Grate Frozen Jalapeños With A Microplane To Give Your Meal A Subtle Spice

Everyone loves the subtle spice that a pinch of jalapeño brings. From dustings on potato chips to pickled nickels on a taco, the flavor and spice have kept diners indulging for millennia. If you tend to prefer jalapeño dishes that incorporate just a bit of the pepper, consider freezing them, then grating them over your dishes with a microplane — it's the easiest way to add the peppers' spice and appealing flavor in an utterly controlled way to a variety of dishes.

Microplane is a brand of grater, but any small cheese grater will do (if it can tackle shredding hard cheeses and roots like ginger, you're in a good spot). A frozen jalapeño will do just almost as well as a root, as the freezing gives it a firmer texture more conducive to shredding. Jalapeños' flavor is described as bright and grassy, with a spice level that rarely goes above medium. So wielding the smallest possible grater is a good way to avoid overdoing it and add a touch of jalapeños' vegetal notes and light heat to a wide variety of dishes. After a few hours in the fridge, the peppers should be good to start shredding. One added bonus about this upgrade is that freezing can keep the peppers good for several months.

There is such an abundance of versatility with this jalapeño hack, which makes it a great option for any number of dishes that are in need of a spicy, vegetal kick. Mac and cheese is a great opportunity for this freezy jalapeño dust; try it on top of this creamy slow cooker mac and cheese recipe to give it a tasty contrast. Any dish that's heavy on the dairy will be a good spot for a punch-up, so use that microplane to dust cheesy omelets, mozzarella-laden pizzas, or these herb and cheese croquettes for an easy upgrade.

You can also swap in jalapeño dust in recipes that call for bigger or chunkier portions of the pepper. For example, this instant pot pinto beans recipe can go from fiery to merely feisty with the swap from chopped jalapeño to a dusting. And you needn't relegate this hack to food dishes either: Shave some frozen jalapeño on top of salty margaritas for a reasonable (and buildable) helping of spice.