Chili powder Chili powder Chili powder (also powdered chili, chile powder or chilli powder) is the dried, pulverized fruit of one or more varieties of chili pepper, sometimes with the addition of other spices (also sometimes known as chili powder blend). It is used as a spice to add pungency or piquancy and flavor to dishes. In American English, the name is usually spelled "chili". In British English the spelling "chilli" (with two "l"s) is used consistently. Chili powder is used in many different cuisines, including American cuisine, particularly in Tex-Mex, Chinese, Indian, Korean, Mexican, Portuguese, and Thai. Chili powder blends are
Cantonese cuisine in contrast with their liberal use in other cuisines such as Sichuanese, Vietnamese, Lao, Thai and European. Garlic chives and coriander leaves are notable exceptions, although the former are often used as a vegetable and the latter are usually used as mere garnish in most dishes. In Cantonese cuisine, a number of ingredients such as sugar, salt, soy sauce, rice wine, cornstarch, vinegar, scallion and sesame oil, suffice to enhance flavour, although garlic is heavily used in some dishes, especially those in which internal organs, such as entrails, may emit unpleasant odours. Ginger, chili peppers, five-spice powder, powdered black pepper,