I like my chili with some heat. In reading a lot of chili powder labels at the grocery store, I noticed that most contain the following: paprika, cumin, cayenne, oregano, salt and garlic and/or onion powders. Though paprika is legitimately a chile, I don’t think of it as a chili powder chile. Is that a legit statement? Who knows but for me, paprika is in paprikash, Spanish tapas dishes and sprinkled on top of twice baked potatoes. I don’t know that I want it making up the bulk of my go-to chili powder. Where are the actual chilies? I’ve always been fascinated by the bags in Hispanic grocery stores – the ancho, the pasilla, the guajillo chilies. Why aren’t those in most chili powders? They’re rather inexpensive so I can’t imagine it’s a cost issue. The only thing I can come up with is that paprika is rather mild so it appeals to a larger audience. Also, with only one chile, it makes for easy production. It also makes it boring, with no complex layering of flavors. Why make it interesting when you don’t have to? BAH.
STRESSCAKE 