Chilaca

Chilaca is the fresh form of the Pasilla - the long, slender, dark-ripening Mexican chilli that becomes Pasilla once dried. Mature pods reach 15-22 cm in length and ripen from green through to a distinctive dark chocolate-brown rather than red. Mild heat (1,000-2,500 SHU) with rich earthy, herbaceous flavour. Almost always processed into Pasilla rather than used fresh, which means the Chilaca name is much less familiar internationally than its dried-form counterpart.

History & lineage

The Chilaca takes its name from the Nahuatl "chilcoztli", meaning roughly "old chilli" or "grey chilli" - a reference to the dark colour the pods develop as they ripen. Unlike most chillies that ripen through red, Chilaca pods darken progressively from green through dark green to deep chocolate-brown, producing a visually distinctive fresh chilli that stands apart from typical Mexican varieties. The variety has been cultivated across central Mexico for centuries, particularly in the highland regions of Jalisco, Michoacán, Aguascalientes, and Guanajuato. The combination of moderate altitude, hot summers, and distinctly cool nights at higher elevations produces ideal Chilaca growing conditions, with traditional small-farm cultivation supplying both fresh markets and the dried Pasilla industry. The Chilaca-Pasilla relationship parallels the Poblano-Ancho-Mulato pattern of Mexican fresh-to-dried chilli transformations. Like the Poblano which transforms into Ancho (when dried green) or Mulato (when dried ripe), the Chilaca becomes Pasilla when dried. The transformation is so complete that Mexican cooking treats Chilaca and Pasilla as essentially separate ingredients, despite being the same chilli at different stages of preparation. The fresh Chilaca contributes very different flavour to fresh dishes than the dried Pasilla contributes to slow-cooked sauces. The variety has remained primarily a regional Mexican specialty rather than achieving international cultivation. Most international consumers encounter Chilaca only through its dried form (Pasilla) rather than as a fresh ingredient, and the chilli is rarely stocked outside Mexican markets. UK home growers can succeed with Chilaca through specialist Mexican seed sources, with the variety performing reasonably well in greenhouse cultivation despite the long growing season needed for full pod development.

Culinary uses

Used fresh primarily in regional central Mexican cooking - in salsas, fillings, and traditional dishes from Jalisco, Michoacán, and Aguascalientes. Most Chilaca production goes to drying for Pasilla manufacture rather than fresh-market sale. When used fresh, Chilaca features in green sauces, fresh table salsas, and as a milder alternative to Poblano in stuffing applications. The dark colour distinguishes Chilaca-based fresh dishes visually from the more common green or red Mexican chillies.