Chimayo comes from a little town just outside of Santa Fe that grows this specific chile and also happens to have this fantastic restaurant, Rancho de Chimayo, that seems to have come right out of one of my favorite TV shows, Northern Exposure.

If you want to know more about Pittsburgh-style sandwiches and their chief purveyor, check out the Web site for Primanti Brothers Deli

And for the record, I double the spice amounts for my personal stock. They make a pretty mean carne adovada themselves.

While the state boast many fine gourmet shops, the biggest boost to finding a greater variety of chiles falls squarely on the rise in the Hispanic population. There are markets that specialize in Hispanic imports statewide.

That said, I go straight to the source: Pendery’s in Dallas/Ft. Worth.

Pendery’s claims to be the birthplace of chile blending, what we now call chile powder. I have visited their retail store in Ft. Worth dozens of times, and I’ve been shopping with them online for years. Not once have I been unable to find the chile I’m looking for.

What they don’t have is fresh chiles. As I mentioned, the rise of Hispanic markets has  increased availabilty of poblano peppers as well as a larger supply of jalapenos, serranos and habaneros.

To read about Pendery’s history and check out their supply, go to www.penderys.com.