Dee Hobsbawn-Smith
The Calgary Herald
Wed., Jan. 24, 2008
My ex-husband loves hot and spicy food. During our long marriage, he was fond of demonstrating his fondness -- for hot food, that is -- by snapping down hot peppers as if they were candy.
I would stand transfixed, unwilling to take a bite of the raw pepper he would proffer. Beyond the burn, he'd say, is profound flavour.
I never found it. Each time I succumbed and tasted a hot pepper, I found myself stuck on the "hot" page, my tongue tingling, eyes watering, my palate fried, burning heat the only sensation that registered.
I still don't understand the attraction of searing heat. But some like it hot.
As Renette Kurz, owner of Boca Loca Fine Mexican Foods explains: "It's almost an addiction. We have many clients who come in to buy hot chilies; they caught the hot chili craving in Mexico and want to recreate it."
Her school, attached to the northwest location of her two successful retail food shops, offers classes taught by chef Martha Hernandez. Among the most popular is one upcoming on March 6 called, naturally, Some Like It Hot, and is all about how to cook with hot chilies.
Hot peppers are all members of the capsicum species, part of the ominously named nightshade family, which includes potatoes, tomatoes and eggplant, as well as tobacco and the deadly one, belladonna. Along with several sister plants, corn, squash, beans and peppers define the indigenous food of the New World, and eventually re-invented the cuisine of the Old World when they migrated to that continent, carried by the explorers of an earlier age.
In the kitchen, it's best to know your serranos from your Scotch bonnets; the heat differential between pepper varieties, measured in Scoville units, can be astronomical, and choosing the wrong pepper can ruin a dish. In general, the smaller the pepper, the hotter. Seeds and membranes are the hottest part of hot peppers, containing concentrated amounts of the fiery compound capsaicin, so use or avoid them as your palate prefers, and avoid skin contact with hands that have handled the hotter varieties.
If you eat a dish with too many hot peppers, alleviate the burning sensation with dairy products; the casein in milk and yogurt helps alleviate the pain. Eating thinly sliced cucumber helps, too, but avoid drinking water, as it simply adds more fuel to the fire in your mouth.
Store peppers on the counter to ripen, then transfer to the fridge, loosely wrapped in paper bags, not plastic. All peppers are covered with a cellulose skin that causes indigestion in some diners. Roasting them makes it easy to remove the skin. Place whole peppers over an open flame or under a broiler until completely blackened, then transfer the charred peppers to a plastic bag to steam. Peel and rinse off the residue.
And then there are pickled peppers. Oh, yes. Peppers preserved in brine are a truth so long known it degenerated into children's doggerel. Use fresh or roasted peppers. Fresh pepper batons can be simmered in rice vinegar, enlivened with thin sticks of fresh ginger root and hot jalapeno pepper, then packed into sterile jars and processed in a boiling water bath.
If you, like my ex, like the spicy stuff, look for hot peppers in ethnic and farmers' markets (Asian, Indian, Latin and Middle Eastern markets usually carry at least a couple fresh varieties). Here is what to look for in hotties:
- Anaheim peppers: Slightly larger, medium green, also relatively mild and pointed, their name changes to Colorado if they are red.
- Banana peppers: These tapered and elongated yellow peppers are thin-skinned, mild, with a pervasively waxy taste, and may also be called Hungarian. They are similar in appearance to their sweet cousins, so be sure to ask the vendor if they are sweet or hot
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- Pasilla and poblano peppers: Dark green, verging on black, pasillas are slightly smaller than their cousins, the Poblanos. Expect a spicy, warmer-than-not bite. In their fresh state, either can be used for chiles rellenos, the famed battered and deep-fried, cheese-stuffed pepper dish of southern California. Alternatively, use them as rajas, the roasted and sliced strips that garnish many dishes, from quesadilla to soups.
- Jalapeno peppers: Snub-nosed and bullet-shaped, jalapenos are usually hot, but unreliably so; it's possible to find mild or even bland jalapenos in the bunch. Their colour goes from green to deep orange as they ripen. They are the perfect size and shape for stuffing, pickling or frying. Finely minced, they add bite to sauces, salsas and soups.
- Cayenne peppers: This slim shape packs a pungent wallop, and is reliably hotter than jalapenos. Dozens are often strung onto ristras and hung, for drying and decor.
- Cherry, serrano, ring of fire and Thai bird's-eye peppers: These hotties are round, pointed, elongated and tiny, respectively. Use cherry tomatoes for pickling, and add sparing amounts of the others as heat sources in spicy dishes.
- Habanero peppers: Close to excruciating, these small squishy-looking peppers are a resounding 10 on the hotness scale. They can be green, white or yellow, orange or red.
- Scotch bonnets: Even hotter, and harder to find than habaneros, these look like a Scottish tam o'shanter that has been sat upon. Both types can blister the skin with their capsaicin content, so wear gloves when handling them, and use them sparingly.
- Boca Loca Fine Mexican Foods (classes at north store only), 777 Northmount Dr. N.W., 289-2202, www.bocalocacalgary.com, Renette Kurz, owner; Martha Hernandez, chef-instructor. Some Like It Hot, traditions and techniques from the Mexican kitchen, hands-on, $45, for March 6.
Dee Hobsbawn-Smith is a writer, chef, author and poet.
A Pint of Peppers
An updated classic, this pickle is a colourful take on the old rhyme. Serve with cold cuts, Latin dishes, curries, roasted meats and salads.
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6-8 green Anaheim peppers, sliced
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2 yellow Hungarian peppers, sliced
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2 red cherry or cayenne peppers, slivered
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Jalapeno peppers, seeded and thinly sliced
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1 habanero or Scotch bonnet pepper, slivered (optional)
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2 2-inch (5-cm) pieces of ginger root, peeled and slivered into batons
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11/2 cups (375 mL) rice vinegar
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1/2 cup (125 mL) water
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2 tbsp (25 mL) white sugar
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1 tsp (5 mL) pickling salt
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4 cloves garlic, slivered
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3 bird's-eye peppers
Place the peppers and ginger root into a shallow bowl, then add the vinegar, water, sugar and salt. Stir well to dissolve.
Cover and refrigerate overnight.
Drain the peppers and ginger, transferring the liquid into a pot with the garlic. Sterilize hot jars, then remove the jars from the canner. Pack the peppers and ginger into the jars, placing a bird's-eye pepper on the top of each.
Bring the reserved liquid and garlic to a boil, pour over the peppers and leave 1/2 inch (1 cm) headroom. Process for 15 minutes in a boiling water bath. Remove the jars from the water, set onto a cloth-lined counter and cool. Store for several weeks to develop full range of flavour and heat.
Makes 3 half-pint (250 mL) jars
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