There are lots and lots (and lots) of different chilis out there that can be consumed in any of a variety of ways. Whether fresh, pickled, cooked, fermented, etc. they taste great, but a particularly good way to prepare chilis is to roast them. Whenever I fire up the grill, I have a batch of chilis that I will be roasting along with whatever else I will be cooking, and I will either include them in the meal or have them waiting in the fridge to be used later.
Most often you probably of hear of the New Mexico style chilis being roasted, and those lend themselves particularly well to that method of preparation. But pretty much any chili can be put to the fire. (Though you may have some issues with those itty bitty pequin and Thai chilis falling through the grill!) The New Mexico and the Poblano chili as well as bell peppers tend to have particularly tough skins, thus the reason that roasting works well for them. But the jalapeno and even the serrano and habanero can also benefit from a touch of fire.
The grill or a smoker works great for roasting, though there are other options as well which I will discuss below. If you put them on the grill, set it to medium-high heat and you will want to turn them frequently. I will usually put them over the fire, cover for a couple of minutes, then turn the chilis and cover again. Repeat that until they have a nice char all around. (But don’t turn them to charcoal!) I also have an infrared smoker, and for that I set the temperature to medium heat and turn the chilis about every seven minutes until ready. And of course smaller chilis will take less time and you will want to turn more often.
If you don’t have a grill (then why not?), you can also roast the chilis in the oven. Put the chilis on a cookie sheet in the oven and set the temperature to broil. Turn them frequently until they have that nice char. I have also found that an air fryer does a good job of roasting chilis and mine has a round basket that rotates and works great for jalapenos and serranos. For the larger chilis, I just set them on the rack and turn them throughout the cooking. These methods will not add the smokiness of the grill, but still bring out some great tastes.
After they have roasted, place them in a covered dish for at least fifteen minutes. That gives them time to cool off some and the skin separates easier after that. (Keep that tasty liquid that pools at the bottom of the dish to add into salsa, sauces, queso, etc.). For the New Mexico, Poblano, and Bell Peppers, you will want to peel the skins off and discard. For jalapenos, serranos, and other smaller chilies, it is your choice. The skin for those is not as tough, and if you find that the peeling is taking too much of the flesh of the chili, leave it on. Plus, the charred spots add some nice color if you are making salsa or a sauce.
The roasting process mellows out the pepper and typically cuts down on the heat level. And if you remove the seeds and veins before or after the roasting, it cuts back the heat even further. You may ask why you would want to lessen the burn of the chili, and that is a very valid question. The main reason is taste. This process adds a richness to the chili, and if you cooked it over fire, you are going to get some smokiness as well. As mentioned above, I usually roast serranos and/or habaneros with the bigger chilis and blend those all together to make sure I still have some heat.
Once you have roasted those chilis, what you do next is up to you. You can make green chili sauce, you can make roast salsa (watch for an upcoming recipe), you can add them to dishes, you can top tacos or burgers or hot dogs with them, you can serve them as a side, and/or you can stick them in the fridge to use later (they are good for about a week or so). I usually have several roasted chilis in the fridge, and almost always use them up before I even have to think about throwing them out. Give roasting a try and you will find that you will be doing it again and again because these fired peppers are definitely addictive!