Posted on 01/19/2018 11:12:44 PM PST by nickcarraway
A look at chillies from across India and the world, the hot and the not-so-hot
One of the distinctive qualities of Indian food is its “hotness”. From Manipur to Bijapur to Bilaspur, across India, you’ll find foods that are spicy in varying degrees.
Several culinary dishes have chilli in them in some form or the other. In a number of Indian homes and restaurants, it is customary to serve raw or semi-fried green chillies as an accompaniment to the main course.
Steaming hot curries, thick sambars with a variety of vegetables, different kinds of bhaaths (rice dishes), mutton rassas, onion pakodas, bhajjis, and hundreds of other dishes just cannot be imagined without chilli in them.
A tempering of red chillies can make even a bland dish look appealing and add zest to it.
Across the world, chillies are known by various names—chile, hot peppers, cayenne peppers, paprika, bell peppers, and capsicum—to name a few. However, in general, chillies are the smaller-sized, more pungent type, while the larger, mild to moderate variety are the different kinds of peppers.
The story of how the chili reached Europe is an interesting one. In the 15th century, Christopher Columbus set sail from Spain looking for a spice route between Asia and Europe. In particular, he was searching for what people back then called “black gold”—black peppercorns.
They were considered to be a valuable commodity and he was determined to carry some back to Spain. Instead of finding a spice route, though, he ended up discovering America.
During the course of his voyages, he came upon a spicy plant known locally as aji on the shores of the Dominican Republic and Haiti. It’s also called pimiento chile, which Columbus thought to mean chilli peppers. He carried it back to Spain where it grew to be
(Excerpt) Read more at livemint.com ...
I don't think that Naga Jolokia is recognized as the hottest anymore.
Nagaland, one of the province is from is one of the three Christian-majority states in India, with more than 88% Christians. It has 75% Baptists, about 20% more than in Mississippi, the U.S. state with the most Baptists.
Interesting article although bad research on the Ghost chili pepper being the world’s hottest. It has long been past by the likes of the Carolina Reaper, Dragons breath and now Pepper X.
We grow Reapers. My wife made some hot sauce and home canned it. The peppers ate through the jar lids!
Gotta find some Pepper X seeds now.
A quart should last a lifetime...
At first I thought it was the band.
I like to take them and fry them black in my special wok. Then break them up yo use to spice up everything. Don’t breath the smoke when you’re frying them though! Smoky hot peps! Yum!
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.