ATA Serrano Chili Powder – Ground Dried Serrano Peppers, Bright Sharp Heat, 10,000–25,000 SHU

SKU: ATA-PWD-SER · Brand: ATA FOOD Co., Ltd. · Catalog: inquiry-only on https://atafood.chinaspice.org/

The jalapeño’s sharper sibling

Formulators reach for the serrano when the jalapeño reads too polite. The serrano is the smaller, thinner, hotter pepper of the same Mexican kitchen — crisp and bright fresh, and unmistakably peppery dried, with a heat that lands two to three times harder than its famous sibling. ATA Serrano Chili Powder grinds dried red-ripe serrano peppers to 60 mesh at 10,000–25,000 SHU, typically around 15,000 SHU: a bright, sharp, full-flavored heat that still tastes like a pepper, built for hot sauces, salsas and blends that need real lift without crossing into extract territory.

• ATA Serrano Chili Powder heat is 10,000–25,000 SHU, typically around 15,000 SHU, documented by HPLC under AOAC 995.03 and stated per lot in the CoA.
• ATA Serrano Chili Powder is ground from dried serrano peppers (Capsicum annuum) picked at the red-ripe stage for drying — the ripe pods dry evenly and keep the variety’s bright, peppery character — with no added colors and no anti-caking agents.
• ATA Serrano Chili Powder is milled to 60 mesh at ≤11.0% moisture (ISO 939), so it disperses straight into wet systems and blends evenly into dry mixes.
• ATA Serrano Chili Powder is the step-up pepper: choose it where a jalapeño-based formula reads too mild but a habanero-class heat would bury the flavor.
• ATA Serrano Chili Powder ships in 25 kg bags and 10 kg cartons, FOB Qingdao, HS 0904.22.0000.

At a glance

Technical specification

Physical

Chemical

Microbiological

Contaminants and compliance

How this product differs

Against ATA Red Jalapeño Chili Powder (ATA-PWD-JAL)

• The direct step up: the red jalapeño powder runs 2,500–8,500 SHU; the serrano runs 10,000–25,000 SHU — roughly two to three times the heat from the same pepper family and the same kitchen tradition.
• Flavor shape: the ripe jalapeño is sweet and rounded; the serrano is brighter and sharper, with a crisper pepper bite and less body. Formulas read serrano as “hotter and livelier,” not just hotter.
• When to choose which: red jalapeño for warm, friendly, mid-heat products. Serrano when the same product needs to step up a heat tier without changing its flavor direction.

Against ATA Green Jalapeño Chili Powder (ATA-PWD-GJL)

• Brightness from different places: the green jalapeño’s brightness is grassy and vegetal, from unripe pods, at 2,500–8,500 SHU. The serrano’s brightness comes from a naturally sharper variety dried ripe, at roughly double to triple the heat.
• Color: green jalapeño tints olive-green; serrano tints brick red. Green briefs and red briefs do not substitute.
• When to choose which: green jalapeño for fresh, green, mid-heat briefs. Serrano for red products that need a bright, lively heat well above the jalapeño tier.

Against ATA Árbol Chili Powder (ATA-PWD-ARB)

• Overlapping heat, different jobs: árbol runs 15,000–30,000 SHU as a clean, direct, nearly neutral searing heat. Serrano at 10,000–25,000 SHU carries noticeably more pepper flavor — bright and fruity-sharp — at a similar working heat.
• Flavor load: choose árbol when heat should arrive without a named-pepper signature; choose serrano when the pepper itself is part of the flavor brief.
• When to choose which: árbol for neutral heat units in blends and sauces. Serrano for serrano-named products and any formula where flavor must scale with the heat.

Industrial applications and use

• Hot sauces: the classic serrano role — bright, lively table and cooking sauces. Bench start 0.3–1.0% of finished sauce, dosed against the lot CoA.
• Salsas: 0.3–1.5% to lift shelf-stable salsas a clear heat tier above jalapeño-based versions while keeping a fresh pepper read.
• Spice blends and rubs: the heat-and-flavor component at 1–5% of blend, over paprika and jalapeño bases for taco, fajita and Southwest profiles.
• Snack seasonings: 0.2–1.0% in dry seasoning for chips, nuts and extruded snacks positioned a tier hotter than jalapeño lines.
• Meat processing: 0.1–0.6% in fresh and cooked sausages and formed products carrying a serrano or “extra hot” claim.
• Ready meals: 0.1–0.5% for predictable upper-medium heat in retort and frozen lines.

Handling note: serrano heat reads brighter and faster than the same SHU from thicker-walled peppers — bench at the low end of the range first; a little serrano carries a long way in delicate bases.

Packaging, MOQ, logistics and shelf life

• Standard packaging: 25 kg kraft bags and 10 kg cartons with food-grade liner.
• Small-batch option: 5 kg by agreement.
• Samples: 250 g–1 kg for bench and trial work.
• MOQ: confirmed per RFQ for each packaging format; mixed shipments with other ATA chili powders can be combined.
• Shelf life: 18–24 months sealed and stored cool, dark and dry.
• Shipping terms: FOB Qingdao; CIF / CFR on request.
• HS code: 0904.22.0000 (Capsicum, ground).

Certifications and export documents

• Production under ISO 22000 / HACCP / BRCGS-aligned programs.
• Halal and kosher documentation on request.
• CoA per lot stating SHU (HPLC), moisture and microbiology.
• Commercial invoice, packing list, bill of lading (B/L) and certificate of origin / Form E where applicable.

Frequently asked questions

1. Serrano or jalapeño — how much hotter is it, really?
Roughly two to three times. ATA’s jalapeño powders run 2,500–8,500 SHU; this serrano runs 10,000–25,000 SHU, typically around 15,000 SHU. In a finished product, that is a clear, noticeable heat tier up — not a marginal adjustment.

2. Are the pods green or red?
Green serranos dominate the fresh market, but this powder is ground from pods picked at the red-ripe stage: ripe pods dry more evenly, keep better color, and carry the variety’s bright peppery flavor into the dried form. The heat window is the variety’s, whichever stage is picked.

3. How hot is it in practice?
10,000–25,000 SHU, typically ~15,000 SHU by HPLC — solidly upper-medium. The heat reads bright and fast rather than heavy, so it lifts sauces and seasonings without the lingering burn of the habanero class. Dose against the measured lot value in the CoA.

4. Does the powder include the seeds?
It is ground from whole dried pods, seeds included — serrano seeds are small and form part of the variety’s heat delivery. Stems are removed in sorting before milling; the powder is a clean 60-mesh grind with no stem fraction.

5. Serrano or árbol at similar heat — which should I buy?
Buy by flavor intent. Árbol (ATA-PWD-ARB, 15,000–30,000 SHU) delivers clean, nearly neutral heat. Serrano delivers slightly less top-end heat with distinctly more pepper flavor — bright and fruity-sharp. If the pepper should be tasted, buy serrano; if only the heat should arrive, buy árbol.

6. Is it tested for aflatoxins and pesticides?
Yes. Aflatoxins and ochratoxin are tested against destination-market limits, pesticide residues are screened against EU / destination MRLs, and every lot’s CoA states SHU, moisture and microbiology. Name your destination market in the RFQ so the correct limit set is applied.

7. Will it overpower a delicate base?
It can if dosed like jalapeño. Serrano is a step-up ingredient: start at roughly one-third of the jalapeño dose you would otherwise use, bench, and adjust upward. In fatty or dairy bases the bright heat softens noticeably; in acidic bases it stays sharp.

8. What information does an RFQ need?
Destination market and port, quantity and preferred packaging format (25 kg bags or 10 kg cartons), target application, your heat target if it matters, and any special CoA or certification requirements (e.g. halal or kosher documentation). Send RFQs to dede@chinachilibiotech.com or chinafoodsgroup@gmail.com. No public prices and no cart — every quotation is issued by inquiry.