for fresh consumption, and 20 percent in production of chipotle chiles and smoke jalapenos.

In the United States, approximately 5,500 acres are under cultivation, with New Mexico the leading state for jalapeno production, followed by Texas.

Usage
Jalapenos are one of the most famous chile peppers. They are instantly recognizable and a considerable mythology has sprung up about them, particularly in Texas. Many jalapenos are used straight out of the garden in salsas and other household recipes. 

Our pal, singer and songwriter Rich O'Toole shared his recipe for Hatch Green Chile Alfedo Sauce with the viewers of MyTexasToday! It's a tried and true recipe so we wanted to share it with our fans too. Be sure to check out Rich's new Album "Kiss Of A Liar" that hits stores July 19th.

Ingredients:
1/4 cup butter
1 cup heavy cream
5 cloves garlic, crushed
1 1/2 cups freshly grated Parmesan cheese
1 cup chopped green chile

Directions:

1) Saute the garlic and 1 cup of green chile

2) In a separate skillet, melt butter over medium low heat.

3) Add garlic, chile (from first sauce pan), cream and cheese and whisk quickly, heating thoroughly.

4) Let simmer for 5 to 10 minutes.

5) Serve while sauce is still hot. Pour over your choice of Pasta!

The word "cayenne" seems to come from kian, the name of the pepper among the Tupi Indians of northeastern South America. The pod type probably originiated in what is now French Guiana and was named after either the Cayenne River of the capital of the county, Cayenne. It owes its spread around the world to Portugal, whose traders carried it to Eurpoe, Africa, India and Asia.

The Plant
The cayenne plant is tree-like, with multiple stems. It grows up to three feet tall and two feet wide. The pods are long and slender, measuring up to ten inches long and one inch wide. They are often wrinkled and irregular in shape. A mature plant can easily produce forty pods. The cayenne is very pungent, measuring between 30,000 and 50,000 Scoville Units.

Agriculture
Cayenne is grown commerically in New Mexico, Louisiana, Africa, India, Japan and Mexico. The pepper has a growing period of about ninety days from transplanting. New Mexico is leading the way in production of cayenne chilies for hot sauces. In 1995, more than 1,000 acres of cayenne were planted in New Mexico. Retail sales of cayenne pepper sauces topped $82 million in 1995.

Usage
Cayennes can be used fresh in the immature green form in salsas, but the most common use is to grind the dried red pods into powder.

The habanero pepper is the hottest pepper you will find at your local grocery store. You've probably heard of the pepper because they are very, very hot! Common colors are orange and red, but white, brown, and pink are also seen.

Handling
Habanero peppers have the highest concentration of capsaicin(principle that causes heat), making them the most dangerous pepper when it comes to skin burns. The pepper is particularly dangerous when it comes into contact with sensitive body parts like the eyes.
It is not merely enough to wear gloves when handling habaneros. The gloves and the cutting board used to chop them should be cleaned with bleach and a strong dish detergent to avoid moving the capsaicin to other surfaces.
If you should get capsaicin in your eyes, immediately flush them with water or an eyewash. The pain will be intense, but it will go away soon. Should your fingers come in contact with capsaicin, the best treatment is to submerge them in vegetable oil.

Preserving the Pods
The simplest preservation method is simply to wash and dry the pods and place them in a plastic bag in the freezer. They will lose some of their firmness when defrosted, but the flavor, heat, and aroma are all preserved. Habaneros can also be pureed with a little vinegar and the mixture will keep in the refrigerator for weeks.

Remember, sauces and salsas are a great way to utilize excess habaneros from the garden!

Two weeks ago, New Mexico Green Chile Company attended the National Restaurant Association (NRA) Show & Convention in Chicago. While we had a lot of fun, we also learned a few things along the way and we thought we’d share some of them with you!

Rule #1. Never wear high heels to a food trade show. The convention is so large that it took two days to adequately cover and see the entire show. Maybe it was the wind that convinced us to wear our stilettos (we’re still not quite sure) but we will never make that mistake again!
 
Rule #2.  One can only imagine all of the tempting samples that can be found at a food show. So, it’s only common sense that we decided to try them all, especially the wine and cheese! Always remember, choose everything in moderation.
 
Rule #3.  We’re still not sure why some people are so unfortunate to never have seen, tasted or cooked a Hatch green chile but Chicago makes no exception. We learned that no one in Chicago knows what Hatch green chile is...Yet.
 
Rule #4.  Do you have the itch to become the next Betty Crocker? Is Paula Deen your idol? Not to worry…If you ever need to make anything, there is a machine to do so, we promise.  Tamales, pasta, ravioli, tea, eggs, steaks, sliders, cheese, wine labels, etc. If you can dream of it, a machine exists for it.
 
Rule #5.  Chicago is home to some amazing restaurants. Although we didn’t get to try them all, we learned that when colleagues want to take you to a 7-course dinner in little Italy, always say yes!
 
Rule #6.  Living in Texas, steaks are a way of life. So if any of you Texans make your way to the Windy Cindy, be sure to stop by the Chicago Chop House in downtown Chicago. There, you’ll find the best dry-aged steak ever!



On Monday, April 25th the lovely lady at Kitchen Incubator and I are doing a Chilefest.  For those of you who know about the other Chilifest in Snook, Texas we take a somewhat different approach--there is actually a lot of chile at ours.  Also a tiny bit less booze, a few less crazy Texas Music fans, and definitely less beer spraying. What we do plan to do is cook a variety of dishes using out Hatch chiles to gear up for the harvest coming up in a few months. More information to come, but for now just know this is going to be awesome!  For more information about Kitchen Incubator click on the link below.

http://kitchenincubator.com/