Hot Peppers

[Nick.Shu]

ok, ok, ive located a reuters article which refers to this harsh piece of divine retribution.

read it and weep (so to speak) http://cnn.co.il/2000/FOOD/news/09/0...eut/index.html

eat in good health.

has anyone ever come across the Datil?
There kind of yellowish/green about 2 inches long, AKA Mindoran. It's almost as hot a Habanero/Scotch Bonnet very good in relishes and salsa.
And check this one out Rocoto,globe shaped and yellowish, At this point the heat level is undetermined, You would need two habaneros or 6-8 jalapenos to equal the strength of this monster. I am told it is not available in the states
cc

[Chef David Simpson]

Datil is a local name for Capsicum chinense in St. Augustine, Florida. Orgins from southeast Asia. Capsicum means bell pepper.Rocoto are a Peruvian type, very hot w/ black seeds. I love chilis in lots of stuff. Its a wonder, I don't have health problems over them.

[Pete]

My favorite peppers are chipoltes, anchos, habaneros, scotch bonnets, and jalapenos. Aniheims (sp?) also make great rellenos, if you have never tried them. Cascabels make great spicy cream sauces (nice mildly spicy, flavorful, dried peppers). I also really like habanero or scotch bonnet jelly, but my favorite way to eat habaneros is in a scallop sechive I make. Dice up raw scallops, and mix in some finely minced red onion that has been rinsed in warm water twice, finely minced red pepper (a very small amount), finely minced habanero (however much you can handle), finely minced cilantro, and lime juice to coat. Add salt and allow to marinate for at least 30 minutes before serving on fried tortillas or fried plantain chips.

As far as hot chilies go, my favorite is the fresh (or dried) serrano. It's got a good kick of heat that lingers in the mouth just long enough and lots of other fruity flavors-makes the old jalapeno seem like some kind of crude ruffian. Try it in guacamole-divine. I also love anchos-just a little heat for interest, but lots of deep, chocolatey, fruity flavor too. I make a sauce with ground toasted hazelnuts, oven dried onions & tomatoes, and a big handful of soaked anchos. Puree the lot and marinate beef or chicken in it befor grilling. Yum!

Well most of you know how hot Thai food is....
The culprit is called Prik khee nuu
translated literally Mouse Poop Peppers
They are extremely potent, especially when just plucked off the pepper plant, and still green.
Habanero is hot, the hottest some say, but the way I've learned to use Prik khee nuu prepared fresh sure gets the tears flowing!
You can use it in papaya salad, sauces, dips, stirfries, curry pastes....the list goes on!

[Dlee]

Cape chef,

To answer the first question, "What are favorites? And how do you like to prepare them?".

I use a lot of scotch bonets, to make it easy for me to use and to extend the shelf life, I make it into a condiment.
Scotch bonet, shallot, garlic, sugar, salt, blk pepper, and rice wine vinger. Blend it all in a robot coupe till it is a small rough chop, then bottle it. That goes into everything. Use with X-caution.

Nick Shu. I gotta try that corriander red curry crepe. I think I will stuff it with a yellow curry shrimp.


D.Lee

[Nick.Shu]

ahh, the crepe is pretty easy, just mix some red curry paste and fine chopped corriander into a unsweetened crepe mix, cook of and then stuff if with whatever. Go for it.

I love this thread because I love chilies of any sort. However, I must voice a pet peeve. Hot "peppers" are not pepper at all, neither are sweet bell "peppers". They are chilies. Chefs and food professionals should refer to them as "chilies" because they are all fruity pods and members of the capsicum family of vegetables native to the americas. "Pepper" is the dried, grape like berry from the Piper nigrum vine native to southeast asia.

[Dlee]

Thanks Nick.

D.Lee

[cape chef]

Hi Dlee,I made some salmon cakes the other day and served it with a fresh mango,chili relish,Heres how I made the relish.This made almost a Qt
2 cups diced mango
1/4 cup scallions
1/4 cup diced red onion
3 red jalapenos seeded and minced
1 poblano roasted,seeded and skinned and diced
1 bunch cilantro chopped
some rice wine vinegar
about a 1/2 cup olive oil
2 teaspoons toasted cumin seeds
zest and juice of a lime and a orange
salt and pepper
I just mixed it all together and let it blend for an hour or so
It was really good!!
I also make a green chilli chicken breast in pyllo with a chipotle sauce.

Some olive oil
1/4 cup shallots
1/2 # chopped button shrooms
1 1/2 cupscanned chopped green new Mexican chillies
a little thyme and marjoram
1/2 cup dry sherry
1/2 cup plain low fat yogurt
3 tablespoons fresh grated parm
S&P and a little nutmeg
3 egg whites
16 sheets phyllo
3/4 cup melted butter
8 b$s Chicken breast
for the Chpotlie sauce
3 tbs butter
3 tbs flour
1 1/2 cups milk
1/2 cup sherry
1 chipotlie in adobo
S&p
and chopped parsley
cook the shallots add the shrooms cook a couple minutes add the chillies,thyme and margarem cook a couple more minutes add the sherry cook until dry,lower the heat and add the yogurt and parm S&P and nutmeg and cool
beat the egg whites until you have dry peaks then fold the whites into the shroom mixture.
use 2 sheets of phyllo for each breast. lay out the dough and brush with the butter and lay the second on top and brush then fold in half. place a good shot of the shroom mixture in the center of the pastry put a breast on top of that and then some more filling over the breast.fold in you phyllo and seal and brush with butter.It takes about 25 minutes at work,but that's in a convection oven so it might take like 35 to 40 minutes at 375 in a standard oven. for the sauce melt the butter add the flour let it cook for a minute and then slowly add your milk,then add the sherry and cook another minute,add the chipotle to the sauce and mash cook for a moment more then push through a china cap add the parsley and S&P and your golden
So that's a couple ways I like to use the hot stuff
cc

Another good use for Ancho Chilis is to seed them and put them in a cuisinart with kosher salt. The amounts are up to you, but the taste is great. P.S. Penzeys is a great source for spices and the catalogues are very informative as well.

[chefjohnpaul]

I love all kinds, I do have a soft spot for jalepenos though. I also like the dried smoked ones-chipotles. Here is a Caesar "Chavez" Dressing in which I use both chipotles and dried California chilies. Enjoy!

Caesar "Chavez" Dressing

Recipe By : John Paul Khoury,CCC
Serving Size : 2 Preparation Time :0:10
Categories : Cold Sauces & Vinaigrettes

Amount Measure Ingredient -- Preparation Method
-------- ------------ --------------------------------
1 each dried California Chile pod -- stemmed & seeded
1/2 cup water -- boiling
6 cloves garlic -- peeled
1 teaspoon anchovy paste
2 ounces lime juice
1 ounce apple cider vinegar
1 each chipotle pepper in adobo -- optional
1 pinch cumin -- ground
1 pinch achiote -- paste
1 splash worcestershire sauce
1 pinch black pepper -- coarsely ground
1 whole egg
1 cup canola oil -- (+-)
1/4 cup parmesan -- grated fine
kosher salt -- to taste

Soak California chile in boiling water till tender, put in blender with
water, add rest of ingredients except oil. Puree'. In a steady stream
with blender running emulsify with the oil. Season.

An Italian in Mexico with the surname of Caesar invented Caesar
salad. Now if a Mexican had invented it it might taste something
like this!

Toss with Romaine and serve with corn bread croutons.

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[Greg]

I'd heard it was an either Spanish or Mexican chef named Caesar Cardenas. I don't know it to be a fact, but this was from a man of Italian descent who had lived in Italy for some time (and he makes a darn good pizza crust, too, so if you're ever in St Paul, John Paul...). BTW, how are you and how's the state of california treating you?

[layjo]

I heard he was named Ceasar Cardini. And he was an Italian Restuaranteur who moved to Tijuana, Mexico to open a restuarant/Bar in the times of prohibition of liquer. Just what I've read from a number of books and magazines. I like the history of how foods came about and why, very interesting.