I love chillies! And I like them FIERY HOT!
There's something about chillies.. . It's addictive, and it's also a laxative (^ ^||). It adds a 'zing' to any dish. Bland food comes to life just by adding chillies! It is the prefect complement to a prefect dish, or the life-saver to a dish gone wrong!
I first realized the importance of chillies during a trip to east europe. After too many goulashes and european what-not, I was really missing the food at home... Till someone whipped up some chillies. And my life was saved that day forth.
Anyways, I really like fresh cut chillies with my food.. not just any chilli, it has to be a CILI PADI. If there's none, I'll settle for any chilli. But not tabasco sauce though!
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| aunt's fiery dried 'jalapenos' |
My aunt grows this mind-blowing chilli that a small bite of it, can send one all the way to Mars! It is not like the common cili padi at all. It's shaped like a jalapeno, and turns bright orangey red when ripe.There's a really nice fragrance and flavor to this variety. Since I can't get it fresh all the time, she had the chillies dried, so that I can use it anytime, pounded into flakes.
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| cili padi flakes |
Gochugaru. This is another kind of hot chilli pepper I like. It is usually sold in the form of flakes or powder. It's from korea, and it's available at the many korean marts in town. Since I've discovered korean food many years back through winter sonata from the big hallyu wave, this is a staple ingredient in my fridge. It comes in a gorgeous shade of red, and packs a punch too. Compared to aunt's chilli's flavorful flakes, gochugaru is quite neutral in taste. So it is really suitable for cooking, as it doesn't overpower the flavor of the dishes.
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| fiery red gochugaru |
I love my cili padi and gochugaru.. and you can tell.
And as much as I like my sweets, I like my hot and spicy dishes too. And I think life should be that. There should be sweetness as well as a good dose of spice! That would be a life worth living.
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| Chilli~est la vie! |
