Pasilla

Other Names   Dried: Chile negro/black chilli, chile de Mexico, chile para deshebrar, quernillo, pasa, prieto  

Flavor  Medium to hot, 3 to 4   

Shape   Elongate, flattened, irregular, wrinkled, with a pointed apex, 6 to 13 inches long by .75 to 2 inches wide

Color   Fresh  dark blackish green ripening to dark brown    Dried  black

Fresh  found in grocery and ethic markets, becoming more popular

Dried   Southwest markets

Processed   Not Processed

Available Cultivars  Apaseo and Pabellon 1

A long narrow, curved pepper with its dark chocolate is very distinctive. This pepper dries into a very wrinkled fruit the color of a raisin.  There is confusion over the name as in Baja California and Northwestern Mexican states, the name pasilla is given to the wider and shorter ancho and mulato.

The more popular dried pasilla, with its rich, mellow flavor, is desirable in cooked sauces, or toasted and crumbled, or ground into a table sauce.