Chilli
Also known as: mirchi
What Chilli is
The source of heat in South Asian cooking, used fresh, dried whole or ground, and — despite how central it now feels to the cuisine — a genuinely recent arrival, brought to the region by Portuguese traders in the sixteenth century rather than grown there for millennia.
The fruit of Capsicum annuum and related species, native to the Americas and unknown in Asia before European contact. It spread quickly after its arrival because it grew easily in the same soil and climate as the black pepper it partly replaced as an affordable source of heat.
Taste profile
Heat varies enormously by variety, from the mild, mostly-for-color Kashmiri chilli to intensely hot bird's-eye types. Fresh green chilli brings a sharp, grassy heat; dried red chilli is deeper, smokier and slower to build, since drying concentrates both flavor and heat.
Forms to buy
- Fresh green — Sharp, immediate heat; often slit or chopped rather than powdered.
- Dried whole red — Fried in hot oil for a smoky, slow-building heat.
- Ground powder — Kashmiri chilli powder for color with mild heat; other blends for heat itself.
Halal note
Chilli in every form carries no halal concern. Pre-made chilli sauces and pastes occasionally include vinegar or fish-derived flavor bases in some cuisines, though this is uncommon in South Asian chilli powders and pastes specifically.