16 Best JalapeГ±o Substitutes for Cooking

If you don’t have any on hand, knowing the best jalapeño substitutes to use in your cooking can come in useful. Whether you cook this spicy ingredient down in a sauce, add it as a garnish or use it as a star ingredient, there’s at least one substitute for jalapeño that will work for your recipe. 

From cayenne pepper to Anaheim peppers and even hot sauce, keep reading for a curated list of the top jalapeño substitutes for every type of recipe and heat level preference.

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• What Is the Purpose of Jalapeño in Cooking?
• 16 Great Jalapeño Pepper Substitutes

What Is the Purpose of Jalapeño in Cooking?

The jalapeño pepper is a key ingredient in spicy dishes of all kinds, including sauces, curries, dips like guasacaca and appetizers like jalapeño poppers. Jalapeño is often used as a garnish as well and can even be enjoyed pickled or added to baked goods like cornbread or jalapeño cheddar sourdough bread. Using jalapeño in a dish is a great way to add heat, creating a vibrant meal with a kick of flavor for whoever dares to try it. 

If you’re feeling inspired to learn more about the versatility of using jalapeños in your cooking, check out one of the many cooking classes near you. These professional chef-led sessions will teach you how to make an array of jalapeño-based dishes, from sauces and curries to those that get a boost from a spicy jalapeño garnish. To improve your culinary skills from the comfort of your own home, you can also book online cooking classes.

16 Great Jalapeño Pepper Substitutes 

1. Serrano Peppers

First up on our list of the best jalapeño substitutes is serrano peppers. These peppers are thinner in size and texture compared to jalapeños and a bit more spicy, coming in at 10,000 to 25,000 Scoville units to jalapeño’s 2,500 to 8,000 Scoville units. This added heat makes serrano peppers a great alternative in recipes that call for jalapeños as a flavorful way to add spiciness. 

Use serrano peppers when you’re looking to add an energetic kick to your dish via a garnish or by cooking the pepper down and blending it into a sauce. However, this isn’t a good alternative if you want to use the pepper itself as a main part of the dish, for example, by stuffing it. This is because the thinness of serrano peppers makes it difficult to use as a base for stuffed pepper recipes.

2.  Hot Sauce 

Next on our list of jalapeño substitutes is hot sauce. With many different types of hot sauce available, you’re sure to find a kind that works for your dish. You’ll even have the added benefit of choosing extra flavors and notes, creating a new complexity to your dish that couldn’t have been achieved with jalapeños on their own, for example, by subbing jalapeño for a spicy and tangy mango habanero hot sauce.  

Liquid jalapeño substitutes like hot sauce will also give you more precision in how spicy your dish is. This alternative can be used in place of jalapeño as a garnish on top of dishes like nachos or tacos or as an addition to spicy salsa or other cooked sauce. 

3. Cayenne Pepper Powder 

Another great option when it comes to jalapeño substitutes is cayenne pepper powder. As a dry ingredient, this option stores well and is long-lasting, making it more convenient to keep around than fresh peppers or even hot sauce. 

While you’ll miss out on the texture of a fresh pepper, this jalapeño pepper substitute still adds a suitable amount of spice to your dish in a pinch. Fun fact: fresh cayenne peppers are even spicier than jalapeños! So, to make an accurate substitution, use only half a teaspoon of cayenne pepper per one jalapeño in your recipe. 

4. Paprika

Ground paprika pepper is another great choice when it comes to jalapeño substitutes. This ingredient comes in a few options, including sweet, hot and smoked. Each option varies in spice level and adds a distinct complexity to your recipe. As the name suggests, hot paprika powder is the spiciest, making it one of the best jalapeño substitutes if you’re looking to add a lot of heat to your dishes. 

Still, paprika isn’t naturally as spicy as jalapeños so you’ll need to use more to get to the spice level you’re looking for. Ideally, this is a great alternative for recipes that call for one whole jalapeño, with around a teaspoon of paprika sufficing as a replacement for one jalapeño. 

5. Anaheim Peppers 

Try Anaheim peppers as your next choice when it comes to jalapeño substitutes. This pepper looks strikingly similar to jalapeños in shade and sheen but is less spicy overall, falling at around 500 to 1,500 units on the Scoville scale. This pepper is great for those who prefer a milder kick in their recipes while still maintaining the texture and body of a fresh jalapeño pepper. 

One of the best uses of this alternative is to use them the next time you’re making stuffed peppers for guests who might be more sensitive to spice. Overall, Anaheims are a fantastic option as a milder substitute for jalapeños and work in almost all recipes that call for fresh jalapeño. 

6. Poblano Peppers 

Another great jalapeño substitute is the poblano pepper. This dark green pepper is similar to Anaheims in terms of spice, which means they’re also much milder compared to jalapeños. In recipes, poblanos are often used raw as a garnish for added crunch and cooked for flavor in dishes like stuffed peppers. 

As far as jalapeño substitutes go, poblanos are larger peppers with similar-sized walls that make them perfect for stuffed pepper dishes and other recipes that rely on a fresh jalapeño’s texture. You can also use them if you want to add smoky and less spicy notes to recipes that usually call for jalapeños. 

7. Bell Peppers 

When you’re looking for jalapeño substitutes that are fresh but not spicy, bell peppers are the ones to choose. These types of sweet peppers come in gorgeous colors like green, red, orange or yellow, adding vibrant shades to your dishes. 

Opting for this substitute for jalapeño is a great way to make a non-spicy version of a traditionally spicy dish since the pepper lacks heat entirely (bell peppers come in at zero on the Scoville scale!) To take things up a notch or retain some kind of spicy flavor, you can add pepper powder like paprika or cayenne or even pair hot sauce with bell peppers in your recipe. 

8. Fresno Peppers 

Fresno peppers are the same pepper family as jalapeño, making them a great jalapeño substitute. These red variations are almost the same in terms of spice level, making them the best alternative to use if you’re focused on replicating the spicy flavor of your dish. 

However, dishes that depend on the color of jalapeños may take a turn for the worse since this red shade can quickly turn brown after cooking. Instead, Fresno peppers are often used as an alternative in jalapeño recipes that call for a full pepper, such as tasty jalapeño poppers. For a near-identical jalapeño substitute besides its hue, Fresno peppers are the way to go and can be substituted in a 1:1 ratio. 

9.  Pickled Jalapeños 

For those eager to maintain a lot of the flavor of jalapeño peppers, there’s no jalapeño substitute like actual pickled jalapeños. This ingredient is made by taking the original pepper and soaking it in vinegar, saltwater brine or another kind of acidic liquid to help preserve it. 

Pickled jalapeños can be found pre-sliced in jars in the condiment section in most grocery stores or you can pickle fresh jalapeños yourself. Along with being a great sandwich ingredient in dishes like buttermilk chicken sandwiches, they work perfectly as a garnish. 

Whether you add them to pulled pork nachos or sweet potato black bean tacos, these spicy yet slightly sweet and sour pickles will add that classic jalapeño heat with a twist. The fact that pickled jalapeños are preserved also makes them very handy as a longer-lasting version of fresh jalapeños that you can always have in your kitchen. 

10. Chipotle Peppers 

For a sweet and smoky alternative when it comes to jalapeño substitutes, try its dried counterpart: chipotle peppers. This version is simply made of smoked and dried jalapeños, which helps maintain their spice level and adds an intricate note of smokiness that can elevate your next dish entirely. 

You can purchase chipotle peppers in many forms, including canned chipotle, chipotle paste and chipotle powder, and there are also lots of chipotle substitutes if you can’t find a chipotle product at the store. For recipes that rely on the spice but not the texture of jalapeños, this jalapeño substitute is the one to pick. 

11. Habanero Peppers 

Habanero peppers may seem like the opposite of solid jalapeño substitutes with their small orange bodies and bell-like shape, but they’re actually quite up to the task. At 40 times the spice of a mild jalapeño, it’s safe to say that they’re more than suitable if you use jalapeños to add a spicy hit to your cooking. 

Make sure to adjust your recipes accordingly when using this super-spicy alternative. As you need around five jalapeños as a substitute for one habanero, you’ll only need about a fifth of one of these hot peppers to replace a full jalapeño. This spicy pepper also works best in cooked-down sauces — it definitely isn’t a candidate for stuffed pepper recipes! 

12. Canned Chiles 

For those who want jalapeño substitutes that have been preserved and are easy to store for months on end, canned green or red chiles are the ones to look for during your next grocery trip. These peppers have a pleasantly mild heat level compared to jalapeños while still maintaining a lovely green shade and an almost bouncy texture. 

However, beware that the preserving process takes away the crunch that comes with a fresh pepper. Certain canned chiles even have added spices which will help add even more nuance to your favorite jalapeño-inspired dish. This is an especially great jalapeño substitute for recipes that require roasted jalapeños and works perfectly in sauces and curries. 

13. Red Pepper Flakes 

Red pepper flakes are another of the best jalapeño substitutes that’s easy to keep on hand at all times. This ingredient is made with smoked red peppers that are dried and crushed into flakes. Their vibrant red shade adds life to any dish. 

The general rule here is to use a quarter teaspoon per whole jalapeño. This jalapeño pepper substitute looks great as a garnish and can be added to cooked dishes for extra heat. And of course, you can adjust the amount you add according to preference. 

14. Banana Peppers 

Choose banana peppers as a substitute for your jalapeño-based recipe if you’re looking to achieve a milder spice level while taking advantage of the texture and crunch found in a fresh pepper. These can be substituted equally, so one banana pepper would equal one jalapeño.

Those who know their nightshades will know that banana peppers are also similar to pepperoncini, and therefore may be wondering whether the two can be used interchangeably as jalapeño substitutes. They can, provided you consider the spice levels of pepperoncini vs. banana peppers. While jalapeños remain hotter than both types, pepperoncini peppers are slightly spicier than banana peppers, which is worth bearing in mind.

If you're really not a fan of hot food, stick with banana peppers — their similar shape and added tanginess make them just right for recipes like keto jalapeño poppers. This is definitely one of the best jalapeño substitutes if you’re looking for a similar texture with a lighter green color that’s pleasing to the eye and sure to add a lightness to any dish. 

15. Cubanelle Peppers

Another great low-spice substitute for jalapeños is Cubanelle peppers. These larger peppers have a similar shape and size to poblano peppers and are an ideal alternative to jalapeños if you’re looking for a pepper you can stuff. 

They also work well chopped and added to dishes. However, Cubanelle peppers won’t add as much heat as chopped jalapeños because they only sit at around 500 to 1,000 units on the Scoville scale. 

16. Thai Chili Peppers 

Our last jalapeño substitute on the list is the almighty Thai chili pepper. These tiny peppers pack a punch that’s four times stronger than your average jalapeño. Due to this, the typical substitute is one Thai chili pepper for every four jalapeños called for. Therefore, if your recipe needs one jalapeño, you'll only want a quarter of a Thai chili pepper to achieve the same heat level.

Notably, the heat of these peppers makes them a perfect addition to curries and dipping sauces. Make sure to be careful when working with this pepper; it’s a fantastic jalapeño substitute when used correctly, but it's easy to over-use if you’re not paying enough attention. 

With so many options when it comes to jalapeño substitutes, you’ll never have to worry about what to do if you don’t have jalapeños on hand. These alternatives make it easy to transform a dish into exactly what you’re looking for in terms of spice, texture and appearance. Even if you have jalapeños in your kitchen, testing out some of these substitutes is an excellent idea to add a twist to your favorite spicy recipes.

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