• Ancho chile can be used dried or rehydrated, whole or ground. It's usually incorporated before cooking sauces, blended with other spices or vegetables to make a base for a stew or soup, or sprinkled on top of meat, poultry, or seafood as part of a rub or marinade before cooking.

• Chipotle peppers are smoked, dried jalapeño peppers, and as such they share the same medium-level heat as jalapeños (2,500 to 8,000 Scoville heat units.) It’s a popular chili pepper variety in both Mexico and North America and growing fast in favor across the globe because of its smoky, earthy flavor. 

• Guajillo chilies are sometimes used to make a salsa for tamales; the dried fruits (chilies) are seeded, soaked, or simmered, then pulverized or mashed/pureed into a paste, then cooked with several other ingredients to produce a flavorful sauce.