Ah, the eternal battle between “American Coke” and “Mexican Coke”….reminiscent of the Hatfields and McCoys. While our allegiances lean towards our South of the border Coke counterpart…luckily, you can get them both at Barrio!

The next logical question would then be…what is Mexican Coke? So glad you asked. Before the mid 1980’s, coca-cola used a cane sugar sweetener rather than the high-fructose corn syrup that is used today. Alas, rising costs drove U.S. bottlers to make the switch. However, Mexico still uses cane sugar with many discerning palates claiming that it has a sweeter, cleaner flavor.

Habanero Pepper

Many people ask us, “How can you guys sort out all of those chiles? How do you know which ones to use with what?” Believe us, it took a lot of research, tastings, and more than a few burned mouths to learn about all of the subtleties of flavor that these delicious fruits can bring to our cuisine here at BARRIO.

There are two main types of chiles, dried and fresh. Fresh chiles are characterized by their grassy, vegetal and under ripe flavors. They are typically used raw or roasted and then the skin is removed. The majority of the fresh chiles we use at BARRIO are green chiles, though we also use the habaneros which are orange, and fresnos, which are fire engine red.

When chiles are allowed to grow until completely ripe and then dry out on the plant itself, you have a dried chile instead of a fresh one. Dried chiles have aromas of leather and other dried fruits like raisins. Because they have been dried, and therefore the ratio of capsaicin (the compound in chiles that makes them hot) to their overall volume has increased, dried chiles are often more picante than their fresh counterparts.

When thinking of chiles, it is important to know how hot they are going to be. In Spanish, we use the word picante to describe chile heat so that it does not get confused with a dish’s actual temperature. We use what is known as the Scoville Scale to measure chile heat. Bold indicates chiles that we use or will use at Barrio.

  Scoville Rating                     Type of Pepper

• 15,000,000 - 16,000,000     Pure Capsaicin
• 2,000,000 - 5,300,000         Standard U.S. Grade Pepper Spray
• 850,000 - 1,050,000            Naga Jolokia aka Ghost Pepper (World’s Hottest Chile)
• 350,000 - 580,000               Red Savina Habanero (World’s Hottest Chile Hybrid)
• 100,000 - 350,000               Habanero, Scotch Bonnet, Jamaican Hot Peppers
• 50,000 - 100,000                 Pequin, Chiltepin, Thai Bird Chiles
• 30,000 - 50,000                   Chile de Arbol
• 10,000 - 30,000                   Cayenne, Chipotle Mora
• 5,000 - 10,000                     Serrano, Chipotle en Adobo
• 2,500 - 5,000                       Jalapeno, Guajillo, Cascabel
• 500 - 2,500                          Anaheim, Ancho, Fresno, Pasilla, Poblano
• 100 - 500                             Pepperoncini, Spanish Pimiento, Spanish Piquillo
• 0 - 100                                 Bell Peppers

Scoville units are used to measure the amount of capsaicin in the chile. This is done through a process called high performance liquid chromatography. We’re not sure how that works any more than you, but what it does provide is a scale to measure how much hotter one chile is than the other.

We hope this scale helps you determine just what dish at BARRIO you might want to taste. In future blogs we will feature specific chiles and tell you all there is to know about them.

We are pleased to announce the opening of Barrio the first week of December. Along with our new restaurant comes a fun, new blog! Barrio is Spanish for neighborhood and it is our hope that this blog becomes a true resource that provides useful information on not only the events and goings on here in our Barrio but in and around your Barrio as well.  Over the coming months and years, you can expect posts on various topics such as food and cocktail recipes, seasonal food information, fun and helpful links and local community events just to name a few.  Welcome to our Barrio!