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| CHILLI
LOVE |
FOOD
& COOKING ARTICLE |
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 I was asked if I would
like to create a page for this web site and jumped at
the chance to reach a wider audience.
I
hope the following information will encourage you to
use chillies in your cooking and for those of you who
are already chilli lovers some new ideas.
 A
little history
It
is widely thought that chillies originate from an
area in south America, today's thinking would put
it somewhere in an area bordered by that of brazil,
Bolivia, Paraguay and Argentina. This area is known
as the nuclear area and would have contained the greatest
concentration of wild species in the world. Scientists
believe that from this nuclear area birds were the
primary carrier for the spread of chillies.
Uses
of chillies
Peppers
are starting to get the recognition that they deserve
for being amongst the most interesting a versatile
plants grown. The pods grow in many different shapes,
colours and pungency. Extracts from the pods are used
in cosmetics, medicine, and law enforcement and of
course in cooking where they have unlimited uses such
as jams, jellies, oils, vinegars, relishes, chutneys,
mustards, butters, stews, salsa and sauces and too
many dishes to name.
There
are also many ways of storing chillies such as freezing,
pickling, drying, smoked and powdered.
Types
of chillies
 There
are five species of chillies these are:
- Annuumm
meaning annual (types bell, wax, jalapeno)
- Baccatum
meaning berrylike (type ajis)
- Chinense
meaning from china (type habanero)
- Frutescens
meaning shrubby (type tabasco)
- Pubescens
meaning hairy (types rocoto)
From
these there are many thousands of pod types and varieties
Cooking
with chillies
When
using chillies in cooking there are so many different
varieties all with different tastes and strengths,
for first timers or those just starting out the two
ways of reducing the heat of a chilli, are removing
all the seeds and the white or orange membrane that
they are attached to. It is often said that the heat
comes from the seeds, but this membrane is the hottest
part of a chilli. Then as you get more adventurous
leave in the seeds and membrane.
Chillies
are so versatile that I find they can be used in so
many different recipes. I like to experiment and try
them in all sorts of recipes. Two of my favourites
would have to be chilli ice-cream (recipe below) and
chilli cheese bread.
Growing
my own chillies I always have a ready supply for my
experiments.
CHILLI
ICE-CREAM
Ingredients
for Chilli Ice-cream
4
egg yolks
3 oz caster sugar
3 teaspoons vanilla essence or 1 oz vanilla pods
7 fluid ounces full cream milk
5 oz whipping cream
3 oz dried chopped chilli or freshly chopped
1oz chocolate flakes
Method
for Chilli Ice-cream
- Put
the egg yolks, sugar and vanilla into a bowl. Beat
with a whisk until mixture is light and frothy
- Add
the milk slowly, stirring constantly
- Whip
the cream until it is almost stiff
- Combine
egg mixture with cream and remaining ingredients,
making sure that they are thoroughly mixed together
- Place
mixture into any ice-cream maker and you will be enjoying
it about 30 minutes later!!!
Serves
6
Enjoy
your Chilli Ice-cream
Crazychef
This
special feature page on chillis was provided by Simon
'Crazychef' Howlett.
Email
Hub-UK : info@hub-uk.com
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