Best Substitutes For Green Chiles

Important Note: When you buy through our links, we may earn a commission. As an Amazon Associate we earn from qualifying purchases. Content, pricing, offers and availability are subject to change at any time - more info.

Green chiles are a wonderful and tasty way to add vitality to any dish. You can use them in a wide variety of dishes to inject flavor and appeal into certain recipes.

What’s more, green chiles aren’t just delicious, but they also have health-related benefits that make them particularly worthy of your attention. Green pepper varieties have a flavor that ranges from medium to spicy and serves as common ingredients in Indian foods thanks to their smoked flavor.

With that said, if you don’t like the kick that green peppers provide, or you have a recipe that calls for them, but there aren’t any in your kitchen, you need to know which substitutes will work in their place.

At Cook Gem, we’re here to help. We searched high and low for the best alternatives and narrowed down our top choices for your consideration. So the next time you’re in a bind and you need green chiles, you’ll know which foods work as viable replacements.

Best Substitutes

Fortunately, you can use a large number of substitutes to replace the green peppers (some are hotter and others are milder). So depending on which seasoning or spice you are trying to use, you can emulate the same and reproduce the experience that green peppers provide.

Let’s take a look through our favorite alternatives to green chiles. So whether you have this ingredient in your kitchen or you can’t find it in stores, you can always make your recipes without missing a beat.

Jalapenos

If you aren’t a big fan of the spiciness of green chiles, or they just aren’t suitable for your recipe, you can turn to jalapenos as a replacement. In doing so, you’ll get less heat and plenty of flavors.

Jalapenos are frequently used to provide spicy seasonings to recipes. Rather than serving as a primary ingredient, jalapenos work to alternate their heat levels depending on the seasoning used in the recipe.

Moreover, green chiles are usually fried or roasted before cooking. Jalapenos, on the other hand, are usually best added fresh to uncooked recipes. That said, they are still quite delicious when they are cooked.

Jalapenos are easy to find in the vast majority of grocery stores. Not only that, but they can stay fresh in your refrigerator for as long as two weeks.

Cayenne Peppers

If you’re a fan of spicier foods and you want to surprise your dinner guests, then you need to add some diced peppers to the recipes you will be making. Cayenne peppers are very suitable as a spicy substitute for green chiles.

If you are attempting to replicate similar spice levels and flavors as green chilies, but you’re instead using cayenne, we advise that you use only a tiny amount in the recipe. This is because even the smallest amount can pack a wallop, so tread carefully, especially if you’re not used to consuming cayenne.

What’s more, cayenne is usually used in dried or powdered form. However, you may still use fresh peppers in your recipes.

Since these peppers are very spicy, they will raise your body’s temperature. But they also allow you to burn a lot more calories while slightly increasing your metabolism. So if you need a good reason to spice up or recipes, cayenne is sure to do the trick.

Bell Peppers

Not everyone can enjoy hot, spicy peppers. In fact, many people are highly sensitive to them and can even have allergic reactions that require medical care. If this describes you in any way, it’s best to avoid the hotter alternatives and stick to something like bell peppers.

Rather than getting heat, bell peppers provide texture and flavor in a mild option. Bell peppers work as great ingredients for recipes, adding colors that range from green to red.

They are usually used as a primary ingredient added in an effort to increase the content, making the dish a heartier offering. Green chiles, however, are usually used to give a dish more flavor.

If you plan to use these bell peppers, but you are concerned about the taste being too weak, you can always add some black pepper to your recipes to help you emulate the spiciness that green chiles provide.

Poblano Peppers

If you want to get the same smoky flavor as green peppers but with a little more heat, poblano peppers are a solid choice for you.

They are great for adding minimal amounts to heat up dishes. However, poblano peppers can also serve as the primary ingredient in recipes such as stuffed peppers.

Poblano peppers are incredibly popular in Mexican foods. They are mostly picked for cooking when they are green, but when they are ripe, they turn black or dark red.

You may want to remove the wax texture that surrounds the poblano pepper. To do this, you need to carefully roast them first. Once roasted, you’ll be able to peel them so as to remove the outer layer.

Banana Peppers

When it comes to replacing green chiles, banana peppers are in a league of their own. Many people agree that banana peppers are the single best substitute to work in place of green chiles. It’s true that banana peppers have a sweeter taste to them.

And they’re nowhere nearly as spicy. But that can be considered the main attraction, especially for people who are sensitive or allergic to the hotter varieties and want something that they can actually eat and enjoy.

As their name implies, banana peppers are usually yellow, at least initially. They turn orange or red when they start to get ripe. They are often used with more spicy pepper substitutes to provide a sweet hint to the recipe. But at the same time, they’re not overpowering.

Cook Gem Is Your Source for Substitutes and More

We have many more wonderful food substitutes that are sure to come in handy in your cooking ventures. We also regularly discuss vegan-friendly ingredients and food options to help you maintain your vegan diet.


Recent Recipes