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Chile Peppers: Hot Tips and Tasty Picks

Plants & Gardens News Volume 12, Number 3 | Fall 1997

by Janet Marinelli

Burnt Out

It's all Doug's fault. Doug Dudgeon, the soft-spoken curator of BBG's Japanese Garden and chili pepper collection (a yin-yang combination if there ever was one), has grown scores of chili varieties in the past few years, and his devotion to these torrid pods has rubbed off, alas, on me. What to do with yet another bumper crop of the green, orange, and red spikes of fire becomes my major obsession at this time of year—if I see one more salsa recipe I'll scream! I decided to sample the chili literature for other ideas. Here are five of the more creative suggestions.

Mouth surf. This is New Age medicine guru Dr. Andrew Weil's term for the rush experienced when eating chilis, the hotter the better—and the hottest, according to reliable authorities, is the 'Red Savina' habanero, which, with a rating of 577,000 Scoville Heat Units, the official measure of pepper hotness (compared to, say, 400 for the wimpy jalapeño 'Senorita'), is a veritable blowtorch. Apparently, when the alkaloid capsaicin, the compound that gives chilis their bite, comes in contact with the nerve endings in the tongue and mouth, pain messengers, called neurotransmitters, are sent to the brain in a panic. The brain, perceiving that the body is in big trouble (mistakenly; chilis don't do any real harm, though they should be handled with caution; see "Beat the Heat"), responds by turning on the waterworks to douse the flames. The mouth salivates, the nose runs, and the upper body breaks into a sweat. The heart beats faster, and the natural painkiller endorphin is secreted. In other words, you get a buzz. According to Dr. Weil, it's possible to ride this intense wave of pain and pleasure to achieve a higher state of consciousness. Sure.

Do-it-yourself tear gas. America's leading chilihead, editor of Chile Pepper magazine Dave DeWitt, offers a homemade alternative to mace for water-pistol-wielding joggers: blend a few fresh chili pods in a cup of water, let steep, then strain and load into your squirt gun.

Swab your boat bottom. Ahoy all sailboaters and stinkpotters—there may be a natural substitute for those awful toxic marine paints. Slather some chili powder mixed with petroleum jelly below your water line to banish barnacles and other creatures of the deep.

Knock their socks off. Here's a holiday gift idea worthy of Martha Stewart. Forget those cliche chili pepper pins, earrings, and other body ornaments. Keep your loved ones' tootsies warm this winter by giving them socks hand-appliqued with habaneros and sprinkled with chili powder.

Spice up your love life. Amal Naj, author of the definitive Peppers: A Story of Hot Pursuits, reports that chilis have been linked to amorousness at least as far back as medieval India, when lovers were advised to rub a special potion combining peppers, raisins, and honey on a, er, certain part of the male anatomy.

Enough said.

Beat the Heat

Few chili connoisseurs would argue with the statement that the pungent pods must be treated with respect. Wear plastic or rubber gloves when handling them, and don a mask when making chili powder. If the damage has already been done, the best way to put out the fire is to run to the refrigerator for milk or yogurt, the most readily available sources of casein, one of the lipoproteins capable of neutralizing capsaicin, the compound that makes chilis hot.

Eat the Heat

This versatile fruit/vegetable medley can double as a dip or a sauce.

  • 1 mango, peeled, pitted, and cubed
  • 2 peaches, peeled, pitted, and cubed (you can use fresh pineapple instead)
  • 1 red bell pepper, seeded and chopped (you can use yellow pepper instead)
  • 4 scallions, chopped, including green tops
  • 1 garlic clove, finely chopped
  • 2 Tbsp finely chopped cilantro (fresh is best; dry also works)
  • juice of 1 lime
  • 2 Tbsp olive oil
  • 3 Tbsp balsamic vinegar
  • 1 tsp salt
  • 1 Tbsp sugar
  • fresh black pepper
  • 1/2 jalapeno pepper, finely chopped

Toss all the ingredients together. Let stand in fridge one hour before serving.

Brooklyn Botanic Garden Director of Publishing Janet Marinelli is editor of BBG's renowned series of quarterly gardening handbooks and the author of Your Natural Home and The Naturally Elegant Home. Janet is a champion of the gardener's role in the preservation of the planet, a philosophy that informs her P&G News column, "Down to Earth." It's a philosophy that also serves as the bedrock for her latest book, Stalking the Wild Amaranth: Gardening in the Age of Extinction. In Stalking the Wild Amaranth, Janet tells of her quest for a landscape art that protects disappearing species, both flora and fauna. It's a gardening journey marked by humor—ecologically sensitive gardening needn't be a dreary affair, Janet insists. "We can do our part," she says, "and still have flair and fun."