Chipotle is a dried and smoked jalapeno, this chili is part of the genus Capsicum. Chipotle comes from the word Nahuatl, “Chilpotle” which translates to smoked chili pepper. In this blog post, you will learn more about chili chipotle’s history and if its process is sustainable.
How is chipotle grown and produced?
The growth stages of a jalapeno pepper from peppergeek.com
Before it becomes the chipotle you know, it starts as regular green jalapenos. Jalapenos thrive in environments that are well-drained in equal parts of sand, silt, and soil. Mexico is the country in which these jalapenos are growing in abundance but Texas and New Mexico also grow these jalapenos in large quantities. The best times to be planted are in the months of March-April or late July- August. These jalapenos can be either be picked when they are ripe green or can be left longer for them to ripen red. (If you want to learn more on how to grow your peepers at home go to https://peppergeek.com/jalapeno-plant-stages/ for more information) Once the jalapenos have come to the colorful bright red they are then picked and taken to an open-smoker installation where they are dried and smoked for approximately 6 days. After this process is complete they are then put in a can filled with adobo sauce which is what we see in grocery stores today.
Chipotle peppers in adobo sauce from walmart.com
Is this method sustainable?
The production to grow jalapeno pepper is sustainable compared to lots of other food items, especially meats. According to HEALable the water footprint to grow 1 pound of jalapenos requires 45 gallons of water which is relatively low compared to making 1 pound of beef which requires 1, 847 gallons of water. Jalapeno’s water footprint is low although something in question is the laborer’s health and safety. Agricultural workers across all types of crops are constantly exposed to toxic chemicals and pesticides. They are constantly dehydrated and exposed to dangerous machinery. These workers do lots of repetitive motions and bend over hours at a time with no breaks as well as carrying lots of heavy buckets that contain produce. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) between the years 1992-2006 there were a total of 423 workers who died of environmental heat.
Where is it grown and majority consumed?
Most of the jalapeno peppers that we see in the grocery stores in the U.S are from New Mexico, Texas, and California. There is also a large scale of jalapenos that are imported to the United States that are from Mexico. Chipotle is primarily consumed in Southwestern Regions in the United States and Mexico. It is really popular in Mexican-inspired cuisines.
The history behind Chipotle
Now that we went over that chipotle is a dried and smoked jalapeno chili then you might be wondering, how did the technique come about drying and smoking the jalapeno? Well, this practice can be traced back to Mesoamerican meaning way earlier times than the Aztecs this was an early food preservation practice. The Aztecs then adopted this practice to store their foods for long periods. Now the canned ones that we see around grocery stores are packed in adobo sauce which is made up of tomato, powdered dried chiles, brown sugar, salt, onions, vinegar, garlic, bay leaves, and oregano. This marinade originated in Spain and was widely accepted in all regions that were visited by Spanish explorers.
Chipotle can be used in a variety of different dishes – the possibilities are endless!
Here is a recipe for how to make Chipotle Cream Sauce
Ingredients:
¼ Butter
½ teaspoon garlic
¼ Onion
200 grams Yellow cheese
2 cups of Sour Cream
200 grams of chipotle in adobo sauce
Step 1: Preheat the pan to melt the butter
Step 2: In the blender put in the sour cream, chipotle, yellow cheese, garlic, onion then blend till it’s a smooth texture.
Step 3: Once it is nicely blended pour in the mixture onto the pan that contains the melted butter and mix
And voila! You can put this sauce on chicken, shrimp, pasta, etc.
Blog post by: Ana Luisa Murillo-Trejo
Bibliography:
García-Gaytán V. & Gómez-Merino F. & Trejo-Téllez L. & Baca-Castillo G. & García-Morales S. (2017). The Chilhuacle Chili (Capsicum annuum L.) in Mexico: Description of the Variety, Its Cultivation, and Uses. International Journal of Agronomy, 0, 1-13 https://downloads.hindawi.com/journals/ija/2017/5641680.pdf
Ávila-Quezada, G., Islas-Valenzuela, C., Muñoz-Márquez, E., & Sánchez-Chávez, E. (n.d.). Revista Fictotecnia Mexicana. PHYSICAL AND MICROBIOLOGICAL CONTAMINATION OF THE SMOKED “CHIPOTLE” PEPPER DURING DEHYDRATION. from https://revfitotecnia.mx/index.php/RFM/article/view/755.
Calvin. (2021, April 12). Jalapeno plant stages (w/pictures) – seedling to harvest. Pepper Geek. Retrieved October 13, 2021, from https://peppergeek.com/jalapeno-plant-stages/.
Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. (2008, August 28). CDC – Aug 28, 2008 update – Salmonella Saintpaul Infections linked to raw produce. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Retrieved September 18, 2021, from https://www.cdc.gov/salmonella/2008/raw-produce-8-28-2008.html.
Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. (2008). Heat-related deaths among crop workers — United States, 1992–2006. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Retrieved October 13, 2021, from https://www.cdc.gov/mmwr/preview/mmwrhtml/mm5724a1.htm.
Marie, A. (2021, August 26). Are jalapeño PEPPERS good Or BAD?: 2021 guide for health, Environment, Animals, Laborers. HEALabel. Retrieved September 18, 2021, from https://healabel.com/j-ingredients/jalapeno-peppers.
McCullough, K., Posts, Webb, M., & Bunning, M. (n.d.). A food production wiki for public health professionals. Food Source Information. Retrieved September 18, 2021, from https://fsi.colostate.edu/jalapeno-peppers/.
2021 water footprint of foods and ingredients list. HEALabel. (n.d.). Retrieved September 18, 2021, from https://healabel.com/water-footprint-of-foods.
Mick Vann, 12:15P. M. (n.d.). Chipotle Chiles. The history of chipotle chiles is rich and flavorful – Food – The Austin Chronicle. Retrieved September 18, 2021, from https://www.austinchronicle.com/daily/food/2012-08-26/chipotle-chiles/.
Farmworker Justice. (2013). (rep.). Exposed and Ignored: How pesticides are endangering our nation’s farmworkers (pp. 1–18). https://kresge.org/sites/default/files/Exposed-and-ignored-Farmworker-Justice-KF.pdf