Right now is one of the favorite times of year for residents of the desert Southwest — when green chilis are freshly roasted and sold in the parking lots of grocery stores and farmers markets.
In Flagstaff, Ariz., chilis are being roasted at the Flagstaff Farmers Market on Route 66, and customers are buying the final product by the caseload for $25. The chilis (also often spelled chiles) come by the semi-load from the fabled chili town of Hatch, N.M.
According to the Arizona Daily Sun:
On top of the roasting platform, and among box-upon-box of fresh chiles, Wagner, with the help of his nephew, works the iron roasting drum seven days a week. The stand produces and sells an average of 100 cases of roasted chiles per day, equating to around 10,000 pounds of chiles each week.
“This has been a great season with a lot of rain in Hatch,” Wagner said. “People have been coming from Phoenix and leaving with 10 cases of our chiles.”
The abundance of rain has also allowed Wagner to chalk an addition to the menu.
“We normally have four options: mild, medium, hot and extra hot, but this season we are selling a limited amount of triple-hot, something we haven’t offered for three years,” Wagner said.
Dick Chingadero, who writes for the Albuquerque-based Duke City Fix blog, said a few weeks ago:
I think I love the smell of fresh roasted chile more than I love eating them even. Ai DIos Mio! If someone could only bottle that scent! I’ve often toyed with the idea of just buying a bag and driving around with it in my trunk, enjoying the slowly released fragrance, that smoky goodness with the tantalizing tang of scorched capsaicin.
And now you may understand why roasted chilis are a favorite condiment or side dish in the Southwest. It’s as common in Route 66 diners there as ketchup and mustard.
UPDATE: Here’s a video from Albuquerque showing how the roasting is done: