Chilies

Posted on 24. Jan, 2010 by admin in Ingredients

Of all ingredients, this is the most fun to play with. There are so many different chilies from all over the world and each has different levels of heat. In the U.S. you’ll find finger-length chilies (medium spicy) to Thai Bird’s Eye chili, which are tiny but will have you screamin’ for your mama. Here’s my tip. Use what you like and what you can find fresh in your markets. Generally (and I really do mean generally) the larger the chili is, the less spice it packs. I try to find larger chilies because while I totally enjoy the flavor of fresh chilies, my spice tolerance really isn’t that high. Jalapenos, while not Asian, are super-fresh and plentiful in my markets and I also grow them in my backyard. If you prefer even less heat, go for the big, fat banana peppers, which are incredibly mild but still have wonderful flavors.

Dried Chilies

You can find whole dried chilies at most Asian markets and you can soak them in hot water for a few hours to blend with some garlic or other seasonings to make a great chili sauce, or you can throw them in whole into your cooking. Of course, if you use them whole, you’ll get lovely flavor of the chili without all the heat. I personally like to cut each dried chili in half, empty out and discard the seeds and and add the halved chilies to my dish. This way, my kids aren’t surprised with a zinger of a bite if a chili seed (the source of most of the heat) is hidden in their food! The whole dried chili is about 1 1/2 inches to 2 inches long and you can usually find them in your regular supermarket.

Chili Powder

Chili powder is dried chilies ground into powder or flakes. It’s very popular in firey Korean dishes, like Tofu Stew. It’s also the heat that makes kimchi hot! Use sparingly at first, taste and then add more chili powder if you need to into a dish. A little goes a long ways, trust me. Oh, and one more thing. After you taste, wait 30 seconds before you add more chili powder. Some chili powder sneaks up on you, and its effect won’t be apparent until a few seconds after you swallow!