Look no further if you’re looking for easy ways to roast or blister hatch chiles! This article will give you four different methods that you can use to enjoy these delicious chiles. These chiles are usually medium to hot in terms of heat and have a very distinct flavor. Hatch chile peppers frequently appear in recipes that call for roasted or blistered chiles, so we share how to achieve that. Are you ready to discover hatch chiles?
So what flavor can you expect when you chomp on a hatch chile or a recipe containing hatch chiles? Earthy and smoky with a hint of sweetness, it’s a unique flavor, unlike any other chili pepper. When roasted, they become even more flavorful, and the sweetness intensifies.
In the American Southwest, few things are as anticipated as the arrival of the Hatch Chile season. This flavor-loaded green chile is only in season for a few weeks, so when it arrives, people in New Mexico and Texas go crazy for it. Hatch chiles are a simple ingredient in various dishes, from simple snacks to complex entrees. And while they can be pretty spicy, that’s just one of the things that makes them so addicting.
For those who don’t live in the Southwest, Hatch chiles can be challenging to find, but some local stores in your area are sure to carry them, and we’ll share this too!
I’ve eaten more than my fair share of Hatch Chiles (especially during my collabs with Frieda’s Produce), and I can tell share this: Yes, I eat them. You should see my forehead thermometer when I eat the hot ones!
When you use a hatch chile in a recipe, you can create many delicious, spicy dishes. So if you’re looking for a little flavor, look for Hatch Chile season because it’s time to add some spice to your life and meal plate! You’ll find endless combinations to create unique and delicious dishes.
Table of Contents
Things To Know About Hatch Chiles
First and foremost, spell HATCH CHILE right! It’s not spelled Hatch CHILI; like the food you consume, it ends in an ‘E’!
Second, you can easily mix these “little heaters” into so many different recipes, and they will make each of them undeniably delicious.
Consider Hatch Chiles, The Dom Perignon of Peppers!
New Mexico is where these hot little mommas are cultivated, and they come in a few different heat levels, which I will qualify and elaborate on further down in the post, but here’s the light overview
- medium
- hot
- And ‘Oh Baby…Extra Hot!’ (bring me the popcorn to extinguish the heat!
Quick Info On The Infamous Hatch Peppers
- Hatch Chile peppers are a unique and essential ingredient in many cuisines
- These peppers are known for their hot ‘pop’ and roasting aroma.
- The hatch chile pepper is an exceptional variety of chili pepper.
- Hatch Valley, New Mexico: many hatch chiles are from here
- The peppers are harvested in late summer and roasted.
- Hatch chiles can be used in various recipes, both savory and sweet.
Chile peppers are a unique and essential ingredient in Various Cuisines.
Hatch peppers are a unique and essential ingredient in many cuisines. Depending on the variety, they provide a distinct flavor that can be spicy and sweet.
Did you know that Hatch peppers are used fresh, dried, or powdered and are essential in many dishes worldwide?
These chile peppers are a common ingredient in many Mexican dishes, from breakfast tacos to enchiladas. Fresh chiles help make salsa awesome and snappier, while dried chiles make mole. Chile peppers are also common in Chinese, Indian, and Thai dishes.
Health Benefits of Hatch Peppers
Chile peppers are not only an essential ingredient in many cuisines, but they also have many health benefits.
- excellent source of Vitamin A and C and Capsaicin
Discover Hatch Chile Peppers
The peppers are an awe-inspiring variety of chili pepper. First, did you know that the pepper is grown in Hatch Valley, NM, and therefore named after where it is produced?
Second: the peppers range from two to four inches and are shaped like banana peppers, but their skin is far from as firm as a banana pepper.
Third, the color of peppers is typically a deep green color when they are mature, but they can also be red, orange, or brown.
Finally, hatch chilis have a wide range of heat: mild to OMG Hot! If you want the range of the Scoville scale (a pepper heat scale) and Hatch chilies range from about 1k-8k on this pepper heat scale.
Hatch chiles provide less heat than most fabulous HOT peppers (like a Jalapeno, serrano, or ghost pepper). However, they will still remind you that it’s on your plate or the ingredients if you are generally not spicy.
The Flavor: expect an earthy flavor that imparts a subtle smoky finish (and we are not describing wine!) I often use some stored in the freezer in my Verde Arroz recipe, which truly elevates the flavor profile.
Handling Hatch Peppers
While these peppers are hardly serrano-grade (which I explained above in the Scoville Scale), they can still pack in some heat, irritating your skin!
Use food prep-grade gloves: the peppers are heated. If you touch your eyes after handling the peppers, you may irritate them. You can wear safety glasses to keep the hatch chili pepper juice from spitting into your eye, and we suggest a mask (as my mom was cleaning the peppers, she did choke a bit, so we were working with a spicier batch!)
- wear a mask
- wear gloves
- wear glasses (not contacts)
- Don’t touch your face, lips, etc.
4 Ways To Roast & Blister A Batch of Hatch Chiles
In all my travels, and at home (the good old burgh), I have found that some food markets roast the hatch peppers for you, but they are so easy to make, you don’t need to buy them prepared!
The market in Pittsburgh I have consistently found roasted hatch peppers is Market District (Giant Eagles Mothership). You don’t have to get out of your car, and you can smell the spicy, intensely nutty, roasted peppers they use a round bingo-like (mega-sized) roasting tumbler for!
Now let me help you char hatch chiles at home!
Roasting Hatch Chiles In The Oven
This is my least favorite way to prepare these, but it is a popular method. Roasting hatch peppers in the oven work well and yield delicious peppers.
Use your oven to blister the Hatch peppers if:
- You don’t own an air fryer
- don’t like to work with your broiler function
- don’t own a grill
Roasting Hatch Chiles In Your OVEN
Hatch chiles in this preparation method will be completed using an oven to blister and roast the hatch chile. You can use as many or as few as you prefer, our recipe is based on 1 pound for the sake of the recipe card only, but we have done more and less using this method, and they turn out fine each time!
The prep time is based on rinsing and either slitting and seeding the pepper or piercing it. The cook time is when you actively turn the chiles in the oven, ensuring that all sides are charred. Finally, the additional time is for steaming, then peeling the peppers. Remember oven brands vary, so the timing may be slightly different for your batches.
Ingredients
- Rinsed Batch of Hatch Chile Peppers (Slit, seeded, or Pierced)
- Olive Oil
Instructions
- Preheat Oven To 400°F-425°F
Line a baking tray with foil. - Slit or Pierce peppers
- TO SLIT: Chop the top of the pepper and stem off. Slice the pepper down the middle and use a spoon to remove the seeds)
- TO PIERCE: Use a knife and pierce at most minuscule 2 slits so that the pepper won't burst when it is charring.
- Place either a pierced or slit, seeded peppers on the tray.
- Lightly brush each with olive oil (just enough)
- Place the tray into the preheated oven and turn every 5 minutes as they blister and char and repeat this step until all sides are blistered and charred.
- Once all pieces are blistered, remove them from the oven and immediately transfer them to a large bowl; cover it will foil and allow this to stand for about 15 minutes (until they have slightly cooled and are manageable to touch)
- Use One of The Two Following Methods To Remove The Skin
- Place food-safe gloves on your hands and place a colander in the sink and the peppers near the sink.
- Remove the foil on the covered peppers, and remove the skin from the pepper.
METHOD ONE
- Working under cold water, place a strainer and slide the skins off. They will pop off without issue. Allow the skins to catch in the strainer and set aside the skinned roasted hatch peppers in a container, and repeat to finish all charred peppers until they are all without skin.
METHOD TWO
- You can attempt to remove the skin (it will slide off easily), place the skinned hatch chile in a container, and repeat the process on the rest of the peppers.
- Either method provides you with a skin-free roasted hatch chile.
- Refrigerate and use your peppers in a recipe or freeze in an airtight zipped bag for up to six months.
Notes
Yes, you are peeling the roasted, blistered skin off because the skin left on a hatch chili has an undesirable texture, so shed it off, which is why to roast, broil, air fry, or grill the chile peppers.
Pro Tip: run an exhaust fan, wear a mask and gloves, and don;t allow the pepper juices to enter your eye.
Nutrition Information:
Yield: 4 Serving Size: 1Amount Per Serving: Calories: 42Total Fat: 3gSaturated Fat: 0gTrans Fat: 0gUnsaturated Fat: 3gCholesterol: 0mgSodium: 2mgCarbohydrates: 3gFiber: 0gSugar: 1gProtein: 0g
DanaVento.Com is not a dietician or nutritionist; any nutritional information shared is simply an estimate. Use a nutritional calculator if you need exact estimates of nutrition, and note that the brands you use in your recipe may differ slightly or significantly from those brands of items you use, creating a variance in nutritional content.
Roasting Hatch Chiles Under The Broiler
So this method is a bit more hands-on, but the peppers turn out perfectly every single time, and it is a lot like prepping the peppers on a grill.
Use your broiler to blister the Hatch pepper if:
- you don’t own an air fryer
- don’t want to use the oven method
- don’t own a grill
Roasting Hatch Chiles Under The Broiler
Hatch chiles in this preparation method will be completed using a broiler, a fast and easy way to blister and roast the hatch chile. You can use as many or as few as you prefer, our recipe is based on 1 pound for the sake of the recipe card only, but we have done more and less using this method, and they turn out fine each time!
The prep time is based on rinsing and either slitting and seeding the pepper or piercing it. The cook time is when you will actively turn the chiles under the broiler, ensuring that all sides are charred. Finally, the additional time is for steaming, then peeling the peppers.
Ingredients
- Rinsed Batch of Hatch Chile Peppers (Slit, seeded, or Pierced)
- Olive Oil
Instructions
- Preheat Oven To Broil (HIGH)
- Line a baking tray with foil.
- Slit or Pierce peppers
- TO SLIT: Chop the top of the pepper and stem off. Slice the pepper down the middle and use a spoon to remove the seeds)
- TO PIERCE: Use a knife and pierce at most minuscule 2 slits so that the pepper won't burst when it is charring.
- Place either a pierced or slit, seeded peppers on the tray.
- Lightly brush each with olive oil (just enough)
- Place the tray into the preheated oven broiler and turn every 2 minutes ( or less) as they blister and char and repeat this step until all sides are blistered and charred.
- Once all pieces are blistered, remove them from the broiler rack and immediately transfer them to a large bowl; cover it will foil and allow this to stand for about 15 minutes (until they have slightly cooled and are manageable to touch)
- Use One of The Two Following Methods To Remove The Skin
- Place food-safe gloves on your hands and place a colander in the sink and the peppers near the sink.
- Remove the foil on the covered peppers, and remove the skin from the pepper.
METHOD ONE
- Working under cold water, place a strainer and slide the skins off. They will pop off without issue. Allow the skins to catch in the strainer and set aside the skinned roasted hatch peppers in a container, and repeat to finish all charred peppers until they are all without skin.
METHOD TWO
- You can attempt to remove the skin (it will slide off easily), place the skinned hatch chile in a container, and repeat the process on the rest of the peppers.
- Either method provides you with a skin-free roasted hatch chile.
- Refrigerate and use your peppers in a recipe or freeze in an airtight zipped bag for up to six months.
Notes
Yes, you are peeling the roasted, blistered skin off because the skin left on a hatch chili has an undesirable texture, so shed it off, which is why to roast, broil, air fry, or grill the chile peppers.
Pro Tip: run an exhaust fan, wear a mask and gloves, and don't allow the pepper juices to enter your eye.
Nutrition Information:
Yield: 4 Serving Size: 1Amount Per Serving: Calories: 42Total Fat: 3gSaturated Fat: 0gTrans Fat: 0gUnsaturated Fat: 3gCholesterol: 0mgSodium: 2mgCarbohydrates: 3gFiber: 0gSugar: 1gProtein: 0g
DanaVento.Com is not a dietician or nutritionist; any nutritional information shared is simply an estimate. Use a nutritional calculator if you need exact estimates of nutrition, and note that the brands you use in your recipe may differ slightly or significantly from those brands of items you use, creating a variance in nutritional content.
Roasting Hatch Chiles On Grill
This method is a bit more hands-on, but the peppers turn out perfectly every single time, and it is a lot like prepping the peppers under the broiler, but it keeps the heat of the prep outdoors, which is great for August and September when it can still be balmy.
Use your grill to blister the peppers if:
- You don’t own an air fryer
- don’t want to heat the interior of your home with the oven (broiling or roasting)
Roasting Hatch Chiles On Grill
Hatch chiles in this preparation method will be completed using the grill as the heat source to blister and roast the hatch chile. You can use as many or as few as you prefer, our recipe is based on 1 pound for the sake of the recipe card only, but we have done more and less using this method, and they turn out fine each time! This depends on your grill grate capacity.
The prep time is based on rinsing and either slitting and seeding the pepper or piercing it. You will actively turn the chiles under the broiler during cooking, ensuring that all sides are charred. Finally, the additional time is for steaming, then peeling the peppers.
Ingredients
- Rinsed Batch of Hatch Chile Peppers (Slit, seeded, or Pierced)
- Olive Oil
Instructions
- Preheat Grill to 500°F
- Line a baking tray with foil.
- Slit or Pierce peppers
- TO SLIT: Chop the top of the pepper and stem off. Slice the pepper down the middle and use a spoon to remove the seeds)
- TO PIERCE: Use a knife and pierce at most minuscule 2 slits so that the pepper won't burst when it is charring.
- Place either a pierced or slit, seeded peppers on the tray.
- Lightly brush each with olive oil (just enough)
- Transfer the prepared peppers onto the heated grill grated, and turn every 2 minutes ( or less) as they blister and char. Repeat this step until all sides are blistered and charred.
- Once all pieces are blistered, remove them from the grill and immediately transfer them to a large bowl; cover it will foil and allow this to stand for about 15 minutes (until they have slightly cooled and are manageable to touch)
- Use One of The Two Following Methods To Remove The Skin
- Place food-safe gloves on your hands and place a colander in the sink and the peppers near the sink.
- Remove the foil on the covered peppers, and remove the skin from the pepper.
METHOD ONE
- Working under cold water, place a strainer and slide the skins off. They will pop off without issue. Allow the skins to catch in the strainer and set aside the skinned roasted hatch peppers in a container, and repeat to finish all charred peppers until they are all without skin.
METHOD TWO
- You can attempt to remove the skin (it will slide off easily), place the skinned hatch chile in a container, and repeat the process on the rest of the peppers.
- Either method provides you with a skin-free roasted hatch chile.
- Refrigerate and use your peppers in a recipe or freeze in an airtight zipped bag for up to six months.
Notes
Yes, you are peeling the roasted, blistered skin off because the skin left on a hatch chili has an undesirable texture, so shed it off, which is why to roast, broil, air fry, or grill the chile peppers.
Pro Tip: run an exhaust fan, wear a mask and gloves, and don't allow the pepper juices to enter your eye.
Nutrition Information:
Yield: 4 Serving Size: 1Amount Per Serving: Calories: 42Total Fat: 3gSaturated Fat: 0gTrans Fat: 0gUnsaturated Fat: 3gCholesterol: 0mgSodium: 2mgCarbohydrates: 3gFiber: 0gSugar: 1gProtein: 0g
DanaVento.Com is not a dietician or nutritionist; any nutritional information shared is simply an estimate. Use a nutritional calculator if you need exact estimates of nutrition, and note that the brands you use in your recipe may differ slightly or significantly from those brands of items you use, creating a variance in nutritional content.
Roasting Hatch Chiles In Air Fryer
Use your air fryer to blister the Hatch peppers if:
- You don’t want to use your oven to broil or roast (heat)
- don’t own a grill
What Kinds Of Recipes Can I Add Hatch Chiles Into?
- Soups – try a cilantro hatch pepper broth
- Stews – try a white bean chicken hatch pepper stew
- Sauce – add to a homemade bbq sauce
- Atop pizza – use roasted hatch peppers for a topping with mushrooms and red onions.
- Chili-bean chili loves these blistered roasted peppers. It bolsters the flavor.
- Salsa – add some to a red salsa, and it’s FYAH
- Enchilada sauce – the BFF companion ingredient
- Guacamole – add a little smokiness and heat burst to guac
- Rice – use it in green rice recipes
- Add the chile peppers to Cornbread
- Hatch Pepper Bacon Wrapped Dates
- Country-Fried Potatoes
- In Quinoa Salad
- Grilled Cheese
Our Favorite Way To Enjoy Hatch Peppers
For a simple and flavorful side dish, slice the roasted, peeled peppers into thin strips and sauté them with onions and garlic. (fast and easy in minutes)
Ways To Savor The Flavor Of Hatch Peppers
Once you prepare the peppers, it is time to figure out how you might choose to use them or store them; here are a few quick ideas to help you along!
- Use them fresh. As soon as your roast them
- Prepare them and freeze them
- Can the hatch chiles if that’s your thing
The Sweet Side Of Hatch Peppers
Hatch chiles can be in various savory and sweet recipes, and chocolate is their BFF! Add these peppers to a brownie or ice cream. The chocolate profile combined with the hatch peppers is a match made in heaven.
Check out this fabulous Hatch chile chocolate sauce for ice cream recipe for pairing ice cream, chocolate sauce, and Hatch chiles!
When Are Peppers Available?
You can find these specialty peppers in the late summer: August, and September, and if you see them, buy them, you won’t be sorry!
How Do I Pick A Good Hatch Peppers?
You’ll want to choose hatch chiles that are on the large size becuase those are easier to slit, and seed (pro tip here, we make them a lot)
Avoid brown patches (bruising and mushy stuff), and look for firm and shiny, free of blemishes (which most are).
Are You Ready To Discover These Hatch Peppers
Hatch chiles are a great option for exploring a new chili pepper type. These peppers are native to New Mexico and very popular in Southwestern cuisine, but you’ll like them on yours! Hatch chiles have a unique flavor that balances earthy and spicy. When roasted, these peppers have a smoky flavor for dishes like enchiladas and chili.
Ready to give them a try?
If you already love hatch chiles, what did I miss, and what should I add to the article? Tell me below in the comment section~ Dana XO.
With roots in Sicily and Rome, Dana combines her family’s culinary heritage with her experience as a travel writer and chef to create authentic Italian recipes. Drawing from time in Italy, cherished Nonna’s recipes, and her expertise with modern kitchen appliances, she simplifies traditional Italian cooking. Dana’s approach keeps the authentic flavors and tastes intact, offering easy yet genuine Italian dishes for everyday cooking.
