Welcome to Chili Pepper Madness, where spicy food is always on the menu. We are here to bring you easy-to-follow recipes you can make at home whenever you want, and as SPICY as you want, too.
Hey there, I’m Mike! (Also known as the guy behind Chili Pepper Madness!)
I’m a 3-time cookbook author and lifelong chilihead who’s been obsessed with bold, spicy flavors for as long as I can remember. Together with my wife, Patty, I’ve built Chili Pepper Madness into a go-to resource for anyone who loves adding a kick of heat or bold flavor to their cooking.
My goal is simple: to show you how to take everyday ingredients and turn them into exciting, flavor-packed dishes you’ll love to make and share.
Whether you’re a fan of fiery heat or just a hint of spice, I’ve got recipes, pro tips, and proven techniques to help you bring bold flavors to life in your kitchen. I’m here to help you grow as a cook and maybe as a chilihead, too!
I’m constantly inspired by the incredible ways chili peppers and other vibrant ingredients are used around the world, from comforting American classics with a spicy twist to global cuisines like Thai, Sichuan, and Caribbean, and many other countries.
Every recipe on Chili Pepper Madness is developed, tested, styled, and photographed by me (with help from Patty in the Photography department!) I don’t hire this out like so many other recipe sites. No way! I love bringing my passion for spice to your life! Learn more about my philosophy and how I test all of my recipes.
I started this site over 25 years ago, long before food blogs were a thing, as a way to share my love of chili peppers and hot sauce. It was originally called Jalapeno Madness, but we’ve evolved and we’ve been growing and growing ever since.
We now have millions of visits every month, nearly 200K followers on Pinterest, 176K+ on Facebook, 58K+ on Instagram, and 230K+ on YouTube. I love connecting with you all!
I was even the YouTube Creator of the Day and have a silver plaque from YouTube! How awesome is that?
Patty and I made the move from Chicago, IL, to Charlotte, NC, where we’ve been exploring Southern food and BBQ, adding even more depth to our love of spicy cuisine.
We make it a point to travel frequently to study and experience food from around the world. We’ve been all over the United States, the Caribbean, Mexico, Spain, Hungary, Brazil, Argentina, Australia, Hawaii, even Antarctica!
Everywhere we go we seek out culinary knowledge in the form of cooking classes, food tours, and events, all in search of delicious cuisine so I can share what I learn with you.
Whether you’re a seasoned cook or just getting started, I’m here to help you level up your cooking game.
Let’s get spicy together! Check out my Recipe Index with over 1,000 recipes and dive into the world of bold, exciting flavors.
Features
I am proud to have been featured on YouTube Creator of the Day, WGN News, the Dishing Podcast, and Chile Pepper Magazine, where I was a writer for years.
I’ve been featured on CNN, NY Times, Buzzfeed, Taste of Home, Delish, PopSugar, SheKnows, and Parade.
I’ve also been featured by some fellow food bloggers including Recipe Tin Eats, Tastes Better from Scratch, Salt and Lavender and Downshiftology.
What You'll Find at Chili Pepper Madness
- Lots of Easy Recipes. Some recipes take a while to make and require a certain number of steps, but that isn't my focus. You'll find many recipes you can make in 30 minutes or so and don't require a ton of ingredients.
- Customizable Heat Levels. My recipes are spicy, sure, but I do my best to show you how to adjust them to your own preferred heat and spice level. We believe that flavor is the most important thing, not just heat.
- Dishes from Around the World. Spicy food can be found all over the world, and I just love to learn about it. Thai cuisine has some of the hottest food in the world, as does Chinese cuisine, particularly from the Sichuan region. But I follow the spices and peppers all over, from Asia to South America and anywhere I can follow.
- Classic American Dishes. America has so much to offer when it comes to food, especially spicy food with big flavor. You'll find Cajun cooking (a favorite!), dishes from the American south such as BBQ, low country cooking and more, regional favorites and anything I think you'll love.
- Chili Peppers! I am so obsessed with chili peppers, hence the name of the site. I grow a big variety every year, from milder sweet peppers to the hottest of the superhots. And I cook with them all. You'll find a big list of chili pepper types, preserving information, growing information and more so you can seriously rock the garden and make your own unique recipes and spices from scratch.
- Superhot Recipes. Yes, I have many recipes for those chiliheads at the top of the scale, including recipes with ghost peppers, scorpion peppers, the Carolina Reaper and more.
- Hot Sauce Recipes. This is where I began! I love making my own hot sauce and can show you how to make many different types, including fermented and non-fermented.
I hope you'll explore the site and learn for yourself.
A Bit About Mike
- I'm the Content Creator. I make all the recipes and write them up, as well as write all of the content here on the site. Everything comes from me. I style the dishes and take some of the photos, but that is primarily Patty's job, which leaves me more time to cook!
- I'm a Cookbook Author. I am the author of "The Spicy Food Lovers' Cookbook", "The Spicy Dehydrator Cookbook", and others. By my books alone, you can tell that I am a spicy food aficionado.
- I'm a Screenwriter. Yes, I am a produced screenwriter. Here is the IMDB link if you'd care to take a look. My produced credits include the movies VICTIM, ARENA (starring Samuel L. Jackson and Kellan Lutz) and 12 FEET DEEP. I've been hired to write studio scripts and have optioned others as well. I'm still actively writing.
- I'm a Fiction Writer. I love to write fiction, mostly darker stuff, horror, thrillers. I've published fiction novels and numerous short stories, and have even edited an anthology. I'm also an active member of the Horror Writers Association and get to vote for the Stoker awards. See more about my screenwriting and fiction.
- I'm a Beer Lover. I love craft beer and actively explore local breweries. My favorites are IPAs, Pale Ales and Wheat Beers, though there are so many to enjoy.
A Bit About Patty
- I’m the Photographer, Organizer and Anything Needed. I feel super lucky to be able to do this job full time and I love every minute of it. It’s so great to wake up each morning excited about your job. I’m so passionate about food and love seeing all of you making the recipes and finding your own enjoyment in the dishes.
- I Love Gardening. I love growing our own peppers, tomatoes and other yummy delights. Fresh herbs and produce make every dish taste so much better and I find so much joy in growing it ourselves.
- I Love Spicy Food. Working on our Madness websites has been very rewarding for me. I’m a total converted chilihead now and crave the spice that Mike cooks all the time. There is rarely a dish served in our house without a chili pepper in it, or some sort of spicy flavor blast, and I love it.
- I Love Traveling. I love planning trips and going on them. We moved to North Carolina not too long ago so we could be between the mountains and the beach. I love to relax on the beach with a book or go hiking in the mountains and now we can do this very easily. I also love foodie trips and traveling all over the world. I'm always looking to experience the food in various places. And I love to plan parties, with food always being the most important part.
Some Recent Favorite Recipes
- Pollo Asado Recipe. Mexican roast chicken is so good! It's the ultimate roast chicken with bone-in chicken marinated in citrus and spices, quick grilled then roasted for big flavor. So tender and juicy.
- Kung Pao Chicken Recipe. This is the ultimate stir fry with chunks of marinated chicken stir fried with peppers, scallions and peanuts and an easy but flavorful sauce. Nice and spicy.
- Tikka Masala Recipe. This recipe is a creamy Indian-style curry with chunks of yogurt-marinated roasted chicken simmered in a flavorful curry sauce. It is very comforting and perfect for any curry lover.
- Texas Chili Recipe. A bowl of perfection right here! This Texas chili is authentic, meaty, just the right amount of spicy, and not a chili bean in sight.
- Grilled Jerk Chicken Wings. These chicken wings are huge on flavor, with wings rubbed down with loads of jerk seasoning, then grilled until nice and crispy. Fire up that grill, my friends!
- Smoked Jalapeno Poppers. This is the ultimate party food with bacon wrapped jalapeno peppers stuffed with loads of melty cheese and seasonings, then smoked for the most outstanding flavor. These will be your new favorite poppers!
- Homemade Buffalo Sauce Recipe. This is so easy to make with hot sauce, butter, Worcestershire sauce, vinegar and more – it’s so much better than anything you can grab from the store.
- Muffaletta Sandwich Recipe. I love this one! This is the ultimate sandwich from New Orleans, piled high with Italian meats, cheese, and a homemade spicy olive tapenade. Feeds a crowd!
- See Mike's Favorite Recipes and Patty's Favorite Recipes.
Virina says
I’ve loved making and eating your spicy recipes for a long while now. I have recently switched to a low carb eating plan and while I can still make some of your recipes, there are a lot I can no longer have…and it’s frustrating to say the least! Have you thought about creating carb friendly ones?
Michael Hultquist - Chili Pepper Madness says
Thanks, Virina. I'm told by some of my low carb friends that I have quite a few recipes on the site that qualify, though it isn't a focus on mine. I don't have any immediate plans, but am always happy to take suggestions!
Marnie says
I have been a longtime stalker…uh, I mean follower, of your Pinterest, this website, and as of today, your Spicy Food Lovers Cookbook! I made the Creole Pork chops tonight: AH-MAZING! I also utilized your homemade creole seasoning, only tweaking the paprika variety ratio (4TBS sweet, 1TBS smoked, 1TBS hot). Can’t wait to cook my way through this cookbook. Thank you!
Michael Hultquist - Chili Pepper Madness says
Thanks so much, Marnie! Cheers!! Enjoy all the recipes!
Barbara says
Thank you so much! I don't have much opportunity to cook with all the peppers that you have they're just not available to me in Japan.
But what is available is wasabi. I recently came across wasabi greens at my local farmers market. If you don't know about them, I wanted you to know about them. There are wasabi farmers in America so I'm pretty sure that you should be able to get the greens. They're much spicier than mustard greens. I'm looking forward to using them in salads and I other ways.
Michael Hultquist - Chili Pepper Madness says
Thanks, Barbara. I do love wasabi, and should write about it a bit on the site. I appreciate it.
Howard James-Scott says
Cross pollination is best cured with barrier crops as stated but great with things like capsicum as you can have some great tasty surprises also!!..
So good to find your site Mike & Patty.
We (both chefs), Polly my wife, trained at "Blue Elephant" Thailand and I trained at "Ferrandi', Paris, live and work for ourselves in India, Chilli farmers and chefs!! Now spreading our wings out to vanilla. We do have a problem sourcing seeds if anyone has an idea they should connect, chillis and vanilla varieties.
Michael Hultquist - Chili Pepper Madness says
Thanks so much. Chili farming chefs! Sounds like a great live to me. =) Try the Seed Resources page under Resources as a good start. Thanks for sharing!!
Naashon Lewis says
I love this site! Keep up the great content. I tried your Chile Con Carne recipe, after finding it on Google. It was fantastic. The best I've ever had. I immediately bookmarked the site, and have read through many recipes. I will be making the Dan Dan noodles tomorrow, and am very excited. Thank you both for your effort on this site. It is appreciated!
Michael Hultquist - Chili Pepper Madness says
Thanks, Naashon! I appreciate it! Feel free to leave a review on the Chile con Carne recipe!
DONALD L MCCLELLAN says
We are thoroughly enjoying your site and recipes. We have 65 pepper plants in our garden. With that said, we bought a nice chamber vacuum sealer this year. I was thinking I'd freeze whole peppers for working up later in the fall/winter. What is the reason it is suggested that stems and seed be removed prior to freezing?
Also, for making hot sauces, will it work to run the peppers through the food processor, then seal and freeze for prep later? I make hot sauces last year out of dried ground peppers but had issues with separation and it seemed a little grainy tasting. Any advice appreciated!
Michael Hultquist - Chili Pepper Madness says
Hey, Donald. The stems will be removed anyway for cooking, so it will save you room in the freezer to remove them first. You don't have to deseed if you don't want to. Yes, you can process the peppers first then freeze. I do this all the time. Saves a LOT of room. Let me know how it goes.
Raymond Cochrane says
Hi Mike,
My name is Raymond Cochrane. I live in the small town of Sweetwater, Texas. Each year at the beginning of March, we have what is called the rattlesnake roundup. I am sure you would enjoy attending next year's festivities. While you are here be sure to stop at a small family owned place called Allen's Chicken on Broadway St. It is a great place to eat and I am sure it will be right up your alley. You see everyone sits next to everyone else and you are bound to meet some new people. Some people drive for miles to get to eat there. You and your wife would surely enjoy the family friendly atmosphere that Allen's has to offer. I look forward to seeing you soon!
Michael Hultquist - Chili Pepper Madness says
Thanks, Raymond!
Birdy says
Thank you for your creole spice mix. We are new to creole cooking (native Coloradans). When we were making gumbo, the recipe called for creole spice, which isn't sold at our local grocery store. We love that your recipe is salt-free and very flavorful.
Michael Hultquist - Chili Pepper Madness says
Glad you enjoyed it, Birdy!
tom says
thank you for the terrific recipes!
do have have recommendation for homemade flour or corn tortillas? gluten and/or salt free would be even better--but if you have such a recipe please share and I will modify..
tom
Michael Hultquist - Chili Pepper Madness says
Thanks, Tom. Check out my post on How to Make Corn Tortillas: https://www.chilipeppermadness.com/cooking-with-chili-peppers/how-to-make-homemade-corn-tortillas/.
staceyf says
So happy to have stumbled on your website. Where has it been all my life? I will be here often, and can't wait to try some of your recipes. Great writing, great pictures!
Michael Hultquist - Chili Pepper Madness says
Thanks, Stacey! I hope you find loads of recipes you enjoy.
victor gaspar says
Hola vecino I live in mooresville and your receipt really help me to explore new flavor of the spicy food and a lot new way to combine also I like your website really easy to make the recipes I just wanna say gracias
Michael Hultquist - Chili Pepper Madness says
Thanks, Victor, and gracias!
J Nick Crawford says
Absolutely one of the best food/cooking sites around! Thanks for all you do.
Michael Hultquist - Chili Pepper Madness says
Thanks so much! Greatly appreciated!!
Merlin Osgood says
Hello yall !
I have a Habeniro plant that I purchased
4 years ago and bring it in during the winter season here in North Carolina.
Looking for some advice to keep it another 4 or longer.
Michael Hultquist - Chili Pepper Madness says
Hey, Merlin! I just moved to NC! Love it here. Doing what you're doing is obviously working! Really, overwintering can be hard on some plants. You'll want to bring it inside, keep it nice and warm, near natural like. It will likely go dormant, but you can then plant it again in the Spring and see if it produces. You might look into indoor grow lights, which people use to grow plants indoors. A whole different world! I hope this helps. Best!