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Green chilli

Vegetables · Peppers & chillies

Green chilli

Fresh unripe chilli, slim and bright green, adding sharp, grassy heat to curries, chutneys and salsas.

Also called: green chili, green chile, hari mirch, serrano, bird's eye chilli (green)

A kind of chilli pepper

285 recipes with it

Photo: Miansari66, via Wikimedia Commons (public-domain)

What it is

Green chillies are unripe chilli peppers; in South Asian cooking they are usually slim finger-length chillies (hari mirch), while serranos and green bird's-eye chillies are used elsewhere. Heat varies a lot between types and even within a batch. Green bell peppers look similar but are large and mild.

Capsicum annuum / C. frutescens

How it’s used

  • Slit and added to curries and dals
  • Ground with coriander and mint into chutney
  • Chopped into salsas and raita
  • Fried in tempering
  • Pickled (mirchi achar)

Characteristics

Taste
Grassy, sharp and hot.
Texture
Crisp, thin-walled pods.
When cooked
Whole slit chillies give gentle heat; chopped or ground they are far hotter.
Sold as
fresh, frozen, paste
Cooking uses
Commonly cooked, Usually eaten raw, Mainly a seasoning, Used for tempering (tadka), Used as a garnish

Storage

Refrigerated. Refrigerate with stems removed in a dry container; freeze for longer keeping.

Diet, allergens and safety

No major allergens in typical versions.

  • Vegetarian
  • Vegan
  • Dairy-free
  • Egg-free
  • Gluten-free
  • Nut-free
  • Soy-free
  • Caffeine-free
  • Wash hands after handling; capsaicin burns eyes and skin.

Nutrition per 100 g

Energy
40 kcal
Protein
2 g
Carbohydrate
9.46 g
Fat
0.2 g
Fibre
1.5 g
Sugars
5.1 g

USDA FoodData Central: Peppers, hot chili, green, raw.

Substitutes

Optional — what works if you don’t have it, and how it changes the dish.

Related ingredients

Recipes with green chilli

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