Chile de Arbol Picante Sauce

De Arbol (Capsicum Annuum) means tree like in Spanish. The plant has thick, upright, woody stems and the chile itself is narrow, curved and bright red in color. Believed to be closely related to the pequin, the De Arbol is thin fleshed, with tannic, smoky, grassy flavor and searing heat. This chile has a heat range of 7.5 on the heat scale of 1-10. De Arbol Chiles are comparable to a Cayenne Pepper. Scoville heat units 15,000 to 30,000.

Suggested Use:
De Arbol is a hot chile and a staple in Southwest kitchens. Add some heat to your next salsa or Mexican dish. Be adventurous and add them to your next stew or chili along with the other spices Add some heat to your next salsa or Mexican dish.

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Ingredients:

60 dried chiles de arbol
1 1/2 Tbsp sesame seeds
2 Tbsp shelled pumpkin seeds
1/4 tsp cumin seeds
4 large allspice berries
2 clvoes
1 tsp dried oregano
1 tsp salt
2 cloves garlic, peeled and chopped
3/4 cup cider vinegar
1 cup water

Instructions:

Stem the chiles,and roll between your fingers to loosen the seeds. Break in half, remove seeds, and place chiles in a blender. Toast sesame seeds and pumpkin seeds separately and place in blender. Pulverize all the ingredients together until mixture is smooth and orange. Strain through a medium sieve, pressing and working solids to release their liquids. Add one cup of water and place in a clean jar. Wait 24 hours for the flavors to develop.

By Rick Bayless.