Not to be confused with actual cayenne chiles, “cayenne pepper” is a generic name for any very hot ground chile or blend of chiles. Some recipes will refer to ground red pepper – this is the stuff. Named after the city in French Guyana, cayenne pepper is very spicy and adds quick heat to any dish. It is a key ingredient in loads of recipes and almost all spice mixtures, since you can easily control the amount to balance the heat level.
