What Is Ancho powder and How Can I Use It?
Ancho powder rewards a little know-how: how to choose it, cook it, store it, and substitute in a pinch. Browse 13 recipes to cook with it.
Key Points
- Ancho powder is ground dried poblano, deep red with raisin, prune and chocolate notes.
- It is about flavor, not heat, sitting near a mild 1,000 to 2,000 Scoville units.
- Bloom it in oil for about 30 seconds so the fruity depth opens up.
- It is the base of chili con carne, mole and Tex-Mex spice rubs.
- Closest swaps are home-ground anchos, pasilla or mulato; plain paprika misses the depth.
What is ancho powder?
Ancho powder is ground ancho chiles, the dried form of the ripe poblano pepper. The fresh pepper is green and mild; dried, it turns deep brick-red and wrinkled, and ground, it becomes a soft, dark powder that smells of raisin, prune and chocolate.
This is the workhorse chile of Mexican cooking. It carries real flavor with only gentle heat, somewhere around 1,000 to 2,000 Scoville units, milder than a jalapeno.
That mild, fruity character is exactly why it forms the base of so many mole and chili recipes rather than a top note of fire.
Cooking With Ancho Powder
Like all ground chiles, ancho powder wakes up with a little heat and fat. Bloom it for 30 seconds in oil with your onions and garlic before adding liquid, and the raisiny depth opens up instead of staying dusty and flat.
It is the soul of a real chili con carne and Tex-Mex rubs, lending body and color without scorching. You will see it earning that role in Tunisian Chili-Crusted Beef and on a Spice Rubbed Pork Tenderloin With Roasted Baby Carrots.
Its fruity, cocoa side also plays in sweets, which is how it lands in Anco Chili Devil's Food Cupcakes with Roasted Macadamias, and it brings warmth to griddle cakes like Ancho Red-Onion Flapjacks.
Pairing and Common Mistakes
Ancho is a team player. It sits well with cumin, oregano, garlic, cinnamon, cocoa and other dried chiles like guajillo and chipotle, and it loves beef, pork, beans and tomato.
The biggest mistake is treating it like cayenne and using it to add heat. Ancho is about flavor, not fire, so a spoonful that would be punishing in cayenne is mild and sweet here. Build flavor with ancho, then dial heat separately with a hotter chile.
The second is scorching it. Ground chile burns fast in a dry hot pan, turning bitter in seconds. Keep the heat moderate and add fat, stirring constantly through that brief bloom.
What to Use Instead
For the closest match, toast whole dried ancho chiles lightly and grind your own; the flavor is brighter than any jar. Pasilla or mulato powder are the nearest cousins, both dark and mild with similar fruit.
Standard chili powder is a blend that usually leans on ancho already, so it stands in for color and body. Just remember it carries added cumin, garlic and salt that will change the seasoning.
Plain paprika covers the color and mild sweetness but misses the raisiny depth, and ordinary cayenne or red pepper flakes are far hotter and not a fair swap.
Buying and Storing Ancho Powder
Buy it from the Mexican or spice aisle, or grind whole anchos at home for the most flavor. Good ancho powder is deep red-brown and still smells fruity and sweet through the jar; pale, faded powder has already lost much of its punch.
Like every ground spice, ancho fades with light, heat and air.
Store the jar airtight in a cool, dark cupboard, away from the stove, where it holds its character for six months to a year.
If it has gone dull brown and smells of nothing but dust, it is past its prime; toss it and start fresh, or simply use more to compensate.
Nutrition
Nutrition Facts
Serving Size 1 pepper (17g)Quick facts
Food group: Ancho powder is a member of the Vegetables and Vegetable Products US Department of Agriculture nutritional food group.
- In Chinese
- 安乔粉
- British (UK) term
- Ancho powder
- en français
- poudre ancho
- en español
- polvo de ancho
How much does ancho powder weigh?
| Amount | Weight |
|---|---|
| 1 pepper | 17 grams |
Related
Vegetables and Vegetable Products
Recipes using ancho powder
There are 13 recipes that contain this ingredient.
Butterflied Cornish Hens Rubbed with Lemon Garlic Butter
Butterflied Cornish game hens grilled with ancho chile and finished with a bold lemon garlic compound butter. Impressive enough for company, simple enough for any night.
Tunisian Chili-Crusted Beef
Filet mignon rolled in crushed coriander, white peppercorns, ancho chili, and cumin, then seared hard for a fragrant North African spice crust. Serve sliced with tomato jam and tahini yogurt for a 15-minute showstopper.
Ancho Red-Onion Flapjacks
Smoky ancho-spiced cornbread flapjacks studded with sweet red onions and spiked with beer for the ultimate chili side that soaks up every drop of sauce.
Grilled Squid with Sweet & Sour Cucumber, Corn & Vidali
Grilled squid tossed with a sweet and sour cucumber salad, grilled corn, and Vidalia onions in a mustard seed and ancho vinegar marinade. A bold, restaurant-quality summer dish.
Chile Seared Cervena Venison with (See Full Title Below)
Chile Seared Cervena Venison with (See Full Title Below) recipe
Santa Fe Black Bean Cake
Santa Fe black bean cakes made from scratch with dried black beans, bacon, serrano chiles, ancho powder, and cumin. Pan-fried until crisp and served with sour cream and salsa.
Shellfish & Chicken Paella
Grilled paella with chicken thighs, lobster, shrimp, scallops, mussels, clams, and chorizo over curry-turmeric rice with ancho powder. A show-stopping one-platter feast.
Grilled Beef Tenderloin with Ground Chiles
Add a spicy taste to your beef tenderloin with this delicious recipe that's very easy to use.
Grilled Beef Tenderloin with Western Bbq Sauce
Grilled beef tenderloin gets seared hot then finished indirect, basted with a vinegar-and-ancho Western BBQ mop. Spicy Texas-style barbecue sauce with cumin and Tabasco for medium-rare results.
Spice Rubbed Pork Tenderloin With Roasted Baby Carrots
Pork tenderloin rubbed with oregano, cumin, ancho chile, and smoked paprika, seared golden then roasted alongside honey-glazed baby carrots with jalapeño and garlic. A smoky, one-pan dinner for six.
Spice Rubbed Pork Tenderloin With Roasted Baby Carrots
Pork tenderloin rubbed with oregano, cumin, ancho chile, and smoked paprika, seared golden then roasted alongside honey-glazed baby carrots with jalapeño and garlic. A smoky, one-pan dinner for six.
Anco Chili Devil's Food Cupcakes with Roasted Macadamias
[Note: Bobby Flay, chef of NYC's Mesa Grill, prepared this dessert for a Meals on Wheels benefit meal at the Frontera Grill in Chicago
