Green chillies may be mostly used in Indian and Asian cuisine, but they are a common ingredient used worldwide to give dishes an extra kick. Their deep green colour does wonders to brighten up any plate of food.
Some people prefer their food with a lot more spice than green chillies give. Others find green chillies to be too spicy. So, what other foods can you use to make a dish perfect for your taste?
Our 4 Substitutes for Green Chillies
It is not just their spice that makes green chillies so desirable but how that spice presents itself. It is smokier than other hot ingredients, helping to create a complex dish.
Here are our top 4 substitutes for green chillies:
1) Banana Peppers
Though they are slightly less spicy than green chillies, banana peppers will provide your dish with the same flavours and textures as a green chilli.
Banana peppers are a little sweeter but not sickeningly so. In fact, when paired with tacos, nachos, or other meals, you won’t be able to tell the difference. Better yet, they are ideal for subtly balancing bitter dishes.
You can eat banana peppers raw and cooked, but they are preferable when raw.
They are the perfect shape and size to be used in place of stuffed potato and taco shells. All you need to do is hollow out the inside of the pepper and stuff it with your taco filling or potato, and they are ready to serve.
This makes them a great healthy alternative to bread, starchy foods, and bulky carbohydrates.
The Perfect Amateur Pepper
Because banana peppers are less spicy but sweeter than green chillies, it is hard to overpower your dish with their flavours. If you are not confident with using hot foods and are unsure how to balance out flavours well, then banana peppers are a good place to start.
2) Cayenne Peppers
For all of you spice lovers out there, cayenne peppers are the perfect green chillies substitute for when you want to really taste the heat. In fact, cayenne peppers are so spicy that they are good for you.
Their heat not only helps to boost your metabolism but can make you literally sweat off your calories as you eat them.
They may not be healthy in the same way as green chillies, but there are still good for you.
Cayenne peppers are more affordable when brought in their powdered form. Powdered, they will still be a lot spicier than green chillies but will have a more diluted flavour.
Don’t Over Do It
No matter if you use fresh or powdered cayenne pepper, remember that a little goes a long way. Only use a small amount for a spiciness that matches that of green chilli. You can always add more if you want more spice after tasting.
3) Bell Peppers
If you tend to find green chillies too spicy for your tastes, then bell peppers are the perfect alternative. They are the most neutrally flavoured of all of the peppers but make up for their lack of spice in sweetness.
Bell peppers are commonly used for their ability to bulk up a dish. Unlike green chillies that are used as an additional flavour rather than the main ingredient.
There are 3 types of bell peppers that you can buy: Green, yellow and red.
They are not necessarily distinct varieties of the bell pepper but rather a bell pepper in various stages of maturity.
Green bell peppers are the least mature and tend to have a slight bitterness, though still sweet. Red bell peppers are the most mature bell peppers with the sweetness to match.
Add Your Own Spice
Mix in some extra black or white pepper to replicate the green chilli spiciness when you only have bell peppers to hand. Use more in your dish than you usually would give it that extra kick. It will not be the same as that of green chilli, but it is one way to add more spice to any dish.
4) Poblano
Though they are not often favoured outside of Mexican cuisine, poblano peppers are among the best green chilli replacements available.
They are slightly hotter than green chilli but convey their spiciness in the same smoky way. This makes their heat subtle rather than a prominent kick, making spicey dishes more manageable.
You will have to go an extra step to properly prepare poblano peppers when using them in a cooked dish.
Poblano peppers have a waxy outer texture. This will not hinder the taste of your dish but may lead to an unpleasant texture.
To remove this waxy layer, simply roast the peppers for 5-10 minutes until you are able to peel the pepper’s skin. Doing so may still affect the texture of your dish but will not in a negative way.
Add a Little at a Time
Because they are slightly hotter than green chillies, only use a little poblano pepper at a time. This will allow you to fully control your dishes’ spiciness and will prevent it from becoming overwhelming.
Other Substitutes for Green Chillies
Some of the above substitutes are slightly obscure, so here are some more common substitutes you can use instead:
- Chilli Powder – A staple in any kitchen, chilli powder may have a more diluted flavour than green chilli but is an excellent way to add an immediate kick to your dish without costing a fortune
- Red Chillies – Green chillies are just an underripe version of red chillies, so red chillies will be a little spicier but will pretty much taste the same
Summary
Green chillies are the perfect mild spicy ingredient, but if you are a fan of spice, then you can use cayenne peppers in their place. Likewise, if you prefer less spicy foods, try bell peppers instead.