Chiltepín and pequín are tiny, very hot Capsicum annuum chillies, close to the wild ancestor of the species. Chiltepín is round and often wild-harvested; pequín is slightly larger and oval.
What it is¶
Chiltepín and pequín are the smallest chillies in common use, and among the closest to wild Capsicum annuum. Botanists place them in the wild variety C. annuum var. glabriusculum, the group thought to include the ancestor of all domesticated annuum chillies, from the bell pepper to the jalapeño.
- Chiltepín (also chiltepe, tepín): round, 5–8 mm across, like a red peppercorn. Mostly gathered from wild or semi-wild shrubs.
- Pequín (piquín in much of Mexico): slightly larger and oval or bullet-shaped, 1–2 cm long, more often cultivated.
Both are called "bird peppers", because birds eat the ripe fruit and spread the seeds; birds lack the receptor that makes capsaicin burn. Both are very hot: chiltepín is usually quoted at roughly 50,000–100,000 SHU and pequín somewhat lower, around 30,000–60,000 SHU, though wild fruit varies a great deal and the two names are often used loosely for one another.
Origins and history¶
Wild chiltepines have been gathered for millennia across their range, from the deserts of Sonora and Arizona to Central America, and they are sometimes called la madre de todos los chiles, "the mother of all chillies". The name comes from Nahuatl, usually explained as "flea chilli", for its size.
In northern Mexico, especially Sonora, the wild harvest in autumn remains a real economy: families pick the fruit from shrubs growing in the shade of desert trees, dry it and sell it in markets, where it can cost more by weight than many cultivated chillies. In the United States, Texas made the chiltepín its official native pepper in 1997 (the jalapeño is the state pepper), and in Arizona a protected area of the Coronado National Forest was set aside in 1999 to conserve wild chiltepín populations. The details of these designations are local, but they reflect the chilli's standing as a native plant of the borderlands.
Flavour and aroma¶
The heat is the thing: very sharp, arriving instantly and hitting hard, then fading unusually fast compared with the slow build of a habanero. Chiltepín heat is often described as a "flash". Behind it there is a light smoky, earthy flavour when dried and a faint citrus note; fresh green chiltepines are grassy. Pequín is similar, a little less fierce, with a slightly more rounded, nutty flavour.
In the kitchen¶
In Sonora and the Southwest, chiltepines are a table condiment rather than a cooking ingredient.
- Crushed at the table: dried chiltepines are crushed between the fingers or in a small wooden grinder and scattered over soups and stews such as caldo de queso, menudo, pozole and beans.
- Pickled: fresh green or red chiltepines kept in vinegar with garlic and salt; the vinegar itself is splashed on food.
- Salsas: a few crushed into a tomato salsa; a little goes a long way.
- Pequín: dried pequín is used much like chilli flakes or cayenne, in salsas, sauces, pickles and ground over fruit with lime and salt. Many bottled Mexican "salsa picante" products and chilli-lime seasonings use pequín.
As a guide, 3–5 crushed chiltepines give a bowl of soup a serious kick.
⚠️ Small but fierce
The tiny size makes them easy to underestimate. Crush them with care, wash hands straight afterwards and keep them away from eyes. See handling chillies safely.
Buying and storing¶
Dried chiltepín and pequín keep their heat very well: stored airtight in a cool, dark place, they last a year or more. Because wild chiltepines are expensive and often counterfeited with cultivated look-alikes, buy from a trusted Mexican grocer or specialist supplier; wild fruit is small, slightly irregular and uneven in colour. Pickled chiltepines keep for months in the fridge.
Substitutes¶
- Dried bird's eye chillies: similar heat and use; crush them.
- Chile de árbol: milder, but a good general stand-in.
- Hot chilli flakes or cayenne in cooked dishes.
- Tabasco or piri piri chillies, which are similarly small and hot, though a different species.
Pairs well with¶
Beef broth, cheese, pork, beans, corn, tomato, lime, salt, garlic, oregano, vinegar, mango, cucumber and jícama.
Growing your own¶
Both are perennial shrubs, and chiltepín can grow into a small bush 1–2 m tall in the wild, where it prefers the dappled shade of larger plants. Germination is notoriously slow and erratic, possibly because the seeds are adapted to pass through birds' digestive systems; sow in January–February at 25–30°C, keep moist, and be patient, as seedlings may take a month or more to appear. Grow in pots in a greenhouse or conservatory in Britain. Established plants are tough and very productive, carrying hundreds of tiny upright fruit, and overwinter well frost-free. See growing chillies and overwintering chillies.