One of the most popular chile peppers in the world today, the jalapeno is in sauces, salsas and used to add spice to everything from traditional Mexican dishes to chocolate chip cookies. How much do you know about the jalapeno other than the number of them that you can eat at one sitting? (more…)
It may sound bizarre, but adding chile to sweets such as chocolate has actually been done for centuries. Recipes that call for chocolate—mole, some chilis and other dishes—use it to add body, flavor and color. The real benefit is that the pH level of chocolate helps to counterbalance the acidity of the spices in some dishes. With the noticeable blend of flavors, it’s a natural step to (more…)
The habanero is one of the hottest chiles, and it makes an appearance in a wide number of cuisines. These small orange peppers have quite a history, 
dating back thousands of years – the earliest example of the species was found in Peru, with a preserved pod estimated to be 8500 years old!
Habanero peppers get their name from La Habana (more familiar to Americans as “Havana”) in Cuba, where they were frequently (more…)
When you order herbs, spices and chiles from The Chile Guy, you know you’re getting top-quality spices at the peak of their potency and flavor. But how do you preserve that flavor once the spices are in your kitchen? The flavor compounds in chiles and spices are volatile, and without appropriate care and storage, they will quickly lose their potency. Preserving your spices correctly is the key to keeping your dishes flavorful.
The unique flavor and piquancy you associate with favorite herbs and spices – from oregano to chile powder – is caused mostly by the chemical compounds present in the plant’s volatile (more…)
You already know that The Chile Guy is a premium source for dried chiles, flakes and powders – but did you know that we also sell a wide variety of bulk spices and herbs?
We offer great prices on herbs and spices from around the globe, including:
…and many more! We offer over 50 different herbs and spices in a variety of forms, including whole, ground, granulated and chopped depending on the spice in question. If you’re looking for a special spice, we can help you with that. Special orders are available in quantities ranging from 50 to 100 lbs. due to the cost of freight
When you run a commercial kitchen, having the best-quality spices augmenting your product offering is essential to providing your customers with the flavors they crave. World cuisine couldn’t exist without these flavorings. You need Chinese five spice powder to make a proper Peking duck, and Mexican Oregano is vastly different and more essential than its Greek cousin in some southwestern applications.
All of our bulk spices come from their countries of origin, ensuring that you get top-quality herbs and spices. Like our chile peppers in their various formats — whole, powder and crushed — all herbs and spices are inspected and FDA-approved. They won’t include any fillers or artificial colors or flavor-enhancements; just pure, pungent spices.
Dry herbs and spices like chile are the best way to preserve the unique flavor of each particular product. Drying herbs, fruits, peppers and spices is the time tested way and generally the preferred format for many of the products carried by the Chile Guy. In ancient times (pre-freezer) drying chile was the only way to preserve it for use at a later time. Herbs and spices are no different.
Because of the power/pungency of many spices, a little bit goes a very long way, so it can take a while to use up even a fairly small quantity of spice. Storing dry spices — as opposed to trying to keep a fresh spice arsenal — is much more efficient for long periods of time in the modern kitchen.
Space for storage is also a factor. Compare your spice rack at home to the number of fresh spices available in the produce section of the supermarket or your refrigerator. You might have a dozen different flavor enhancers in your kitchen cabinet but only room for a couple in your refrigerator spice drawer. It is the same in restaurant or commercial kitchens.
Whether you need a few ounces of saffron or a few thousand pounds of Mexican Oregano, count on The Chile Guy for your bulk herb and spice needs. No order is too big or small. Just contact us to make your order today!
Chiles, herbs and spices all have one thing in common: They are full of potent flavors that can be lost to improper storage. That’s why The Chile Guy takes such care to ensure your order is cared for properly right up to the moment it arrives on your door – and part of that process involves the flexibility to choose the perfect shipping method for your order.
Since we handle orders of all sizes, we employ a variety of shipping methods. Smaller orders can be handled through common carriers such as UPS or the United States Postal Service
We select the most cost effective and reliable way to get your product to you. Little things can make a difference and do add up. Freight is one of the great bugaboos of the food industry. The cost of freight can add as much as a dollar per pound to the cost of a product. We compare carrier costs and pick the best one for your order. At first blush it may seem appropriate for example to use one national carrier over another, only to discover that the efficiencies are neutralized by extra fees for home delivery, or an odd box size or shape.
A couple of years ago the United States Post Office began offering “flat rate” boxes at set rates. And they show up at residential addresses everyday without the extra fee. On the other hand, reliability for “On-Time” delivery or tracking information might justify the extra cost from another carrier. These things are “service” elements we consider when fulfilling your order.
As you know, The Chile Guy is well known for larger orders, scaling up to thousands of pounds and entire truckloads. Regardless of the size of the order, the same cost-saving approach is used. We shop for the best shipping, both speed and price, and take the legwork out of it for you. Different carriers use different routes, and prices may flucuate even if the product is being delivered to the same city. UPS may charge less to deliver to Chicago than FedEx, and FedEx may charge less for delivery to Seattle. The Chile Guy’s approach to shipping orders means you don’t have to find the most cost-effective method; it’s done for you.
Even for dry products freshness is the key to flavor, and we do our part to ensure your herbs, spices and chiles taste as potent as possible upon delivery. Proper storage and packaging and efficient transportation provides your kitchen or manufacturing process the most potent, flavorful ingredients for your final product!
If you’re ordering frozen green chiles, these will be shipped to you in special freezer packaging, ensuring they remain frozen throughout the journey and arrive at your doorstep ready to thaw or store in your own freezer.
Just contact us today to learn more about our shipping prices and policies or to place an order!
Restaurants run with notoriously narrow profit margins. By the time you’ve paid your staff and covered your other overhead expenses, you probably don’t have much left, if anything at all. That’s why it’s so important to find ways to cut costs without cutting corners, and The Chile Guy can help with that.
Our premium products save money in two ways. First, they cut down the prep-cooking time substantially. You don’t need to spend any time cutting off stems or peeling the skin off green chiles. Everything comes to you ready to be chopped, simmered or pureed into the dish.
The second way we save money is simply by offering top-quality products at competitive prices. When you shop with us, you know you’re not paying for fillers, dyes and other unnecessary additives that dilute the flavor. You’re only paying for pure, freshly picked chiles.
The Chile Guy has been in this business for a long time, and we treasure our relationships with commercial kitchens in New Mexico and across the country. We’ll work with you to obtain the product you want in the amounts you need, whether it’s a few ounces or thousands of pounds. Just contact us with what you’re looking for, and we’ll work to make it happen!
For The Chile Guy, quality is everything. We’re proud of the chiles we sell, and we’re confident that they’re some of the best and most flavorful chiles you’ll ever encounter. To maintain this high standard of quality, we have a few strict quality-control measures:
This last one is especially important to us because Kosher isn’t just a marker of quality – for many of our customers, it’s a way of life.
When you browse food labels, you may sometimes see a “K” on the label. This means that the food item is marked “kosher” and is safe to eat under Rabbinical law. It also generally means that the food is of high quality, because kosher laws can be quite strict.
In order for a food to be kosher, all of the parts that go into it must be certified as kosher. In other words, our Kosher-Certified chile powders, flakes and pods are a flavorful base for your kosher dishes.
Our quality ingredients have been reviewed several times before they get to you. From the FDA and Kosher Certification authorities to our own in-house chile experts, the ingredients that arrive at your door are sure to be the absolute best in quality.
A commercial kitchen can go through a lot of chiles in a few days, and it’s important to always have plenty on-hand. The Chile Guy offers affordable bulk pricing on whole chile pods, chile flakes and chile powders in addition to select herbs and spices. When you order with us, you don’t have to worry about ever running out of the flavorful additions to your signature dishes.
Seasonings – including chiles – are expensive. This is especially true when you’re buying high-quality items picked at the peak of freshness and carefully stored to preserve their flavor. Buying in bulk can significantly decrease your costs.
We offer affordable chiles, herbs and spices in a variety of formats, including dried, frozen and powdered. Whatever you’re looking for, you’re sure to find for a competitive price and in the quantity you need.
When you buy in bulk, you bypass the extra packaging and retail mark-ups. You can also purchase by weight or volume and get exactly as much as you need rather than being locked into the seller’s available packages.
At The Chile Guy, we sell our chiles and spices by the pound, with some especially potent ones sold by the ounce. Sample sizes are available if you want to test something before you commit to a large order. Once you know how much you’ll need, we can match you with the best shipping method – whether it’s mailing a pound to you in flat-rate Priority Mail or using a freight truck to deliver hundreds of pallets.
In 2011, New Mexico passed a law stating that any chile which was not specifically grown in the state could not be labeled as ‘New Mexican’ chile. The law included the usage of any geographical locations, such as Hatch or Chimayo, in this label. If the chile doesn’t actually come from that location, it can’tbe advertised in a way to make people think it does. While the Chile Guy has always been particular about knowing where his chile comes from, not every supplier was.
This isn’t the first law passed which keeps external competition from claiming a false geographical indication. Florida oranges and Napa Valley wines are both listed under U.S. trademark laws. If an orange is grown in California, it can’t be sold as a Florida orange. This is the same type of regulation that New Mexico is striving to use in the New Mexico Chile Advertising Act.
Distributors of chile have to either present documentation stating their chile was grown in New Mexico or clearly label their product “NOT GROWN IN NEW MEXICO” when prepping it for sale if it’s named for a New Mexico location. Not only is this meant to protect the economy of the regions where chile is grown, it provides peace of mind for restaurants who are trying to offer New Mexico chile.
One of the specifics noted in the law itself are menu items. If you’ve been offering a dish named ‘Taste of Hatch,’ you don’t have to get a new menu printed. Restaurants may continue to describe menu items with geographical names if they make the origins of the chile used for the menu items clear.
If you want to know where your chile is coming from, contact us and get clear information what you can expect with an order from the Chile Guy.