Most people think of jalapeños as those firm, bright green peppers you grab at the grocery store–but here’s a fun fact: a fully ripe jalapeño is actually red.
From deep green to fiery red (and even smoky chipotle), each stage of a jalapeño’s ripening tells a story of changing flavour, heat, and chemistry. Let’s walk through it.
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Stage 1: Dark Green–The Early Days
When jalapeños first form, they’re a deep, dark green. At this point, they’re still immature and loaded with chlorophyll, which gives them their rich colour and crisp, vegetal taste.
You won’t usually see peppers this dark on store shelves, growers tend to wait until the next stage for better texture and storage life. But if you do spot one, expect a sharper, slightly more bitter flavour.
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Stage 2: Lighter Green–The Classic Jalapeño
As the pepper ripens, chlorophyll begins to break down, and other pigments start developing. This shifts the colour to a lighter green, softens the flavour, and reduces the bitterness.
This is the stage most people are familiar with, the one most often found in supermarkets and used for everything from nachos to poppers. It’s crisp, moderately spicy, and reliably flavourful.
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Stage 3: The Stretch Marks (Corking)
Ever noticed those little white lines or stretch marks on some jalapeños? That’s called corking.
Corking happens when the pepper grows rapidly and its skin can’t expand fast enough to keep up. It’s completely natural and often considered a sign of quality. In fact, some chili lovers see it as a badge of honour, a hint that the pepper may be hotter and more mature than a smooth-skinned one.
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Stage 4: Red–Fully Ripe and Sweet
When a jalapeño turns red, it’s reached full maturity.
At this stage, the plant is producing more natural sugars, deepening both the colour and the flavour. The result? A sweeter, richer taste that balances beautifully with the lingering heat.
The red hue comes from pigments like capsanthin, which replace the fading green chlorophyll. And while the red jalapeños often taste hotter, their capsaicin (the compound that gives chili peppers heat) actually peaks right as they begin turning red, then gradually levels off.
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Stage 5: Red with Corking–Peak Jalapeño
A red jalapeño with visible corking is about as mature and flavour-packed as it gets. These peppers are often used for making chipotle, because the combination of sweetness, heat, and thickness makes them perfect for smoking and drying.
Think of this as the jalapeños final for–bold, complex, and bursting with personality.
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Stage 6: Chipotle–The Smoky Transformation
Here’s a little surprise for a lot of people: chipotle isn’t its own pepper variety.
It’s actually a fully ripe, red jalapeño that’s been smoked and dried. The smoking process adds depth, transforms the texture, and gives that signature earthy, smoky-sweet flavour we love in BBQ sauces, rubs, and marinades.
So the next time you taste something ‘chipotle flavoured,’ remember you’re enjoying the final evolution of a humble jalapeño.
From Green to Red to Smoke
From dark green and grassy to red and sweet–and finally smoky and bold–every jalapeño tells a story of transformation.
Each stage brings its own character:
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Dark green: Sharp and vegetal
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Light green: Balanced and classic
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Corked: Hotter, more mature
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Red: Sweet, deep flavour
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Chipotle: Smoky, rich, and preserved perfection
So next time you reach for a jalapeño, you’ll know exactly what you’re getting, and maybe appreciate that little pepper’s journey just a bit more
