Objective To develop a method of high performance liquid chromatography-linear ion trap mass spectrometry(HPLC-LIT-MS) for the determination of 23 industrial dyes in chili sauce and chili powder.Methods Samples were ultrasonically extracted with acetonitrile.The LC separation was performed on a RP-Amide column with gradient elution and the mass spectrometric acquisition was carried out under the mode of selected reaction monitoring(SRM).Results The average recoveries of 23 industrial dyes fortified in chili sauce and chili powder at 0.3,0.6 and 1.2 mg/kg were in the range of 73.9%-133.3% and 77.2%-128.4%,respectively.The limits of detection(LODs) were 0.5-56.0 μg/kg and the limits of quantification(LOQs) were 2.0-186.0 μg/kg.Conclusion The method is suitable for quantitative and qualitative detection of 23 industrial dyes in chili sauce and chili powder with advantages of fast,simple,precise and accurate.Rhodamine B,Chrysoidin and Sudan red Ⅳ were detected in 2 out of 73 chili products collected in local markets of Beijing.