Welcome To This Months Newsletter

You subscribed to the chillies-down-under.com newsletter last year and as you will have noticed, I let you down with respect to the level of service I wanted, and promised, to provide

I’d be grateful if you let me briefly explain why we let you down and betrayed your trust.

The website went online in late 2005 and was controlled by our part-owned food wholesale business, Fandangle Foods, which unfortunately went broke in mid-2006. As a result of that failure the website was tied up in the subsequent proceedings with business partners, who decided to shut it down.

I have been flat-out over the last 12 months recovering from the business failure and one part of that process that I desperately wanted to achieve was to regain control of the website and breathe life back into it. In July of this year, I have achieved that!

I am now, at last, the sole owner of chillies-down-under.com site and am excited about the plans I have for it. During the last 12 months I have not been sitting back waiting for things to happen.

Together with a couple of volunteers who will help me research recipes, chillies and some content, I have laid out some great plans for the site and I do intend to do things with it that I have not seen on any other chilli website.

I hope you will continue your subscription to this newsletter, however, if you feel that the site has let you down, you can unsubscribe at the bottom of this newsletter.

If you decide to stay this is what you can expect to find;

several rapid expansions of the free information the site provides, subscriber benefits, and special offers put in place between now and the end of the year.

IMMEDIATE CHANGES

• The newsletter will now be larger and published monthly

• New information and recipes will be added to the site EVERY week

CHANGES TO BE IMPLEMENTED BY THE END OF 2007

• An online store with a select range of products, the majority of which will be exclusive to chillies-down-under.com

• Collaborative projects with other websites and chilli product manufacturers.

• A range of subscriber levels, each with exclusive content, features, and offers.

OK, let's get into this month's content.

New Hottest Chilli Record

You may remember us discussing this particular chilli in an earlier newsletter in reponse to a readers questions about reports of the Naga Jolokia chilli in India being measured as the hottest in the world, eclipsing the previous record holder, the Red Savina habanero.

At the time there was a significant amount of doubt surrounding the claim and the people concerned could not be contacted to answer questions.

However, we have learnt that the Institute did manage to obtain some seeds and having cultivated them, performed the analysis under strict scientific conditions.

It is worth considering that heat levels that high put them in the range of some of the extreme sauces that have distilled capsaicin added to them, such as Blairs MegaDeath and Daves Ultimate Insanity. Amazing.

There will no doubt be a range of Bhut Jolokia sauces coming out in the near future. We'll keep you posted.


A dried Bhut Jolokia chilli

Best Before ??

1,500 Year Old Salsa Found

The caves, Guilá Naquitz and Silvia's Cave, are two dry rock shelters near Mitla in the Valley of Oaxaca, southern Mexico. Guilá Naquitz is famous for its well-preserved plant remains, dating back to the beginnings of squash cultivation in Mexico some 10,000 years ago. Dry, arid conditions over the centuries prevented decay of the crop remains, which include corn, squash, beans, avocados and chillies.

The chilli remains studies were found associated with other foods such as corn, squash, and avocados. Seven varieties of chillies were identified and were dated to around 1,500 years ago.

"What was interesting to me was that we were able to determine that they were using the peppers both dried and fresh," Perry said(Chillies broken while fresh have a recognizable breakage pattern.)

"It shows us that ancient Mexican food was very much like today. They would have used fresh peppers in salsas or in immediate preparation, and they would have used the dried peppers to toss into stews or to grind up into sauces like moles."

"In the cave deposits, we can see excellent documentation for the sophistication of the agriculture and the cuisine at this point in time," Perry said. "You don't grow seven different kinds of chilies unless you're cooking some pretty interesting food."

Sidenote: Linda has evidence of chilli cultivation and trading going back 6,100 years !

Ring Of Fire

He asked:

Nige, why did I have an internal explosion after eating some Chilli Fried Fish whilst on holiday in Kiribati?

Answer:

Mate, this is a complex issue that may have been compounded by some dodgy fish.

Anyway, to answer the last part of your question first, for some reason that only nature knows, many of the nerves around your anus are very similar to those on your tongue and in your mouth. Thankfully they don’t send taste information to the brain, only pain signals.

Now, the body interprets capsaicin (the heat in chillies) as an irritant/invader and responds by trying to get rid of it. This is why many people sneeze or hiccup when they are exposed to chillies as that is the body’s first attempt to get rid of the irritant.

The more capsaicin you ingest, the greater the body’s reaction. You will notice that if you eat a very hot vindaloo that it tends to go through your system faster than normal – that’s the body trying to get rid of the irritant. If you only have a small amount, the reaction is much more subdued.

Now, capsaicin does break down as it passes through you, but only slowly. If you have a lot of capsaicin, or some dodgy fish, the body puts a priority on getting it out of the system, which means the capsaicin does not have time to breakdown. It’s at this point that the similarity between the nerves in your mouth and your backside kicks in and you experience the ring of fire.

As a point of extreme trivia, medical researchers have recently found those same types of nerves on the outside of the heart. Again, no idea why, but it could lead to capsaicin being used as a heart attack treatment.

Chilli Trivia

The northern Indian state of Haryana appears to have a number of enterprising criminals who escape police custody by thowing chilli powder in the eyes of their guards while being moved.

The technique was apparently adopted from the chilli revolt scene in the Bollywood movie Mirch Masala where chilli powder is thrown by a group of women to defend against oppressive government personnel.

Fifteen people escaped by this method in 1997-1998.

The largest breakout was in 1999 when a group of nine men escaped from a police van by using this technique while being taken from the courthouse to jail.

It was utilised again in 2000 when one of the regions more serious criminals, a man known as Phoola, escaped.

This Month's Recipes

makes 4 serves

These little tarts are a great easy snack.

• 1 sheet (25cm) ready-rolled frozen puff pastry
• 2 chorizo sausages, thinly sliced
• 1 jalapeno, deseeded and finely sliced
• 2 zucchini, thinly sliced lengthways (julienned)
• 100g semi-dried tomatoes, drained, cut in half and stems removed
• 50g goat’s cheese, crumbled (we're blessed here in Perth having direct access to Kervella goat cheeses)
• 1 tablsp balsamic vinegar
• 1 tablsp olive oil
• 100g baby spinach & lettuce salad leaves, to serve

Cut the pastry sheet into quarters and line the bases and sides of four 8cm (base measurement) x 3cm fluted tart tins with removable bases with the pastry, allowing the sides to overhang.

Place the lined tins on an oven tray and chill them in the fridge.

Meanwhile, heat a large frying pan over high heat and cook in a little oil cook the chorizo slices until golden brown on both sides. Transfer to a plate.

Then add the chilli and a quarter of the zucchini to the pan and cook for 1-2 minutes until each side of the zucchini is golden and just tender. Transfer to the same plate.

Repeat in three more batches with the remaining zucchini.

Arrange the zucchini, chorizo and tomatoes evenly among the pastry cases then sprinkle with the goat’s cheese.

Bake in preheated oven for 15-20 minutes or until pastry is golden and puffed.

Place the tartlets on serving dishes.

Combine the vinegar and oil in a small bowl and drizzle over the tartlets.

Serve immediately with salad leaves.

makes 6 serves

• 1 egg
• 2 tablsp plain flour
• 3 cups cooked rice
• 1 tablsp vegetable oil
• 1 brown onion, finely chopped
• 750g pork fillet, trimmed, cut into 2cm cubes
• 2 tablsp green curry paste
• 165ml can coconut milk
• 1 tablsp lime juice
• 1/3 cup basil leaves, finely shredded
• lime wedges, to serve

Combine egg and flour in a large bowl, then add the rice and stir until well combined. Place 1/2 cup of rice mixture into each pan and with wet hands, press evenly over base and sides of each pan.

Bake these for about 12 minutes or until light golden and firm to the touch. Remove from pans while still warm.

Put some oil in a frying pan over medium heat and saute the onion until tender. Then add the chicken and cook for 4 to 5 minutes until browned.

Then stir in curry paste and cook for a further 2 minutes.

Add coconut milk to chicken mixture and cook on medium heat, stirring, until mixture comes to the boil.

Reduce heat to low and simmer for 10 minutes or until the mixture thickens.

Remove from heat and Stir through the lime juice and basil.

Spoon into the rice cases and serve with a lime wedge each.

Wishing you a life full of flavour

Nigel

I've added a secret ingredient just for you. The merciless peppers of Quetzlzacatenengo, grown deep in the primeval jungles by the inmates of a Guatemalan insane asylum.
Chief Wiggum in The Simpsons