science

Pasilla

Pasilla is a science topic covered in the lgStudy science library. This page brings together a partial reference excerpt, illustrations, worked examples, real-world applications and a short study plan, so you can understand Pasilla rather than just read about it. In short: The pasilla chile ( pah-SEE-yuh) or chile negro is the dried form of the chilaca chili pepper, a long and narrow member of the species Capsicum annuum. Named for its dark, wrinkled skin (literally "little raisin"), it is a mild to hot, rich-flavored chile.

Key takeaways

Pasilla belongs to science; place it in that map before memorising details.
Learn the definition first, then one example that makes the definition concrete.
Connect Pasilla to a quantity you can measure, compute or draw — that is where exam questions come from.
Reproduce the core statement of Pasilla from memory before moving on to harder problems.

Reference excerpt

The pasilla chile ( pah-SEE-yuh) or chile negro is the dried form of the chilaca chili pepper, a long and narrow member of the species Capsicum annuum. Named for its dark, wrinkled skin (literally "little raisin"), it is a mild to hot, rich-flavored chile. As dried, it is generally 6 to 8 inches (15 to 20 cm) long and 1 to 1+1⁄2 inches (2.5 to 3.8 cm) in diameter. The fresh narrow chilaca can measure up to 9 inches (230 mm) long and often has a twisted shape, which is rarely apparent after drying. It turns from dark green to dark brown when fully mature. In the United States, producers and grocers sometimes incorrectly use "pasilla" to describe the poblano, a different, wider variety of pepper, the dried form of which is called an ancho if dried while green and a mulato if dried at maturity.

Use Pasilla are used especially in sauces. They are often combined with fruits and are excellent served with duck, seafood, lamb, mushrooms, garlic, fennel, honey, or oregano. They are sold whole or powdered in Mexico, the United States, and the United Kingdom. Pasilla de Oaxaca is a variety of smoked pasilla chili from Oaxaca used in mole negro.

See also Chipotle - The smoked and dried form of the jalapeño chili pepper. Guajillo - The dried form of the mirasol chili pepper. List of Capsicum cultivars

References

Further reading Kennedy, Diana. The Cuisines of Mexico (revised edition) New York: Harper & Row, 1986. Kennedy, Diana. From My Mexican Kitchen: Techniques and Ingredients. New York: Clarkson Potter/Publishers, 2003. McMahan, Jacqueline Higuera. Red & Green Chile Cookbook. Lake Hughes, CA: The Olive Press, 1992.

Illustrations

Worked examples

Example 1 — a first encounter with Pasilla

Start with the simplest possible case. Write down what Pasilla claims or describes in one sentence, then invent the smallest concrete situation in which that sentence is true. In science, the smallest case is usually a single object, a single equation or a single measurement. Check that every symbol or term in your sentence has a meaning in that case.

Example 2 — changing one variable

Take the situation from Example 1 and change exactly one quantity: double it, halve it, or set it to zero. Predict what should happen to Pasilla before you calculate. Comparing your prediction with the result is the fastest way to find out whether you understand the idea or only the words.

Example 3 — an exam-style question

Typical questions about Pasilla ask you to (a) state it precisely, (b) apply it to given data, and (c) explain a limitation. Practise writing all three answers in under five minutes; the third part is what separates a full-mark answer from an average one.

Applications of Pasilla

In research: Pasilla appears in science research whenever the underlying quantities have to be modelled precisely. Papers usually cite it as a starting assumption and then explore where it breaks down.
In technology and industry: Engineering practice reuses Pasilla in design rules, simulations and safety margins. Knowing the idea lets you read a specification sheet and understand why the numbers look the way they do.
In the classroom: Pasilla is common in secondary-school and first-year university syllabi. It links to neighbouring topics Capsicum cultivars, Chili peppers, Fruit stubs, so understanding it makes those chapters shorter.
In everyday life: Look for Pasilla outside the textbook — in sport, cooking, traffic, electronics or the sky above you. An example you found yourself is remembered far longer than one you were given.

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How to study Pasilla in 20 minutes

Read the reference excerpt below once, without taking notes.
Close the page and write down what Pasilla means in your own words.
Compare your version with the excerpt and mark what you missed.
Work through the three examples above with pen and paper.
Explain Pasilla out loud to somebody else — or to Teacher Smith in the lgStudy chat.

Frequently asked questions

What is Pasilla in simple terms?

Why does Pasilla matter?

Because it connects several science ideas at once: it gives you a definition you can apply, a quantity you can calculate, and a way to check whether a result is plausible.

How should I study Pasilla?

Read the excerpt, restate it from memory, then work through the examples and applications listed on this page. The five-step study plan above takes about twenty minutes.

What does this page cover?

It gives you a compact reference excerpt plus original lgStudy explanations, examples, applications and study material on Pasilla.