Help me make a great mayan mocha!

September 14, 2012 9:26 PM

Recreating a recipe for a spicy "Mayan" mocha: what kind of peppers to use?

While on vacation, I visited a Mexican restaurant that made something they called Mayan mochas. It was espresso, chocolate powder, and dried peppers broken in half and steamed in milk (then strained out)

It was quite spicy, I really liked it. The lady said they used ancho peppers (and repeated that when I called back to ask again) but I'm pretty sure she is wrong: the peppers I saw her use were 2-3" long and narrow, red cylinders with tapered ends. When I tried using dried anchos to replicate the recipe, I got a smokey, very low intensity flavor (definitely not the right taste)

Any suggestions on what peppers might actually have been in the drink? Or a good substitute?

Thanks!

posted by arnicae to Food & Drink (10 answers total)

It may help your search, may not, but, I found chipotle to be excellent in hot chocolate.
posted by The otter lady at 9:54 PM on September 14, 2012

Not sure if it's what they used at the restaurant, but putting cayenne pepper in hot cocoa is somewhat common. (I use powdered stuff, though.)
posted by needs more cowbell at 9:57 PM on September 14, 2012

My favorite chocolatier's spicy Maya claims to use cayenne and pasilla chiles.
posted by town of cats at 10:05 PM on September 14, 2012

Dried red Chimayo chile, maybe?
posted by mon-ma-tron at 10:08 PM on September 14, 2012

They sound like chile de árbol, which are really spicy (and delicious).
posted by clearlydemon at 10:14 PM on September 14, 2012

Yes, sounds like chile de arbol. To me, it's more flavorful than generic cayenne, and has a bold, coffee-like flavor when toasted.
posted by WasabiFlux at 11:27 PM on September 14, 2012

Serranos turn red and orange and are of the length, but I've never seen them used in hot chocolate. More spicy, than hot, if you know what I mean. Chipotle is great with chocolate, but involves dried jalapeños and is probably not what you're talking about. Probably Mexican chiles.
posted by Blazecock Pileon at 11:35 PM on September 14, 2012

Would love to have your recipe. - care to post?
posted by Pressed Rat at 5:38 PM on September 15, 2012

Well, I'm mostly DIY-ing it, I'll try out some of the suggestions and get back to you guys. Bear in mind I like things HOT so you may have to cut the pepper quotient by a significant amount.
posted by arnicae at 7:31 PM on September 16, 2012

I agree that it sounds a lot like chile de arbol, and I've used it with success in the past.

And thanks for posting this! I love spicy mochas and am totally going to go make one now. Steaming dried chiles in the milk is an absolutely brilliant idea that hadn't occurred to me, though I make mine iced 90% of the time so that wouldn't really work. I usually either use pre-powered chile or grind dried chiles into the chocolate I use (small chips, pastilles, or crumbles) before pouring the espresso over it. Good luck with your spicy mocha experiments, and please do share your findings!
posted by rhiannonstone at 4:40 PM on September 17, 2012