Recipes that ask for Green and Red Chilies: What kind of chilies are they talking about!?

Question

I have a thai cookbook and it says several times throughout the cookbook to use green chilies (for a green curry) or it will ask for red chilies (in red curries or other recipes).

What chilies are they talking about? When I go to my local farmer's market they have fresh green peppers but none that are labeled "Green chilies". They have Pablano, Serrano, Jalapeno, Hot Long Finger Peppers ( all of these are green colored chilies).

I made a recipe for a green curry and I used "Pablano" chilies for the "green chilies" it was asking for. I know Pablanos are mild for peppers, I'm not sure if that's what the recipe wanted since it was implying that the dish would be hot. I've always been confused about this but didn't remember to ask anyone.

Your help is greatly appreciated!

Answer

Here's a website with a great discription of many peppers with pictures
http://www.cayennediane.com/BigListofPeppers/Big-List-of-peppers.html

Answer

The Cook's Thesaurus is another great reference which gives substitutes and descriptions for chili peppers but all sorts of other ingredients as well. 

http://www.foodsubs.com/Chilefre.html

Poblanos would not be used in Indian cuisine, it's native to Mexico. Cayenne chilies would have been a better substitute.

Answer

I sometimes find both red and green jalapeno peppers in my local market. Whole Foods sometimes carries the Thai chilies.

Answer

I think Serranos would be your closest substitute

Answer

My own sense is that chiles in curries are cooked down enough that their basic heat level matters more than the specific character of the chiles (excepting some larger and/or smoked types, like chipotles and poblanos). 

Thai chiles are easy to grow, and that's one good summer project. The "bird chiles" are short and grow hanging downward, while another variety of Thai chile is longer, looks a bit like a short cayenne, and grows upward. I find them to be pretty much the same, and while their heat level varies according to growing conditions, they are usually somewhere between serrano and habanero level. I'd reach first for a serrano or cayenne to substitute. (Serranos, by the way, also turn red when allowed to ripen that far, but they seem generally to be marketed in their green state, which is, I think, hotter than when red.)

Answer

Go with serranos. Heatwise, they aren't too far off from the Asian style green chillies. I use serranos for my Asian and Indian cooking because I can find them everywhere. If I happen to go to my local Indian market, then I pick up the green and red thai chillies, which are hotter than the serranos. If I need fresh red chillies, I have to use red jalepenos or red fresnos as that's all I can find here. I'm planning on growing my own red chillies this year.

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Recipes that ask for Green and Red Chilies: What kind of chilies are they talking about!?

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