Chipotle pepper

Chile chipotle

White rice and meatballs in chipotle

Cheese with chipotle chipotle

The chipotle chile, chilpocle or chipoclito (from Nahuatl, chilpoctli or xipoctli, "smoked chili") is a type of chili that has been left to mature until it becomes small, to be then smoked and seasoned.

This product, whose use transcends the Mexican sphere, is made from a chile and various seasonings and in its final state it has a reddish-brown appearance, with a very spicy aroma and complex flavor. Chipotles can be purchased canned or in bulk at many stores and markets in Mexico. Sometimes they can also be obtained freshly prepared, usually in marinade seasoned with tomato and piloncillo, and in this case they are juicy.

Chipotle peppers are made from jalapeño peppers that have been dried and smoked.

Although the most common variety of chile to make chipotle chile is morita, mora chile, serrano chile and pasilla are also used.

The chronicler Bernardino de Sahagún notes that smoked chili peppers, then also called pochchilli and now chipotle, could be found in the Tlatelolco market in Mexico City, capital of Mexico, in the 16th century.