Ancho Chile Peppers© Denzil GreenAnchos are the dried form of poblano chile peppers.The poblanos are allowed to ripen until red, then picked and dried to a wrinkly, flat, blackish-brown pepper.When rehydrated, they are a dark brick-red colour and have a flavour that some call “dusky.” Obscure as that term may be when applied to taste, it really does sum it up best.
Anchos are very common in Mexican cooking — in fact, they are the most commonly used dried chile (second after them is guajillo.) They are fairly mild, so they can be used with hotter chiles to build up a more complex overall layer of flavour.
Heat level: 1,000 – 2,000 Scoville units.
Cooking Tips
Anchoas are usually soaked in boiling water to soften them before use, and then ground or puréed into a paste.
They are used a good deal in “mole” sauces.
Substitutes
Any of the following chiles: New Mexico, Pasilla, Guajillo.
Ancho Chiles
© Denzil Green
Equivalents
On average, an ancho weighs 17 g (.6 oz)
2 cups whole, dried, with stems as purchased = 75 g
Literature & Lore
Ancho means “wide”, as these some of these peppers can be very broad when spread out and dried.