Peppers (Chiles): How Do You Like Them?

QXatFAT · Sun Jan 04, 2009 8:13 am

So I love chile peppers. I use them almost all the time in some form or another. How do you like to use them?

Here is how I like to use them...

Crushed Red Peppers
I put them on almost all foods. Maily lasagna, soups, casteroles, and pizza.

Jalepeno
I like to put jalepeno peppers in my tacos all chopped up. I'll sear up the asada and chop up the peppers to throw in there. Also, making fresh salsa I love to put one or two in there. When eating a burger, it is a must to have them sliced on there and grilled with the burger and cheese! Also, having a jalepeno on the side of any meal is good to have to just chomp into.

Serrano
I really only use these peppers in two ways, when I am making meat and bean chili and also when I am cooking with eggs. I like to make an egg omlet with them or just scramble some eggs with them in it.

New Mexican Chili Powder
Simple...it goes on: Watermelon, Cantelope, Cucumber, Oranges, and Pinapple.

flexo · Sun Jan 04, 2009 10:08 am

I consider peppers (bell or jalapeno, doesn't matter) the only food that I really can't eat.
It makes me gag even smelling them.

So, quire simply: I'd never put them on any food.

RussianJet · Sun Jan 04, 2009 12:33 pm

I love them in pretty much everything. I adore Indian food and use ground dried red chillies or fresh green chillies mainly, depending on the dish. I love jalapenos on pizza, I love fresh minced mild red chilli on pizza, and well, pretty much a bit of chilli here and there in just about anything else you might care to mention. I am also occasionally partial to a good chilli-infused vodka.

Wolverine · Sun Jan 04, 2009 12:37 pm

I like them very much, mostly I put them on Pizzas, Spaghetti with tomato sauce and so on.
As well as I put garlic and herbes de Provence on it..

EWRCabincrew · Sun Jan 04, 2009 1:54 pm

Love them dried (like red chilis), stuffed (chili rellenos), diced (pick a reason), pickled, right from the plant. I like to eat, so I'll eat them in any form.

RGElectra80 · Sun Jan 04, 2009 2:40 pm

Quoting QXatFAT (Thread starter):
Jalepeno
I like to put jalepeno peppers in my tacos all chopped up. I'll sear up the asada and chop up the peppers to throw in there. Also, making fresh salsa I love to put one or two in there. When eating a burger, it is a must to have them sliced on there and grilled with the burger and cheese! Also, having a jalepeno on the side of any meal is good to have to just chomp into.

Are you Mexican? Silly

I like roasted peppers a lot. Usually Serranos are good for that. I like crushed red on pizzas and any Italian food basically.

I also like malagueta, a Brazilian pepper that's really spicy and is usually found pickled so you normally only put a couple of drops of the juice on your food and stir it up. Some braver souls, like my grandpa, would crush a whole pepper into their food. It goes well with rice and beans and Latin flavors like that.

aero145 · Sun Jan 04, 2009 3:09 pm

I am not too fond of the hot chilis, although I eat them occasionally, but I like the bell chilis, mainly the yellow ones.

And please don’t tell me that the bells aren’t chilis - because they are. Smile

mham001 · Sun Jan 04, 2009 5:39 pm

I raise 5-6 different ones every year now. I go for the hottest possible. Zimbabwe reds, Chiquin, Thai Bangkok, Chocolate Habenjero, and a purple pepper this last year. All rated 9 or 10 on the scale.

Cadet57 · Sun Jan 04, 2009 5:50 pm

Quoting Mham001 (Reply 7):
and a purple pepper this last year

A few years ago, my father planted some green bell pepper seeds, then a purple, and a pink/white pepper came out on their own plants. My father and our neighbor being the brave (or idiotic) souls they are, ate them. Funniest thing i've ever seen.

QXatFAT · Sun Jan 04, 2009 9:24 pm

Quoting RGElectra80 (Reply 5):
Are you Mexican?

How did you guess? Smile

Quoting RGElectra80 (Reply 5):
a Brazilian pepper that's really spicy and is usually found pickled so you normally only put a couple of drops of the juice on your food and stir it up.

This is REALLY good. Nothing like rice with beans and meat over the top with a few drops of pepper sauce and dried up and crushed macasheda (yucca root). Mmm makes me wana fly down to Brasil already!

csturdiv · Mon Jan 05, 2009 3:08 am

I love hot peppers, I use them all of the time...from sauces, to dried full peppers to crushed and ground peppers. A few days ago I was in a homebrewing beer supply store and they had a very nice Amber Habenero pepper Ale on tap there.

Last night since it was kind of warm, I grilled some chicken with my favorite marinade....cayenne pepper sauce, black pepper, salt, olive oil and some lemon juice. Not too spicy so that my friends who do not like it as hot as I do, but still had enough "tingle" to keep me happy.

blrsea · Mon Jan 05, 2009 3:30 am

The red dried chillies are used a lot in indian cookings, they are fried and crushed to fine powder along with other spices and then used in many of Indian sauces/'dishes. We use the whole black peppers a lot too. Interestingly, it is believed that chillies were introduced to India by portugese from S America. Though there are other evidences against that ( including the world's hottest chilli growing only in Assam, India).

We use green thai chillis in our cooking too ( of course, it is not called "thai chillies" in india Smile

) along with the dried red ones. The jalapenos are used to make pakodas, and they are very tasty, but tend to be a wee bit too spicy sometimes, especially if the seeds inside are too many. If I have sandwiches, I prefer a side of pepperocini ( spelling?) pickles on the side.

Bland food is not my cup of tea, and would eat it only in absence of any other spicy alternatives Smile

RGElectra80 · Mon Jan 05, 2009 3:38 am

Quoting QXatFAT (Reply 9):
How did you guess? Smile

Your unparalleled devotion to jalapenos would be a start!

Quoting QXatFAT (Reply 9):
This is REALLY good. Nothing like rice with beans and meat over the top with a few drops of pepper sauce and dried up and crushed macasheda (yucca root). Mmm makes me wana fly down to Brasil already!

Dang it. Now I'm getting hungry too! Now what is macasheda? How is it prepared? I'm used to the fried variety or the Cuban way.

I like peppers to give my food a little more flavor. I can't understand people who douse their food with hot sauce or peppers and still find flavor in their meal.

desertjets · Mon Jan 05, 2009 3:42 am

I am in New Mexico at the moment, and the only two ways to have em are red or green.

If I think my stomach can handle it the next day I go green, otherwise if my supply of Pepto Bismol is low I go with the red.

RGElectra80 · Mon Jan 05, 2009 3:58 am

Quoting Blrsea (Reply 11):

I think I had parantha with some kind of pepper in it when I was in India. It was delicious.

QXatFAT · Mon Jan 05, 2009 5:39 am

Quoting RGElectra80 (Reply 12):
Now what is macasheda? How is it prepared? I'm used to the fried variety or the Cuban way.

I have had it mainly when I am in Northern Brasil in Manaus or Boa Vista. The tribal people take the yucca root and wash it with a slight boil and strain out all the poison, once the poison is out they cut it up and cook it on a giant pan over an open fire until it drys it out and becomes a fine almost like corn meal. Sprinkle that over the beans and it is so good. Not much flavor but adds the texture and slight flavor to the beans. Wouldn't have it any other way in Brasil.

Quoting RGElectra80 (Reply 12):
Your unparalleled devotion to jalapenos would be a start!

Haha well what can I say, my father taught me well Smile

For lunch today I had cheese quesidella with chicken cooked in olive oil, fresh cracked black pepper, garlic salt, and then jalepenos inside. For dinner, tamales and beans with ground jalepenos inside and on the tamales of course topped with Tapateo hot sauce.

ShyFlyer · Mon Jan 05, 2009 6:49 am

Quoting DesertJets (Reply 13):
I am in New Mexico at the moment, and the only two ways to have em are red or green.

It is, after all, the official state question. yes

Not a big fan of the red chile myself, but I do have a serious addiction to green chile. cloudnine

http://www.thesantafesite.com/articl.../Red-or-Green--Chile-that-is-.html

Alias1024 · Mon Jan 05, 2009 7:29 am

Quoting ShyFlyer (Reply 16):
Not a big fan of the red chile myself, but I do have a serious addiction to green chile.

Having grown up consuming massive quantities of both, I love them equally. I guess it just depends on which craving I have at the time.

ShyFlyer · Mon Jan 05, 2009 7:58 am

Quoting Alias1024 (Reply 17):
I love them equally

I can tolerate red in tamales and posole, but in anything else it tears me up.

RussianJet · Mon Jan 05, 2009 10:55 am

Quoting QXatFAT (Reply 15):
For lunch today I had cheese quesidella with chicken cooked in olive oil, fresh cracked black pepper, garlic salt, and then jalepenos inside. For dinner, tamales and beans with ground jalepenos inside and on the tamales of course topped with Tapateo hot sauce.

Right, that does it! Everyone over to QXatFAT's house for dinner tonight! I am sooo hungry.....

DIJKKIJK · Mon Jan 05, 2009 2:35 pm

Quoting Blrsea (Reply 11):
We use green thai chillis in our cooking too ( of course, it is not called "thai chillies" in india )

Are you sure they are the same? I recollect that the green chillies you get in India are a paler green, and longer than the Thai ones. Even the flavour is somewhat different.

Quoting Blrsea (Reply 11):
The jalapenos are used to make pakodas, and they are very tasty

Those pakodas (at least the ones I've had in India) are not made with Jalapenos. hot

They are made with a certain type of thick chilli that is more related to paprika. They aren't spicy at all.

They make a kid of chutney with ripe red chillies in Andhra Pradesh. It is basically fresh red chilli ground together with garlic, salt and vinegar. I love that stuff!

My other favourites are pickled Jalapenos, pickled Madam Jeanette peppers and Peri-Peri Sauce! The hotter the better for me !

Dougloid · Mon Jan 05, 2009 3:09 pm

This is a great subject. My particular favorites are chipotles, which are a dried jalapeno smoked over pecan wood. If you've got something you need a deep smoky flavor in (as opposed to laying it on top) then it's the easiest thing to cut one up with a pair of scissors or shred it in a food processor and in it goes. Doesn't matter what it is, either.

I also enjoy Mezzetta's tamed jalapenos, which are jalapenos with half the spark plug wires pulled off. They're swell in macaroni and cheese. Green chile is great stuff too.

Back when I worked at Garrett a lady in the cafeteria would make us ortegas-that's a grilled swiss on rye with an ortega chile in it laid out flat.

One thing that's really good that you can make at home is sambal ulek-which is Indonesian pepper paste. Here's how you make it.

Take a handful of dried Japan chiles-long skinny red ones, pretty hot and drop them in a food processor like a Sunbeam Oscar. Pull the stems off first. To this you add a few cloves of peeled fresh garlic, lime juice to moisten and a little salt.

Now. Run that until you have a brick red gooey paste. Put it in a ceramic or glass bowl in the fridge. A dab on a plate of boiled rice makes a dish fit for a rajah. a few greens, maybe a bit of shredded pork or shrimp, and Bob's yer uncle.

A good read is Amil Naj's "Peppers: A Story of Hot Pursuits"
http://www.amazon.com/Peppers-Story-..._1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1231168594&sr=1-1

Chile is like pussy-it's all good even if it's bad.

[Edited 2009-01-05 07:18:47]

desertjets · Mon Jan 05, 2009 7:39 pm

Speaking of New Mexican chilies.... I could really go for some Carne Adovada right about now
http://www.santafeschoolofcooking.com/Recipes/Carne_Adovada/
For the uninformed.

Such awesome stuff. Though the last time I had some it had the unfortunate side effect of turning my leavings a deep shade of red. Wow!

mbmbos · Mon Jan 05, 2009 8:07 pm

Ah, man, carne adovada! I miss it so much. As a native New Mexican, I prefer chili from Hatch Valley. Both red and green - I'm not partial.

I really enjoy huevos rancheros with green chili too. Also, on the Acoma reservation, a red chili stew (made with lamb) is served with indian fry bread. And it ain't Christmas without a bowl of posole with lots of red chili.

Now that I live in Boston, it's hard to find such wonderful treats. Usually, in the late summer, I have a friend of mine from Albuquerque send me a box of Hatch Valley green and red chili peppers. I roast them outside on the barbecue grill, run 'em through a colander, and freeze the chili meat in Ziploc bags so that I can have chili all winter long.

Dougloid · Mon Jan 05, 2009 8:25 pm

Quoting MBMBOS (Reply 23):
Now that I live in Boston, it's hard to find such wonderful treats. Usually, in the late summer, I have a friend of mine from Albuquerque send me a box of Hatch Valley green and red chili peppers. I roast them outside on the barbecue grill, run 'em through a colander, and freeze the chili meat in Ziploc bags so that I can have chili all winter long.

You should probably find a good hispanic grocery. There are at least three or four here in Des Moines. Gotta be a few in Bostonia, right? I mean, where else would I get Jarritos and guava paste?

One day I was at the local commercial grade grocery and there was a cooler with a sign that said Hatch Chiles .Mother never had to call me twice for dinner, I can tell you.

One of my favorite dishes is chile colorado, and this is something you can make yourself-it's beef cut up in small pieces and stewed in red chile sauce. Served with flour tortillas and some rice on the side.

Quoting DesertJets (Reply 22):
Speaking of New Mexican chilies.... I could really go for some Carne Adovada right about now
http://www.santafeschoolofcooking.co...vada/

Great recipes.

yummy

RussianJet · Mon Jan 05, 2009 8:50 pm

This is not flippancy, but a question motivated by genuine linguistic interest.

I note many people using the spelling 'chile' here, as opposed to the one I would normally use, 'chilli'. Is 'chile' a commonly-used spelling in America? I assume it comes from the Spanish.

mbmbos · Mon Jan 05, 2009 8:51 pm

Quoting Dougloid (Reply 24):
You should probably find a good hispanic grocery. There are at least three or four here in Des Moines. Gotta be a few in Bostonia, right? I mean, where else would I get Jarritos and guava paste?

There are plenty of bodegas and latin grocery stores, but more in the style of Dominican, Puerto Rican, Central American, etc. (and I go to them for other Latin dishes I make) I can find Hatch chilis in canned form, but they're soggy and the salt/vinegar goop they're preserved in kills the flavor.

pnqiad · Mon Jan 05, 2009 9:00 pm

Quoting RussianJet (Reply 25):
I note many people using the spelling 'chile' here, as opposed to the one I would normally use, 'chilli'. Is 'chile' a commonly-used spelling in America? I assume it comes from the Spanish.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chili_pepper

Spelling and usage section answers your question - Chile is widely used in North America to distinguish it from "Chile" - the Southwestern-American dish.

RussianJet · Mon Jan 05, 2009 9:04 pm

Quoting PNQIAD (Reply 27):
Chile is widely used in North America to distinguish it from "Chile"

Did I miss something? That's the same spelling twice.

pnqiad · Mon Jan 05, 2009 9:12 pm

Quoting RussianJet (Reply 28):

My bad - the dish is called Chili.

RussianJet · Mon Jan 05, 2009 9:15 pm

Quoting PNQIAD (Reply 29):
My bad - the dish is called Chili.

I thought so, and delicious it is too. I doubt my version would be anything like as nice as some of the offerings our American comrades could produce, but I like to make one once in a while anyway, and I don't think I do it badly.

Alias1024 · Mon Jan 05, 2009 10:50 pm

Quoting MBMBOS (Reply 23):
Now that I live in Boston, it's hard to find such wonderful treats. Usually, in the late summer, I have a friend of mine from Albuquerque send me a box of Hatch Valley green and red chili peppers. I roast them outside on the barbecue grill, run 'em through a colander, and freeze the chili meat in Ziploc bags so that I can have chili all winter long.

I had an ABQ overnight last fall just after the harvest. I got my parents to buy me some when they went and bought their supply for the year, and I was able to fill an igloo cooler with roasted green chile that had been frozen a week earlier. I looked a little strange in my uniform, walking through the airport with an cooler (rest of the crew thought I looked like I was transporting human organs), but it was absolutely worth it. Now I have a freezer full of roasted, peeled green chile.

p.s. Please remember that it's spelled "chile". Only the Mexican food know nothings called Texans spell it "chili". Wink

Quoting Dougloid (Reply 24):
You should probably find a good hispanic grocery. There are at least three or four here in Des Moines. Gotta be a few in Bostonia, right? I mean, where else would I get Jarritos and guava paste?

One day I was at the local commercial grade grocery and there was a cooler with a sign that said Hatch Chiles .Mother never had to call me twice for dinner, I can tell you.

Usually not difficult to find in the produce section at most grocery stores. Whole Foods is almost certain to have some. The problem is that often they are not fresh, and instead are old and wrinkly. The heat and flavor isn't nearly as intense. That's why I'll stock up every fall in ABQ and keep a supply frozen to get me through the year.

pnqiad · Tue Jan 06, 2009 1:18 am

Quoting Alias1024 (Reply 31):
Please remember that it's spelled "chile". Only the Mexican food know nothings called Texans spell it "chili".

Chili to rest of the world though.....

Cadet57 · Tue Jan 06, 2009 1:30 am

Quoting Alias1024 (Reply 31):
The problem is that often they are not fresh, and instead are old and wrinkly.

And yet they'll still be $65 a pound. I never understood the appeal of that overpriced place. Thou, their desserts are amazing drool

Fly2HMO · Tue Jan 06, 2009 1:35 am

Quoting QXatFAT (Thread starter):
Jalepeno

Alright, I'm gonna be a jerk and nitpick. It's spelled Jalapeño

Quoting PNQIAD (Reply 32):
Chili to rest of the world though.....

Only if the rest of the world falls under this category:

Quoting Alias1024 (Reply 31):
Only the Mexican food know nothings spell it "chili".

I love really hot chiles, but only the ones that have taste to it. Some, like serranos don't taste like much (to me at least) and only feel like throwing fire in your mouth. Some of the habanero varieties have a nice taste to them, and I also like those that are deep fried or grilled and stuffed with something, my favorite of those is a big jalapeño deep fried and stuffed with minced marlin meat. A real treat.

As for the best brands for salsa, I always go with the real Mexican brands, Herdez is my favorite. They make the best chipotle and salsa verde.

I hate,HATE those wannabe "real" Mexican salsas, specially those from tostitos. Their salsas taste like a watered down mush of random vegetables

http://www.herdeztraditions.com/herdez/default.aspx

[Edited 2009-01-05 17:39:08]

[Edited 2009-01-05 17:41:39]

[Edited 2009-01-05 17:42:19]

Alias1024 · Tue Jan 06, 2009 2:26 am

Quoting FLY2HMO (Reply 34):
I love really hot chiles, but only the ones that have taste to it.

That is vitally important. I'd much rather have good flavor and low to moderate heat than the opposite.

ShyFlyer · Tue Jan 06, 2009 3:33 am

Quoting FLY2HMO (Reply 34):
It's spelled Jalapeño

on a steeek?

mariner · Tue Jan 06, 2009 3:41 am

Poblano.

Especially as in crema de poblano soup. Smile

mariner

Dougloid · Tue Jan 06, 2009 4:33 am

Quoting MBMBOS (Reply 26):
I can find Hatch chilis in canned form, but they're soggy and the salt/vinegar goop they're preserved in kills the flavor.

Somebody must freeze them. It will be my mission to find them.

I mean, I was in the grocery store yesterday and they had cooked frozen squash. I haven't eaten that stuff since i was a kid and I do not know anyone who has....stands to reason there oughtta be enough frozen chile to make us both happy somewhere.

Dougloid · Tue Jan 06, 2009 4:38 am

Quoting PNQIAD (Reply 32):
Chili to rest of the world though.....

They're just wrong.

Quoting FLY2HMO (Reply 34):
I hate,HATE those wannabe "real" Mexican salsas, specially those from tostitos. Their salsas taste like a watered down mush of random vegetables

Really. I make my own. Easy to do, cheap to make, fresh and tasty. Of course after a bit of it you might need to bored oversize and have a stainless steel liner pressed in place.

mbmbos · Tue Jan 06, 2009 4:52 am

Quoting Dougloid (Reply 38):
Somebody must freeze them. It will be my mission to find them.

I've seen plenty of frozen chili out West but not in New England. You find it for me and I'll be your friend for life!

Smile

Dougloid · Tue Jan 06, 2009 4:55 am

Quoting MBMBOS (Reply 40):
Quoting Dougloid (Reply 38):
Somebody must freeze them. It will be my mission to find them.

I've seen plenty of frozen chili out West but not in New England. You find it for me and I'll be your friend for life!

I shall search diligently. The chances may be good.
Iowa is in the west-I'm 200 miles west of the Mississippi- and there is a large hispanic population largely Mexican and Mexican Americans from the southwest who have come here to work in the meat packing houses.

If it is here I will find it.

duke · Thu Jan 08, 2009 1:29 pm

I like 'em nice and hot. You wouldn't believe how much Tobasco I can put in my soup etc.

Dougloid · Thu Jan 08, 2009 2:18 pm

Quoting FLY2HMO (Reply 34):
Quoting QXatFAT (Thread starter):
Jalepeno

Alright, I'm gonna be a jerk and nitpick. It's spelled Jalapeño

That's not nit picky at all. It is a praiseworthy exercise in accuracy in language.

Wink

Chile was not always readily available in the midwest. Back in the spring of 1984 me and the Dragon Lady moved from Los Angeles to southwestern Michigan and there was no chile and no salsa available. Period. I got a recipe from one of our friends and was able to cobble up a passable substitute but it was not until I walked into the Aztec Grocery in Grand Rapids that I knew I was saved. It was wonderful. My sinuses cleared out from the smells as I loaded up a grocery cart.

These days the average commercial grade grocery here in Iowa carries a lot of stuff that you can do a pretty good job with, but if you want the real mojo, then time spent at La Tapatia or one of the other ethnic groceries is not wasted.

My other passion is curry, and lots of it. Hard to find here but it can be done.

RGElectra80 · Thu Jan 08, 2009 2:32 pm

Quoting Dougloid (Reply 43):
My other passion is curry, and lots of it. Hard to find here but it can be done.

I think curry is an acquired taste and I have just never acquired the taste for it despite multiple attempts. Isn't curry commonly available in the spice racks at the grocery store? Like the McCormick's or Badia type stuff?

Dougloid · Thu Jan 08, 2009 4:29 pm

Quoting RGElectra80 (Reply 44):
I think curry is an acquired taste and I have just never acquired the taste for it despite multiple attempts. Isn't curry commonly available in the spice racks at the grocery store? Like the McCormick's or Badia type stuff?

That stuff on the racks is not the real deal. I'd try a good Indian or Pakistani restaurant before you give up on the stuff. Order something simple like channa masala and get some naan on the side. That's curried chickpeas and fresh flatbread.

Come to think of it, I may just head out to India Star for lunch.

yummy

RGElectra80 · Thu Jan 08, 2009 5:15 pm

Quoting Dougloid (Reply 45):
That stuff on the racks is not the real deal. I'd try a good Indian or Pakistani restaurant before you give up on the stuff. Order something simple like channa masala and get some naan on the side. That's curried chickpeas and fresh flatbread.

Come to think of it, I may just head out to India Star for lunch.

I've had curry in India and it still didn't do it for me, although I did like a lot of the other things I had there.

Thanks, now I want to go to my local Indian joint for lunch! yummy

mbmbos · Thu Jan 08, 2009 5:28 pm

Quoting Dougloid (Reply 45):
That stuff on the racks is not the real deal.

There's a certain irony with curry, as it is thought of as a single spice instead of a combination of spices that varies based on the dish and the regional influence of the dish served.

On the other hand, there's allspice, which is not a collection of spices but comes from a single nut.

I never use "curry" from a McCormick's bottle. I make my own based on the ingredients prescribed. Last Saturday I made a slow-cooked lamb Vindaloo. Turned out really well!

I'll send you some frozen Vindaloo when you send me frozen chili, Dougloid!

NWAESC · Thu Jan 08, 2009 8:50 pm

I like all of them, but I prefer the hotter ones.

There's also a great sauce called Matouk's calypso sauce that is made with scotch bonnet peppers; it's really good on rice. I imagine it's good on chicken/fish/whatever, but couldn't tell you, since I don't eat meat...

Dougloid · Thu Jan 08, 2009 11:30 pm

Quoting MBMBOS (Reply 47):
I never use "curry" from a McCormick's bottle. I make my own based on the ingredients prescribed. Last Saturday I made a slow-cooked lamb Vindaloo. Turned out really well!

I have not progressed quite so far, O Noble One. I still get mine from the Pataks jar or the Lalah's can.

yummy

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