Fresno peppers

Fresno peppers have a fabulous intense color and a flattering shape. The skin of this chili pepper looks glossy, plump, and smooth. Besides that, the luscious green colored stem gives a contrast look that makes them irresistible. 

These Fresno peppers are considered moderately hot chili peppers. It tastes and looks similar to jalapeño but greatly differs in the heat profile. Meaning, Fresno peppers serve like a wonderful substitute for the jalapeno but with added heat.

The Scoville heat unit of Fresno pepper

In the scoville scale, these fresno peppers usually range between 2500-10,000 SHU. A rich source for Vitamin B and Vitamin C.

To make a comparison the Scoville scale unit of jalapeno is , and the serrano pepper stands between,

What is fresno pepper?

The matured fresno pepper is about 3 inches long and about 1.5 inches wide at the shoulder. And its body is slightly curved that tapers at the end with a pointed tip.

It’s flesh is firm, thick and succulent, and great to use as fresh in salad, sauce, or chutney. The matured pepper looks bright green in color and turns red when completely ripen. The ripe Fresno peppers have intense heat and smoky flavors and taste mildly sweeter when cooked.

An intro to fresno pepper

This chili pepper developed and introduced during the mid 1950’s in California. Later it gained popularity and now it is one of the popular varieties available in the markets of the United States.

Belongs to the ‘capsicum annuum’ family of wax short pepper type(where banana pepper belongs to the long wax type pepper).

The seeds are the main source of heat and they are clustered together at the center attached to a white membrane. 

In recent decades, these Fresno peppers are often canned and named as hot chili peppers.

How does it taste?

Fresno peppers taste earthy that’s similar to jalapeno, and ripened fresno peppers are often confused with the ripened jalapeno peppers, because of their look alike color and shape.

The red Fresno peppers have intense heat and flavor, and have a mild fruity flavor when compared to the unripe ones. Which makes them a remarkable ingredient and has been adopted by renowned chefs to flavor up their signature dishes.

What is a substitute for Fresno peppers?

We have discussed considerably about the jalapeno and fresno pepper. That being said, jalapeno peppers are the closest substitute. And then comes the ‘'Santa Fe Grande pepper, and serrano pepper. 

What are Fresno peppers used for?

• Fresno peppers are used to spice up and to enhance the flavors.
• The green, unripe Fresno peppers are great to use in stir fries, grilling, in recipes like salsa and chives. And ripe ones are great for making sauce, chili, roasting, grilling, and more.
• Another popular way of using them is as the topping for cocktails to an extra punch. 
• In recipes. Same as jalapeno, these are best to use in any recipe to increase the heat, like salsa, dip, sauce, pizza, or burger. Add them as slices for the concentrated heat.
• Roast and add them in the salsa and sauce for uniform heat. Since its flesh is moist, generally it’s used as fresh pepper in the recipes rather than preserved as dried or pickled.