Mulato chilies are one of the most important mole and sauce chilies in Mexican cooking, making them an essential item at any well-stocked Mexican or Latin grocery store. Nonetheless, they are not generally as easy to find as ancho chilies. In areas catering to large Mexican populations they may be found in well-stocked big-box grocery stores as well. Ground and/or flaked mulato chilies are sometimes found at specialty stores, but they are generally not as easy to find as ground ancho chilies.

While mulato chilies are an important Mexican ingredient, they are not a particularly common in the “Mexican” section found in many grocery stores, which tends to lean towards pre-packaged Tex-Mex.

Unlike standard poblano peppers, mulato poblanos are rarely available in their fresh state. Because of this, drying your own mulato chilies is all but impossible unless you’re able to procure a small supply from a grower or grow your own fresh chilies. Green (unripe) poblano peppers cannot be dried to make mulatos, or even anchos, as both chilies are made by drying mature or very mature peppers.

Ground mulato chili powder can be made at home relatively easily by toasting and pulverizing chilies, ideally in a food processor or spice grinder. It’s fairly easy to achieve a chili flake consistency, though you may find it harder to a true powder consistency without added drying stages and a high quality spice grinder.

Mulato chili peppers should be dry and firm but still pliant – extremely brittle and damaged peppers should be avoided if possible. Likewise, very soft peppers may have been exposed to moisture and should be avoided. Because of their tough-but-flexible skin and flat shape, mulato chilies tend to hold up fairly well without breaking or cracking. That being said, cracked or torn chilies might be encountered; as long as they’re still supple, these are fine to use (though the broken ones will often spill seeds all over the place). The colour should be a very deep purple-brown colour. The stems, which are very thick and fleshy on fresh poblanos, often appear woody and shredded on mulato chilies. This is normal.

Mulato chili powder should have a strong, pleasant smell and a rich, deep colour. The flavour starts to fade after the chilies are processed, so try to find the freshest and most recently-ground chili powder that you can.

Mulato chilies can very a great deal in size, ranging anywhere from 8-18 cm (3-7 inches) long. All of them will possess a broad-shouldered, roughly triangular shape. Variation in size does not particularly affect the flavour, quality, or heat of the peppers. Choose a consistent size if you plan to use recipes calling for a certain number (rather than weight) of peppers in order to achieve consistent results. Whenever possible, try to cook with mulato chilies by weight rather than number in order to avoid confusion.

This section deals with uses for mulato chilies – for information about preparing them, check the “Preparation and Storage” tab below.

Mulato chilies are an essential ingredient in many sauces, moles, soups, and more. They make frequent appearances in enchilada sauces and complex moles. They are used primarily for their flavour, though they do add some heat to the final dish as well. They are frequently pureed and added to soups and sauces. Ground or flaked mulato chilies may be used the same way, or as a condiment or late addition to dishes.

Dried mulatos can be soaked and pureed, then used in this format as a quick (and smooth) addition to sauces and soups. Likewise the flavourful liquid that results from soaking the peppers is often used as an ingredient itself, and will impart a milder version of the same hot-sweet flavour. In some cases, they’re added directly to a soup or sauce, especially if the end result is pureed.

Dried and ground or flaked mulato chilies can be used virtually anywhere that you’d used a standard chili powder, though it’s worth noting that they impart a distinctive fruity, chocolaty flavour of their own, and not a generic hot-pepper flavour.

Like most dried peppers, mulato chilies are a quite tough on their own and are generally blended or otherwise incorporated into a dish. However, there are some dishes that call for whole (softened) peppers, often stuffed.

Preparation

Mulato chilies require a low-to-moderate amount of preparation, though the particular method(s) necessary will vary from recipe to recipe. As a general rule, the stems are removed and discarded, and the pepper is sliced open to discard the seeds (though this is often optional depending on the desired heat of the final dish, as the seeds and membranes are the spiciest part of the pepper).

Mulato chilies, likes many other dried chilies, are often toasted in a dry pan to accentuate their flavour. The toasted chilies are then generally rehydrated in warm water or stock, then used (plus or minus the flavourful soaking liquid) in a recipe. The particular method necessary are usually specified in a given recipe, but these basic principles can easily be used by the cook looking to create or adapt a recipe featuring mulato chilies.

Whole mulato chilies are easily dried and pulverized in a spice grinder, food processor, or large mortar and pestle to create chili flakes. Discard the stems before crushing, and (if desired) remove the seeds for a milder end product. Ground chili powder is a little harder to achieve at home because of lingering moisture and the tough skins of the chilies, but it can be made by further drying chili flakes and running them through a good spice grinder. Do not try to grind ancho chilies without toasting/drying them first, as they generally contain enough moisture to make the end product gummy.

Storage

Mulato chilies should be stored in an airtight container to prevent them from either absorbing or losing excess moisture. Store the peppers in a cool, dark cupboard to ensure that they retain their flavour.

Ground and flaked chilies should be stored in a similar fashion.

Mulato chilies are already a highly specific variety of dried poblano pepper, and there is very little variation within them.

Poblano peppers are also dried when slightly younger to make the common (and milder) ancho chili.

Given the wealth of peppers both dried and fresh in Central and South American cuisine, it should come as little surprise that substitutes for mulato chilies are simple to find in some ways, and rather difficult in others. There are many other dried peppers – some of these make appropriate replacements, while others are far too different to be used.

The unique flavour and moderate heat of the mulato chili make it somewhat difficult to replace. The best substitute is probably the ancho chili, whose taste is similar, though somewhat less fruity. Anchos tend to have pronounced raisin and coffee tasting notes, as opposed to the strong chocolate/licorice character of the mulato.  Ancho chilies tend to be considerably milder than mulato chilies, making them a good replacement for those looking to tone down the heat in a dish.  Spice-lovers may need to add a hot pepper (an arbol chili for example) in order to achieve good results, though doing so will change the flavour profile of the dish.

Pasilla chilies are a reasonable second choice, though they more closely resemble the ancho in flavour and heat.

It’s worth noting that anchos, mulatos, and pasillas together make up the ‘Holy Trinity’ of Mexican chilies.  While they all possess similar features, each is valued for its distinctive flavour.  It therefore shouldn’t come as a surprise that Mexican cooks don’t generally treat them as interchangeable.  In fact, they’re often used in concert to great effect, lending complex and nuanced flavour to many Mexican dishes.

Ground, flaked, and whole mulato chilies are semi-interchangeable; the flavours are similar (though ground preparations are often milder), but whole anchos will lend a fruitier flavour as well as a textural element when rehydrated and added to a recipe. If you are using ground anchos, try to ensure that they’re as fresh as possible – crushed chilies begin to lose their flavour after processing. If you have the option, the best results will generally be obtained by using whole chilies that you toast and process yourself.