Roasting Hatch chiles is generally one of the first steps to many Hatch chile recipes. The exterior can be waxy and hard to chew, but the flesh is oh-so-good!
Step-by-step instructions with pictures on how to roast Hatch chile peppers. Roast, peel and seed super easy!
What is the obsession with Hatch peppers? Well, they are different because in order to be Hatch, they have to come from the highly coveted area of Hatch, New Mexico.
The harvesting season is relatively short, only lasting a few weeks, so the majority of chiles are canned or frozen. You will also see some made into chile powder.
Like most peppers, the spiciness ranges greatly from mild to oh-my-gawd so you want to be careful when working with them.
Make sure you PIN How to Roast Hatch Chile Peppers!
The biggest word of advice I can give is to wear gloves! Protect your hands from the oils that can burn your skin, eyes and other areas of your body.
There are a few basic steps for roasting Hatch chile peppers. All are very easy, more time consuming than difficult.
PRO TIP: Wear non-powdered gloves while working with chiles to avoid them getting into your eye!
First comes the roasting. You can choose to do this on the grill of in the oven under the broiler, even over the flame of a gas stove, but that will take a long time.
If on the grill, place all of your chiles over direct heat and wait for them to start blistering. Turn them so the skins are evenly blistered.
If using an oven, place them on a baking sheet and under the broiler, turning occasionally so all of the skins are blistered.
Remove from heat and place into a large, airtight plastic bag. Seal tightly and wait for 15 minutes. The steam will help release the skin from flesh.
Put on your plastic gloves and start gently peeling the skin off your Hatch chiles. It should come off relatively easy, but some are going to be challenging, it is just the nature of the beast.
Using a paring knife, split the chile open and scrape out the seeds and discard the stem. Lie the chile flat and pat dry.
Some people prefer to split them open, remove the seeds and the stem before roasting, that is just a matter of preference.
Your Hatch chiles are ready to go! Use the in any recipe that calls for green chile or otherwise.
Steps for preparing chile peppers:
- Rinse and dry chile peppers.
- Char outsides, on a grill or over the flame of a gas stove. Be careful!
- Place in a plastic bag and seal to create steam.
- Remove and carefully peel off skin.
- Remove seeds.
- Rinse and drain.
- Pay dry.
- Place in a airtight plastic bag, remove as much air as possible.
- Seal and freeze for up to 1 year.
Here are some of my favorite Hatch Chile Recipes:
Green Chile Chicken Lasagna
Creamy Hot Corn Dip
If you aren’t using them in a recipe right away, here is how to freeze Hatch chile peppers!
Lay your chile peppers flat and pat dry so they aren’t drenched. Place in airtight plastic bags in a single layer so there isn’t much air.
I like to pack mine in bags with about as much as I would need for a recipe, so 3-4 chiles per bag. I also label them with how hot they were.
Squeeze as much air out of the plastic bag as possible and then close and freeze. It’s that easy to freeze chile peppers!
How to Roast Hatch Chile Peppers
Ingredients
Instructions
- First comes the roasting. You can choose to do this on the grill of in the oven under the broiler, even over the flame of a gas stove, but that will take a long time. If on the grill, place all of your chiles over direct heat and wait for them to start blistering. Turn them so the skins are evenly blistered.
- If using an oven, place them on a baking sheet and under the broiler, turning occasionally so all of the skins are blistered.
- Remove from heat and place into a large, airtight plastic bag. Seal tightly and wait for 15 minutes. The steam will help release the skin from flesh.
- Put on your plastic gloves and start gently peeling the skin off your Hatch chiles. It should come off relatively easy, but some are going to be challenging, it is just the nature of the beast.
- Using a paring knife, split the chile open and scrape out the seeds and discard the stem. Lie the chile flat and pat dry.
- Some people prefer to split them open, remove the seeds and the stem before roasting, that is just a matter of preference.
- Your Hatch chiles are ready to go! Use the in any recipe that calls for green chile or otherwise.
Is there a way to roast the hatch Chile in an insta pot.
You can probably steam them, but they won’t be roasted because you aren’t using actual fire.
Thanks Jessica. In one of your steps 7 you have pay dry but I got the message 🙂
Fantastic tutorial! I will absolutely use all your advises next time i will roast hatch chili peppers.
Thank you! Glad we could help!
OMG I love hatch chile season. You can never get enough of their deliciousness. Thanks for all the tips on how to properly roast them.
Me too! Happy roasting!