Where to buy Chipotle Peppers??

[dr_t]

Does anyone know where you can buy chipotle peppers downtown and central?

I would be looking for dried. Thanks!

[Kagemusha]

Canned is easy. Dried--have never seen fresh dried here, just mummified remains.

[BusterRhino]

You all might already know this, just throwin it out there.

Chipotle's are Jalapeno's that have been fire roasted with lots of smoke. You can easily make your own by using ripe Jalapeno's (red, and the deeper red the better). We make them in house here for our own personal consumption without the adobo sauce. They are as a dried ground product ridiculously good, and used in sauces, gravies, etc fantastic. I still use the Hernandez brand a lot though at home.

You can usually find the Hernandez brand in the mexican or specialty foods isle of the grocery store. Supercentre has them in Mexican, bloblaws in specialty foods (not mexican) and A&P are hit and miss.

[Yongeman]

As TorontoJo mentioned, BR, I think you're referring to 'Herdez' brand, no?

[Googs]

Personally, I prefer San Marcos chipotle in adobo over Herdez. In fact, I like San Marcos more in all relevant categories. I buy mine at Perola's in Kensington Market though I believe some supermarkets carry it as well. The only geat thing Herdez ever did is sponsor open wheel racing.

[Kagemusha]

I'd stick with the canned versions. Remarkably, many retailers think "dried"="indefinite shelf life" with chiles--not so. I'd be surprised if any seller around the GTA turns stock fast enough to avoid this problem. I get humanitarian chile aid packages from family in Phoenix and the difference in quality/taste/freshness compared to local stuff ain't subtle.

[TorontoJo]

I agree, btw, about using the canned peppers. The adobo sauce alone is sooooo good in so many different dishes -- it adds a wonderful smoky depth.

[Davwud]

I just wash off the canned ones. I'll pour a small bowl of water and clean them off. I don't dare throw out the goodness left in the bowl though.

DT

[MindGrinder]

Ya - what Toronto Jo and Pantz said is spot on.

If you want an excellent chipotle sauce go to Taste the 4th Sense for the Droolin Devil Chipotle sauce. It is award winning and just freaking delicious!

[Pantz]

Whole Foods in Hazelton Lanes and Pusateri's on Bay both stock a good selection of dried peppers (including chipotles) if you're willing to pay their prices.

One of the purveyors in the basement of the St.LM (forgot the name but they're right by Rube's) also stocks a variety.

As TorontoJo noted, Emporium Latino has a good selection at much better prices. I've tried their chipotles before and found them to be a little unpleasant. Even after being hydrated, they seem leathery and flavourless.

Can anyone tell me if it's a quality issue, or a freshness issue? Currently, I pretty much prefer the canned in adobo sauce chipotles to dried versions. This is even though I've had really nice results with other dried varieties of chiles.

[JamieK]

A while ago, I bought a can of adobo chipotle peppers from that place in the basement of SLM and then came across the exact same can at Mike's Fish upstairs for way less $ (sorry can't remember, maybe a buck less?).

[SMOG]

The place is called Lively Life. Great selection of dried peppers.

[TorontoJo]

You can get dried chipotles at Emporium Latino in Kensington Market. Canned you can find at all of the big chain grocery stores (but you probably knew that!).

[grey55]

I have tried 2 big chain supermarkets and they do not sell canned chipotle peppers in adobo sauce. Which supermarket did you try?

[TorontoJo]

I've bought them at Loblaws and Metro. Did you look in the Mexican food section (NOT the chips and salsa section)? Herdez is the brand I usually see.

[Wahooty]

I know my Highland Farms has them (Kennedy and Ellesmere) and I think my NoFrills does too now.

[heathercheryl]

Any updates on Chipotle peppers in Adobo sauce? This thread is a few years old and I am looking for them. Didn't see them in Loblaws, No Frills, Metro or Freshco. Are they still on the market?

[TorontoJo]

They are in every grocery store I go to. In Loblaw's they are either located with the Mexican food, or with the pickled veggies.

[Lazar]

While I agree with TorontoJo that most stores carry them, lately I have found that it can also depend on the neighbourhood.

For example, a while back I was at the Metro at Lawrence and Bathurst, and I couldn't find chipotles in adobo. Then I went down the street to the Fortino's at Allen & Lawrence and they had them there.

This could just be a case of the fact that the Metro happened to be out of stock (I didn't ask any of the staff) but I do think that there is an influence of the neighbourhood demographic, as the Metro store did have an entire Kosher aisle, where in other groceries it is a small section of the aisle, or thrown into "international foods".

[BusterRhino]

I know the super centre doesn't usually keep the good chipotles in the Canadian Mexican area (you know that area) go down the isle a bit further and look for the Masa, where you find that you will usually find them. Or just make your own in the fall, it's incredibly easy.

[Lazar]

This is diverging a bit, but given your expertise BusterRhino, I am curious as to what are your thoughts on canned chipotles in adobo? From your response, I am assuming that you smoke your own jalapenos and use them dry.

[elrik]

my problem is keeping them on the plant long enough to get fully ripe and red. Seeing all those delicious green peppers begging to be made into ABTs or thrown into fresh salsas and sausages.
It would be great if the stores ever carried red jalapenos with any regularity. I'll usually only ever find one or two mixed in amidst the green.

[BusterRhino]

elrik, Farmers markets man, just ask the farmers to bring you in red. the only reason they don't is people usually won't buy them. Shoot my farmer almost gives them to me for free, anything he makes is a bonus on them.

Lazar, nope I don't mind the ones in the can with adobo sauce, just why not make your own. Dried chipotles are hot as hell, I also make my own adobo sauce and it's crazy good (and once again incredibly easy)

[Kagemusha]

My problem with so many dried chiles sold across the GTA is freshness. Family sends me dried, packaged chiles from PHX that are fragrant and still pliable. They don't keep indefinitely and lose flavor quickly, especially the milder varieties. Dried chipotles I've bought here are like a rock. The canned versions in sauce and the chipotle sauce minus peppers are fine.

[BusterRhino]

Actually Kagemusha is right, buy the canned ones. The Chipotles I have at home have been smoked for about 72 hours, are still pliable (well to some degree) and they turn a deep incredibly deep red colour after three days of smoking. The heat is also significantly higher it seems too.

[Davwud]

So when you do this you smoke them for 3 days. Does that smoke them and dry them out at the same time. Do you worry much about actually drying them out?? I smoked some green ones I had a few years back and they were really good but didn't dry out.

DT

[BusterRhino]

If you just smoke them with cold, or cool heat you are just adding smoke which of course will taste good. It's the drying out process that makes chipotles though and they are classically read.

So when I smoked them I used my cold smoker with a slight modification (yes of course I have a cold smoker - home built it's easy). I added one of those small stove elements to the bottom of the smoker and kept the temp in the 125 - 150 range for those three days with full smoke the entire time. If I lived in say mexico I would just lay them across an open pit and do it, but alas this is the nanny state Canada. It takes so long due to the fact that I don't cut them open, it would take about 24 - 36 hours if I cut them open, it would have less smoke. I also do my own smoked paprika which takes about that long because I cut them open and splay them out to dry quicker.

[elrik]

Thanks for the tip. I'll hit up my market this summer and see if any of the farmers are doing jalapenos and can bring in some reds. Of course, if I just took over more of the garden for peppers I could probably keep more of them to fully ripe.

[BusterRhino]

We grow to eat, buy to preserve, we just don't have enough room in ours and we can't get everything to ripen at once... I want a farm.