If you are one of the many people out there who asks, “what is the difference between chiltepin vs. Pequin hot pepper? “Well, you are in the right place. This blog will give you a clear and concise explanation of these two popular hot peppers.
Chiltepins chilies are round and small peppers, while pequins are a bit bigger, have more of a lengthened shape, and are pointed at the end.
Chiltepin plants only grow 36 inches tall, while Pequin plants grow taller than chiltepin up to four feet.
Chiltepin vs. Pequin: Hot Peppers Overview

Pequin vs. chiltepin, these hot peppers puzzle many of us because of their resemblances. The Chiltepin hot peppers are also popular in the name of chile tepin or bird peppers. This is because birds love this small chili and scatter their seeds.
Pequin chili peppers, on the other hand, are also called Piquin peppers. The name comes from the Spanish word Pequeno or small in English.
There are a lot of resemblances in their sizes, which are hotter, chiltepin, or Pequin. What are disparities? In my research, I will answer all these queries and many others.
Short and Quick Comparison Between Chiltepin vs. Pequin
Texas announced chiltepin as the official native pepper of the state in 1997. The chiltepin has a round, small shape, while the pequin is larger and more pointed. Also, it includes the chile pequin, which is puzzling.
Chiltepin vs Pequin: Origin

Aztec pepper is the earliest chili chiltepin. It might have been the first hot pepper which all others developed from chiltepin is the sole native chili to the US and can be found wild on the border of Mexico and the US. It is confined and protected in many national parks as it is the sole native chili in the US.
Yaqui and O’ Odham communities also utilize these hot peppers in northern Mexico and Arizona. Native Americans used chiltepins to cure stomach issues and, topically, treat muscle pain.
Pequin hot chilis are native to Mexico, particularly Tabasco. Notably, the small chilies are utilized in preparing Cholula, a famous Mexican Jalisco sauce.
Chiltepin vs. Pequin: Which is Spicier?
Chiltepin is almost always spicier than its pequin counterparts. Chiltepin peppers have 50,000 up to 100,0 00 SHU; this puts this chili at the lower end for scorching peppers and restricts the size of habanero, which is 350,000 SHU. You can easily double the hotness of cayenne pepper.
Pequin hot chillis are a bit tender than chiltepin and have hotness of 40,000 up to 60,000 SHU. The beetle is put on top of the peppers at medium heat. It’s spicier than cayenne pepper, so never let the contrast with chiltepin fool your mind into thinking there is no heat. Still, it is pretty plentiful.
Which is Popular, Chiltepin or Pequin?
These hot peppers are measured based on how often they have been searched over the net internationally. The outcomes of evaluating all common names are remarkably the same.
Chiltepin peppers hold a bit of an advantage regarding popularity, with about 17,000 worldwide searches a month. Next is pequin, with nearly 15,000 international searches a month.
These two hot peppers are moderately popular in general. These two hot peppers aren’t as well-liked as the most preferred hot peppers that can get more than 300,000.00 searches a month. On the other hand, there are a lot of chilies that come closer to these names.
Chiltepin vs. Pequin: What is the Difference in Terms of Taste
Chiltepin hot peppers are renowned worldwide for their hot, spicy, fruity taste. Many chili lovers also detect smoky and earthy notes in their flavor profiles. Pequin chili, on the other hand, is characterized by a different citrus flavor and a stronger fruitiness than spicy chiltepin.
Chili pequin greens have a peppery flavor with hints of citrus and smoke. The peak flavors of this pepper come once they reach their ripe red hue. Red pequin chili has a natural smokiness that sometimes makes them taste a bit nutty. Also, the taste is rich in citrus fruitiness. Identical to chiltepin hot peppers, they have similar tastes; however, when it comes to fruitiness, pequin stands out.
Chiltepin vs. Pequin: What is the Difference in Terms of Colors and Shapes?
These two hot peppers can be mystified by one another due to the same appearance or look. It is common to label pequins with chiltepins wrongly. Chiltepin hot peppers look like a berry. Some are more oval. Even if the chiltepins are brilliantly reddish, you can eat them either green or ripe.
Pequin hot peppers have prolonged legs but can grow ½ inch in length. The average size of penguin chili is ¾ inches, even if some can grow as much as an inch. You can eat green and red pequin.
What are the Rarest Hot Peppers?
Fresh chiltepins are hard to find in grocery stores in the US. These fresh hot peppers aren’t likely to be purchased in grocery stores unless you are in Mexico.
Some grocery stores in Mexico might offer fresh peppers. The Mexico-Texas border is the perfect place to look for chiltepin.
Chiltepin vs. Pequin: What are My Preferred Hot Peppers?
My personal choice will always be Tepin or popularly called chiltepin; this is a hand-harvested hot pepper, round, hollow, and a little bit smaller than a dime. This almost weightless hot pepper grows wild in the mountain parts of the Mexico and US border. It is frequently found centering Sonoran tables with a shaped Ironwood chiltepin grinder adjacent to them.
While many people enjoy and love it crushed and sprinkled over ice cream, I choose to keep it savory. I add 1 or 2 crushed hot peppers to my soup or a spoonful of chiles to my basic salsa dish to