Jalapenos are the perfect ingredient to add a spicy kick to your dish.
You don’t need many jalapenos to create a meal that will set your loved ones’ mouths on fire.
Although most recipes will tell you how many jalapenos you’ll need, others prefer to give you the weight in jalapenos you’ll need because it more accurately represents the necessary amount of jalapeno.
How Much Does A Jalapeno Weigh?
On average, a jalapeno weighs between one-half and one ounce, which is about 15 to 25 grams.
This number includes the stem and the seeds, although the stem isn’t normally used with the pepper and the seeds.
If you were to remove the seeds and slice the rest of the Jalapeno, one cup of prepared jalapenos would weigh three ounces.
In a single jalapeno, there are four calories, with absolutely no fats or cholesterol of any kind.
A jalapeno that is about 0.5 ounces will have 0.9 grams of carbohydrates, 0.4 grams of fiber, 0.6 grams sugar, 0.1 grams of protein, and a measly 35 milligrams of potassium.
The jalapeno, instead, has plenty of Vitamin A and other vitamins.
There are many different types of jalapenos, which include Típico, Peludo, TAM Jalapeño, and Early Jalapeño.
Each type of jalapeno has its own unique taste and level of spiciness.
Some jalapenos are better than others.
Depending on where your jalapenos were grown, they may have a different look to them.
Jalapenos grown in Mexico tend to have brown streaks in them, which is something that consumers look for.
In North America, the jalapenos grown and sold here are purely green.
The type of jalapeno can play a big role in the level of spice that it has.
On average, jalapenos have between 2,500 and 8,000 Scoville Units.
The fresher the jalapeno, the spicier it is going to be.
Canned Jalapenos tend to lose some of their spice.
Whatever kind of jalapenos you decide to use, just ensure that your jalapenos aren’t contaminated.
Bad jalapenos have been known to cause salmonella.
Even perfectly fine jalapenos may cause heartburn.
Those with digestive issues, such as irritable bowel syndrome, may have to avoid this ingredient.
Health Benefits Of Jalapenos
Most people who eat jalapeno will eat them for their spicy taste, but these peppers are packed with vitamins and antioxidants.
You can add jalapenos to many recipes to give them a more powerful taste and help give your diet an extra boost in vitamins.
Jalapenos are packed with vitamins A, B, C, and K! Each of these vitamins helps a different part of your body, which all contribute to your overall health.
Vitamin A gives your immune system a boost to support its ability to fight off illness and disease.
It will also help you see better in the dark, and it helps keep your skin and the lining of your body parts healthy as well.
There are many different types of vitamin B that can be found in a jalapeno, with the most common type being B9.
Vitamin B9 is better known as folate, but it may also be known as folacin.
Folate is an important vitamin that helps the body form red blood cells and helps reduce the risk of neurological birth defects in unborn babies.
It can be hard to find foods with folate in them, and you can develop anemia if you don’t have enough of this essential vitamin.
Vitamin C is the most commonly known and recognized vitamin.
While it is best known for acting as a strong form of support for your immune system, it also helps your body heal injuries, protects your cells, and helps keep your skin, blood vessels, bones, and cartilage healthy.
The last of the vitamins that jalapenos are packed with is vitamin K. Vitamin K helps with blood clotting, healing wounds, and has even been shown to help with bone health.
Jalapenos are packed to the brim with health benefits for those who can handle the heat.
How Spicy Are Jalapenos?
Jalapenos have a spicy temperature of 2,500 to 8,000 Scoville units.
While they are nowhere near as spicy as the ghost pepper with 855,000 to 1,041,427 Scoville units, the jalapeno is vastly spicier than poblano peppers which only have 1,000 to 1,500 Scoville units.
Jalapenos are known for having quite the range in heat due to the different harvesting times and seasons that they grow in.
The time a jalapeno has been picked plays a big role in how spicy it is going to be.
For those who get their jalapenos in the United States or Canada, you may notice that your jalapenos are completely green.
They aren’t as spicy as the brown-streaked jalapenos that are sold in stores in Mexico because the pure green jalapenos aren’t completely ripe.
The greener and lighter in color the jalapeno is, the less spicy it is going to be.
If you are looking for the jalapenos that are on the hotter end, you will want to find darker chilis that are beginning to take on some more brown coloration.
Red jalapenos are always going to be spicier than green jalapenos.
Red jalapenos are fully ripe and are more likely to lean towards the 8,000 Scoville units end of the scale.
When trying to decide whether or not to add jalapenos to your family dinners, you will want to consider who is sitting at the table.
Jalapenos will be way too spicy for most young children, but it is a spice level that teenagers who like hot sauce can handle.
Just make sure that nobody who is going to eat your meal has stomach problems.
The spice is enough to cause heartburn, an upset stomach, and diarrhea in those with weak stomachs or sensitive bowels.
Different Types Of Jalapenos
There are many different types of jalapenos that you can choose from, based on different levels of heat and overall flavors.
Each jalapeno has its own Scoville unit range thanks to the thoughtful cultivation of the crops.
People who are looking for the perfect beginner jalapeno to try should go for the mammoth jalapeno.
The mammoth jalapeno gets its name from the massive size it grows to, which is up to five inches long.
These middle jalapenos have a Scoville unit range of 1,000 to 5,000 units.
They’re best for soups and other large meals thanks to their massive size.
Some people complain that the mammoth jalapeno loses some of its kick as it grows in size.
There is also the chichimeca jalapeno, which is much hotter than the mammoth jalapeno.
With anywhere between 3,500 and 8,000 Scoville units, they pair great with foods that contain cheese.
The chichimeca jalapeno is the perfect ingredient for things such as jalapeno poppers because of the strong, bold taste they have.
These peppers are also incredibly juicy and are quite sweet.
The Jaloro jalapeno is the perfect option for people who are looking for a more consistently spicy jalapeno.
With about 5,000 Scoville units, Jaloro jalapenos are the perfect option for nachos or salads.
The Jaloro was originally developed in 1992 by the Texas Agriculture Extension Service.
The Jaloro is known for being juicy and having a fruity taste.
Those who are looking to taste the peak of spice that jalapenos have to offer should try a purple jalapeno.
Their darker color should act as a sign to all those who try to eat these jalapenos that they’re in for a wild ride, with anywhere from 2,500 to 8,000 Scoville units.
Canned Versus Fresh
Everyone knows that there is almost always going to be a difference in foods that are fresh over foods that are preserved.
While there is little to no taste difference between milder jalapenos, the difference becomes more apparent when you look at the texture and the heat of the peppers.
When jalapenos are canned, they’re kept in vinegar, water, or some combination of ingredients that will preserve the jalapenos.
However, this always pickles the jalapenos, which changes the flavor of the pepper.
The taste is hardly noticeable when you are cooking with canned jalapenos.
What can’t be hidden is the difference in texture between fresh jalapenos and canned jalapenos.
Texture plays a heavy role in how your meal will be perceived.
Fresh jalapenos have thick skin that snaps when you bite down on it.
Depending on the kind of jalapeno you’re cooking with, that snap may be sharper if the jalapeno has a thicker skin, like the Jaloro jalapeno.
Canned jalapenos lose this snap and can become soggy.
You can work around the new texture by cooking the jalapeno into your food or charring it.
Either method will make your food just as flavorful without having to sacrifice taste.
Those who are looking to make their dish as spicy as possible will want to use the freshest jalapenos that they can find.
If you are unable to get fresh jalapenos where you live, you can also try using different chili powders or jalapeno flakes to get a similar effect.
Professional chefs will always tell you to go with the freshest ingredients you can find to get the best results.
This is especially true for those who are working with any type of spicy pepper, such as jalapenos.
Fresh jalapenos will always carry a stronger flavor than canned jalapenos.
Dangers Of Jalapenos
Jalapenos may be spicy, but most consumers don’t consider them dangerous.
However, the reaction to eating Jalapenos or getting their juices in your eyes is enough to scare some people away from eating them
Those who have digestive issues may want to steer clear of jalapenos.
Those with irritable bowel syndrome will especially want to avoid jalapenos.
When a food is spicy enough to cause your mouth trouble, just assume that it is going to cause every other part of your body that it travels through trouble as well.
There is also the risk of your jalapenos being contaminated, which can give you salmonella.
It isn’t a common occurrence, but it has been known to have happened in the past.
There are many other foods that have had this happen to them as well, which is why it is so important to wash your produce thoroughly before eating it.
Luckily, the Food and Drug Administration is quick to check out these cases and normally manages to find them pretty quickly.
The FDA was able to spot and find a farm in Texas that was having a problem with salmonella in its jalapenos.
Even if you don’t have any digestive issues and are a lover of spicy foods, you will want to make sure that you prepare your jalapenos properly to avoid injury.
By wearing gloves and not rubbing your eyes, you will avoid hurting yourself.
Jalapenos has capsaicin, which is a compound known for having a unique way of defending the plant it inhabits.
It’s what causes your eyes, nose, and mouth to burn when coming into contact with the chili peppers.
Never touch your face after you have handled hot peppers.
People who are looking to reduce the spiciness of their jalapenos should try soaking them in water for half an hour before cooking with them.
How To Choose The Best Jalapenos
Jalapenos are incredibly diverse when it comes to flavor and heat.
The dishes that involve jalapenos base their use of the pepper on how spicy a jalapeno is going to be, so finding the perfect jalapeno means finding the jalapeno with the perfect traits for your dish.
For meals such as stuffed jalapenos, you are going to want to use a milder jalapeno.
To find mild peppers at your local grocery store, look for the ones that are completely smooth and are bright green.
These are the ones that were picked before they were truly ripe.
This means they weren’t able to develop as much capsaicin, which is what gives jalapenos all of that mouth-tingling spice.
They’ll also typically be smaller as a result of this.
As jalapenos grow riper, they gain more capsaicin and become even spicier than those that are smooth and bright green.
They will eventually grow darker and have tiny, brown lines on them.
Although this may seem like a sign of a bad jalapeno, it is actually just the sign of a spicy one.
If you are getting jalapenos from your local grocery store, you may notice that there aren’t many jalapenos with these streaks.
This is because consumers in North America prefer smoother, milder jalapenos.
Those who know the secret of the jalapeno’s streaks tend to buy the best jalapenos up quickly.
If you were to go shopping for jalapenos in Mexico, you’d see a lot more jalapenos that were actually closer to being ripe.
The Art Of Jalapenos
There is a lot more to the jalapeno than meets the eye.
Being uninformed in your jalapeno picking can lead you to miss out on some of the best jalapenos.
You should know what kind of jalapeno you’re looking for before picking it up from the story.
Take into consideration your meal, the level of heat you want, and who is going to be eating your meal when you decide on what you need from your jalapenos.
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