Badia Japones Red Chili Pepper, 6 oz

Chile japonés is a small, slender, deep-red dried chile with sharp, clean heat and a faintly nutty finish. Despite the name, it's a staple of Mexican cooking — the chile cooks reach for when a dish needs straightforward fire without the fruitiness of guajillo or the smoke of chipotle. This 6 oz bag is a working-cook quantity for stocking salsas, oils, and stews.

Common Uses

Toast whole pods in oil to infuse salsa macha, chile de árbol-style table salsa, and aguachile. Drop into pot beans, lentils, and caldo de res for background heat. Crumble into marinades for carne asada and pollo a la diabla. Simmer with tomato and garlic for a fast taquería-style salsa roja. Steep in vinegar for a Mexican-style hot sauce.

Cuisine Context

Japonés is the everyday heat chile of Mexican home kitchens — kept in a jar next to the comal for tossing into whatever's cooking. It also crosses cleanly into Sichuan stir-fries, Thai curries, and dried-chile pasta, where its straight heat and sturdy skin hold up to high temperatures.

Pro Tip

Toast the pods whole in a dry pan for 15–20 seconds until they darken a shade and smell toasty. For milder heat, snip off the stem and shake out the seeds before using.

Ships from Doral, FL.