What’s that condiment seen on dining room tables almost
as often as shoyu? A good guess would
be home concocted chili pepper water or the suspension of ground Hawaiian chili
peppers mashed with salt, sometimes fresh garlic or vinegar then usually stored
in either recycled standard 16 ounce water bottles or re-used empty memmi bottles. In fact, the 50th’s
love of chili pepper water has led manufacturers to market their own version of
the local favorite.
What Is a Chili
Pepper?
All members of the pepper family are in the genus Capsicum which is part of the larger Solanaceae family which includes potatoes,
tomatoes, eggplant and tobacco. However what differentiates members of the Capsicum genus is their level of
capsaicin production, the compound that gives chili peppers their culinary
heat. And the rating of capsaicin is measured in Scoville units with higher
Scoville ratings corresponding to greater heat on the palate. It is a subjective
measurement as dried peppers are first mixed with alcohol to extract the
capsaicin then diluted with sugar water which is sampled by five trained
tasters who are continuously fed these ongoing diluted samples until at least
three of the five tasters can no longer detect any heat. Therefore, the most
diluted samples correspond to the hottest chili peppers. Your basic supermarket
bell pepper would rate as 0 Scoville units as it doesn’t produce capsaicin and
wouldn’t need any additional dilution as there’s no heat to begin with. On the
other end is the Carolina Reaper chili pepper which rates over 1.5 million
Scoville units. Pure capsaicin extract is rated at 18 million Scoville units
but really has no culinary application at all. Of course, I’m a capsaicin
lightweight so I usually avoid anything over 20,000 Scoville units.
Why Eat Anything
so Hot?
Hardcore chili heads will swear that consuming copious
amounts of chili peppers causes the release of endorphins in the brain which
bind to the same subset of receptors that opiates like morphine and oxycodone
bind to giving chili heads the same response as someone who just took their
dose of Roxicet or not unlike an addict who just injected their dose of
opiates. And with any addictive substance, the chili head continues to seek
hotter and hotter concoctions just to re-experience that chili buzz. As crazy
as it sounds, there is some science behind the capsaicin-endorphin connection.
There is an OTC topical cream that uses capsaicin to
stimulate the release of Substance P which is involved in pain transmission.
After applying the capsaicin cream three to four times daily, the continual
release of Substance P eventually depletes it thereby reducing the transmission
of pain to the brain. However during the first several days of application, the
affected area may actually seem to have a pronounced pain or burning sensation
even worse than the initial pain being treated until Substance P becomes
depleted in the following week or so. And you do have to faithfully apply three
to four times daily otherwise the Substance P simply replenishes itself causing
continued pain and burning. Personally, I’ll stick to prolonged aerobic
activity or laughter to release my natural endorphins.
Enhance not
Overwhelm
Some 30 thirty years ago while attending graduate school
in San Francisco, the future Mrs. and I came across a quaint Korean restaurant
in the Sunset District of The City. At our initial visit, one menu item caught
the eye of the future Mrs., Cold Noodle Salad with Skate Wing (stingray). When
she attempted to order it, the Korean server dissuaded us from ordering that
dish stating that usually only Korean people ordered it. We had a great meal
without the skate wing but it bugged the future Mrs. “I don’t like it when
someone tells me not to do something”. So on a subsequent visit a month or two
later, she attempted to order the Cold Noodle Salad again and received the same
warning but this time persisted in ordering that dish. When it arrived at our
table, it looked innocuous enough. Somen-type
noodles covered in what appeared to be tomato paste sprinkled with green onions
with bits of the raw skate wing. Of course, the person who ordered it makes me
try it first… Cold noodles… not much taste in the skate wing… and… hey, I don’t
think this is tomato paste… WHOA! Is this Tabasco paste? And did I mention that
my sweat glands are acutely tuned to capsaicin? For the rest of the meal, it
was Niagara Falls flowing off of my noggin’. Our server felt so sorry for me
that she left a whole pitcher of ice water at our table. Though whenever she
left our table she probably kept thinking “I told them…”. So to this day, I
ALWAYS remind the Mrs. that when a server dissuades you from ordering a certain
dish, it’s probably for a very good reason… and for your own good!
And though I’ll still avoid any dish that simply is pure
chili pepper burn and nothing else, I still do enjoy chili spiked dishes and
sauces that enhance the dining experience without overwhelming it. Like just the
right heat in a perfect Prawns in Chili Sauce or Mapo Tofu. I also love Tabasco Chipotle sauce on pasteles or gandule rice and Cajun cuisine just isn’t the same without a little
bit of heat that warms the mouth then slowly moves to the back of the throat.
Like my version of the traditional Texas red that just contains meat, chili and
spices.
Hold-Um Chili
5 lbs beef (chuck, round, sirloin)
2oz dried Ancho chili, stemmed and seeded
1oz dried Guajillo chili, stemmed and seeded
2 to 3 dried chili Negro, stemmed and seeded
1 to 2 whole chipotle chili (canned) with 2 tbsp adobo
sauce
2 quarts low-sodium chicken stock
5 cloves fresh garlic, minced
1 large onion, finely diced
2 tbsp smoked paprika
¾ tsp powdered cinnamon
1 tbsp ground cumin
1 tbsp dried oregano
Several dashes of ground allspice
2 tbsp apple cider vinegar
2 to 3 tbsp fine cornmeal (optional)
Salt and fresh ground black pepper to taste
Vegetable oil
When selecting your beef, I first look for locally raised
Hawaii beef since grass fed beef has a better flavor and though it can be
tougher, it will be cooked over a long period so any connective tissue will
break down. If you’re going for pure flavor, chuck should be your choice but for
my home consumption I look for leaner cuts like round or bottom sirloin. Cut
your beef to about ½ to ¾ inch thick then salt and pepper then place in a
smoker for about 1 hour flipping it about half way through the smoking process.
Meanwhile lightly toast the dried chili in a saucepan
making sure not to burn then lightly simmer in about 1 quart of the chicken stock
along with the chipotle and adobo for about 5 to 10 minutes until the dried
chili have rehydrated and softened. Let cool then puree in a blender with just
enough chicken stock to form a thick sauce.
After the smoked beef has rested at least 20 minutes, cut
it into bite sized cubes. Heat the vegetable oil in a Dutch oven and add the
onions and garlic and cook until softened then add the dried spices until the
mixture is fragrant (again, don’t let it burn) then add the cubed, smoked beef.
Add the chili sauce and the rest of the chicken stock and bring to a mild
simmer for 2 & ½ to 3 hours. Season with additional salt and black pepper
(I use smoked sea salt). If you want the chili thicker, you can mix the
cornmeal with some of the cooking liquid then add it back to the chili while
it’s still simmering. Alternatively, the whole mixture can be cooked in a
pressure for about 1 hour.
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