TOTM OF THE MONTH - HOT AND SPICY

[JoyfulCook]

The spice trade where caravans of camels brought spices from the east was started hundreds and hundreds of years ago. They were so expensive that only the richest of people could afford them

Times have changed and now we can all indulge in the wonderful tastes and flavours that spices bring into our lives.

Hot and spicy, either you love or hate it - but hot does not mean that it has to be 'over the top hot' it can be a spicy blend that adds that something special to any meal.

For those who are not too sure of your Chillis and that includes me, here is a bit of a guide


Chilli Ball A brightly coloured chilli that is round in shape. The colour will vary between green, red and orange depending on maturity. The flesh has a crisp, strong, rich hot flavour. The seeds are hotter than the flesh.

Chilli Habanero A yellow to orange coloured chilli with crisp flesh. Flavour is extremely hot.


Chilli baby hot Bright red to green skin containing a sound seed cavity. The flesh has a crisp, strong, rich, hot flavour. The seeds are hotter than the flesh. A very hot tiny chilli (1-2cm) whose skin colour can range from lime yellow to orange. Most people would find it very hot even without the seeds. Use in Thai, Chinese, Indonesian, Malaysian, Indian or Spanish dishes.
Ball chili green Medium heat only from this small round shiny green chilli. Excellent in Asian recipes or use for chutney or pickles. Ball chili red Much hotter than its greener relative, this small round chilli is about 3cm in diameter and is excellent in Mexican dishes or chutneys.

Bell chili red Another hot red chilli shaped more like a bell or a granny's bonnet. Use in Asian, Indian or Mexican cooking. Bell chili green Medium to hot flavour in this green-skinned chilli shaped like a bell. Excellent in pickles and hot mango chutney.

Green chili A long slender green chilli, 6-8cm long, pointed at one end. Medium flavour is tolerated by most people who are not used to chilli. 

Red chili Similar to green chilli but with more sting in its flavour.

Mexican hot chili One of the hottest chillies with bright green skin. Long (6-8cm) and pointed at one end.

Extra large chili hot or jalapeno (pronounced halapeno) One for the masochists, this fiery hot chilli is the benchmark by which all other chillies are judged. It comes in colours ranging from dark green to red and is sausage shaped with a blunt end.

Have you got any chilli stories or Ideas you can share with us - we would all love to hear them

[JustJanS]

I'll try and tell my favourite story politely:

We were overnighting at Eucla roadhouse and would be crossing into South Australia and quarantine the following day at Ceduna.

I halved, deseeded and froze a huge bag of super hot chillies, then went to the toilet and changed a ladies sanitary item that is inserted with ones fingers.

The pain and heat lasted a couple of hours. I was hyper-ventilating and so distressed, at one stage, I thought of calling the Royal Flying Doc to be airlifted to a hospital somewhere. It was a very good lesson of what not to do when!

[JoyfulCook]

Jan - omg! that must have been so so painful. can't help but smile all the same - I bet you never did that again. The chilli hangs around so much that I now use disposable gloves when dealing with them!

[VeggieCook98]

Oh my! I don't even want to imagine that

I was once cutting a very hot pepper, and the juice flew right into my eye. I thought I was gonna lose eyesight in that eye!

[Dib's]

Similar to Jan's story-

I had a guy friend who was cutting hot peppers and went to the bathroom to pee. Couldn't figure out why my shower turned on.

He came out about 15 minutes later in tears. I tried so hard not to laugh, really I did. I handed him Dawn dish soap and a quick 411 about cutting the oil as he ran down the hall.

I don't wear gloves-I do rub olive oil on my hands first, then wash with Dawn Dish soap. The oil protects my hands & when the oil is gone, so are the hot pepper oils.

on another note-my sister was at a friends for dinner and excused herself to use the restroom. They were out of TP on the roll so she used the tissue from the box on the back of the toilet.

It was the medicated kind for sore noses. Not so good for other areas though She had no idea what was wrong

[JoyfulCook]

Now! out come the stories… chlli's and me dont get along cos no matter how much I ash my hands it still seems to get through…….. rubber disposable gloves for me now!

[Mia #3]

I know exactly what your talking about, the very SAME thing happened to me........lol..lol..lol... I laugh now at the situation, but back then OMG I thought the very worst.. Needless to say RUBBER GLOVES for me from now on.

[Chef Shadows]

All I can say is MILK! Milk takes the heat right out!

I never use gloves, but do keep a glass of milk handy.

[VeggieCook98]

When I got the chili juice in my eye, I kept rinsing it out with milk. Really helped!

[Mia #3]

Milk???..........Well I'm certainly going to keep that in mind this summer, as I grow them in my backyard. Thanks for the GREAT tip, so much for the rubber gloves. LOL..LOL..

[JoyfulCook]

Chef Shadows wrote:
All I can say is MILK! Milk takes the heat right out!

I never use gloves, but do keep a glass of milk handy.

Never heard to that, but will keep some handy as I am cooking with chilli. thanks shadows

[coopmaitred]

check out "the farmer and the cook" in Ojai, California
they grow espelette and datil hot peppers. you can order them via their website along with merken , a blend of cumin, coriander and assorted spicy peppers. they come in a jar by the ounce, they are not inexpensive but they are excellent and unique. Wolfgang Puck uses many of these spicy peppers in his restaurants. I will not be without them since my initial purchase.

[Elmotoo]

JustJanS wrote:
I'll try and tell my favourite story politely:

We were overnighting at Eucla roadhouse and would be crossing into South Australia and quarantine the following day at Ceduna.

I halved, deseeded and froze a huge bag of super hot chillies, then went to the toilet and changed a ladies sanitary item that is inserted with ones fingers.

The pain and heat lasted a couple of hours. I was hyper-ventilating and so distressed, at one stage, I thought of calling the Royal Flying Doc to be airlifted to a hospital somewhere. It was a very good lesson of what not to do when!

Jan, you are not alone.

[Elmotoo]

I made Stuffed Chiles With Cheese the other day. DELICIOUS! But NO heat. Tastier than bell peppers but next time I'm going for the poblanos which i lovelovelove.

[JoyfulCook]

Elmotoo I don't know about you but sometimes buying chilli's is a bit hit and miss for me as some are just not hot enough - or too hot…. and its a bit of a waste, even when they re the same kind that i get!