Heat Up Your Kitchen -- With Chile Peppers
Here's some hot stuff for you: If you want to spice things up in your kitchen, try turning up the heat with chile peppers!
Latina magazine's (www.latina.com) editorial director, Betty Cortina, says they're great in dishes you'd expect them to be big in, and even in ones such as chocolate and martinis!
On The Early Show Tuesday, Cortina gave the background and history of chile peppers, then shared some hot recipes.
CHILE PEPPERS 101
Cooking with Chile Peppers
The chile pepper is one of the oldest foods cultivated. There's evidence it was grown more than 6,000 years ago, when it was already being used to spice up stews. The earliest traces appear to be from Ecuador, but in general, it's native to South America. When the Christopher Columbus arrived in the Americas, he and other Europeans took it back to the Old World. From there, it spread to India and the Far East, which is why you frequently see chile peppers in India, Thai and Schezuan cuisine.
Chile peppers are technically not peppers. The correct name is chiles. They were named peppers by the Spanish who, when they first tasted the spiciness, thought of the peppercorns they knew from Asia.
How many varieties of chiles are there?
There are hundreds of kinds of chiles. The most popular include jalapeño (and chipotle, which is a dried jalapeno), poblano (and the ancho, which is a dried poblano), serrano, habanero, and the cayenne.
Jalapeno can be used whenever a recipe simply calls for hot chile peppers. They can be fresh or canned. When we hear the words "hot pepper," the tingle most of us remember is probably from those jalapeño rings that come with a plate of nachos. Small and torpedo-shaped, jalapeños may be pale green, blackish green, or red. As with all chiles, the riper and redder, the sweeter, and the smaller, the hotter. When smoked and dried, the jalapeño is known as chipotle.
Chipotle became a popular ingredient in gourmet restaurants over the last few years. It's great for smoky sauces.
Poblano is dark green, shiny, large, and mild-to-medium on the hotness scale. They can be fresh or canned. (Poblanos are crisp, mild and herbaceous when green, but cooks often char or roast them, giving them flavor that's more smoke than fire). Peeled, with seeds and stems removed, you can stuff poblanos to make rellenos, or cut them into thin strips and add to soups, salads, or tacos.
Ancho: Basically, dried poblanos are called chiles ancho, a key ingredient in many authentic Mexican dishes.
Serrano is fairly high on the hotness scale. It can be found canned, pickled, or packed in oil with vegetables. It's frequently served in Thai or Mexican dishes. When you bite into a serrano, it bites right back. Small (about two inches long) and bullet-shaped, neon green or scarlet-colored, serranos don't have to be roasted or seeded. Chopped raw, they add zing to salsas (such as pico de gallo), chutneys, and guacamole. Serranos go particularly well with tomatoes and cilantro.
Habanero provides a blast -- not just of heat, but of delicious, apricot-ish flavor. The most powerful of all peppers, they're 50 times hotter than jalapeños. The really spicy commercial hot sauces are habanero-based. Create your own by mixing chopped peppers, lime juice, and salt. You can freeze these super-hot peppers.
Cayenne is usually four-to-12 inches long. Deep green, yellow, orange, or red. Long, skinny, and wrinkled in appearance. Hot in taste.
Why are chilies hot?
Because of an odorless, flavorless substance called capsaicinoids hidden in the white flesh inside the chiles.
How can you tell if they're really hot?
Generally, the smaller the chile, the hotter
How do you handle them?
With gloves!
How do you pick them?
Look for ones with firm skin and glossy, bright color, no blemishes or cracks, and make sure the stems are fresh and green.
How do you store them?
In a paper towel for up to three weeks in the fridge. Not a plastic bag, which will trap moisture and make them soggy.
Why do people like the hotness when it's actually painful?
Studies show that the heat of the pepper actually releases certain pleasure endorphins in the brain. Cortina read somewhere that it's akin to the rush one feels when riding a roller coaster, a kind of pain that you know won't actually hurt you, so you're OK with it.
There's also evidence that such heat has health benefits. Chile peppers are loaded with vitamin C (twice the amount you find in citrus). They help increase blood circulation and metabolism, and lower blood pressure. They're also good for diabetics, because they help the body break down sugar more quickly, which is what the body of a diabetic fails to do.
CHILE PEPPER FACTS
MENU
Ceviche: Traditionally a summer dish or appetizer, but Cortina used a meatier fish on The Early Show, a red snapper, and used Serranos to give it an extra kick.
Stuffed Poblano: A typical Mexican dish with significant historical meaning. It's sort of akin to Americans eating Turkey on Thanksgiving. This dish is often eaten in September, which is independence month in Mexico, and it's red, green and white, colors representing the Mexican flag.
Chile Brownies: A typical dish in Texas, where Mexican cuisine fused with American and some German influences to create Tex-Mex. Chocolate, also originally from Mexico, is actually bitter and spicy, so this recipe gives it its original kick.
Jalapeno Martini: The principle here is simple: Infuse the vodka with peppers and a little garlic, and it's a great alternative to a dirty martini, with a lot more spice!
RECIPES
SPICY CEVICHE
5 lbs Snapper or Tilapia thinly sliced
5 lemons juiced
3 oranges juiced
1/2 can coconut milk
1 sm serrano peppers, small dice
1 med. tomato small dice
1 med. red onion thinly sliced
2 scallions chopped
1 avocado small dice
1 tbsp. olive oil
salt and pepper to taste
1/2 bunch cilantro chopped
In non-reactive bowl, marinate fish in 1/2 the lemon and orange juice for 2-3 hours, drain when finished. Add remaining juice, next 8 items and 1/2 the cilantro let stand for at least 2 hours. To serve, top with remaining cilantro.
CHILES EN NOGADA (Stuffed Poblanos)
Eight servings
1/2 lb. ground beef
1/2 lb. ground pork
2 large garlic cloves, finely chopped
1/2 medium onion, finely chopped
1 1/2 Tablespoons vegetable oil
1 medium apple, peeled and cut into small cubes
1 medium pear, peeled and cut into small cubes
2 ounces blanched almonds, slivered
2 ounces raisins, soaked until soft, then drained
1 stick cinnamon
salt and pepper to taste
8 large poblano chiles, prepared for stuffing
4 eggs, separated, at room temperature
1/4 teaspoon salt
Oil for frying
1 quart unsweetened heavy cream
4 ounces walnut meat, soaked in milk, drained and chopped
pomegranates, peeled and separated into seeds
4 sprigs parsley, leaves only, chopped fine
Roast chiles over a gas flame or under a broiler until charred all over. Do not remove stems, but trim beforehand before roasting if they are long. Place chiles in a plastic bag for 10-15 minutes. Then peel by rubbing them gently, using rubber gloves, under a stream of running water. After the chiles have been roasted and cleaned, make a lengthwise slit up one side of each and carefully remove the seed sac and any loose seeds. Pat them dry and set them aside.
Heat oil in a large skillet; saute beef, pork, garlic, onion, apple, pear, almonds, raisins and cinnamon stick until the meat is no longer pink. Remove the cinnamon stick, add salt and pepper to taste and allow the filling to cool to room temperature. When cool, fill the chiles, dividing the mixture evenly.
Coating will be fluffier and more uniform if egg batter is made in two batches, as follows. Beat two of the egg whites to soft peaks. Lightly beat two yolks and half the salt together; fold egg yolk mixture gently into the beaten egg whites. Dip each of four filled chiles into the mixture, turning them gently to coat evenly. Place each one immediately into a large skillet with 1/2 cup hot oil. Fry them until golden on the bottom side (lift gently with a spatula to check) then turn and fry on the other side. Repeat this process with the rest of the chiles and the other two eggs. Remove and drain on paper towels before placing on serving dish.
Put the cream and the walnuts in a blender or food processor and puree until smooth. Pour over the chiles, and decorate with pomegranate seeds and chopped parsley.
CHILE BROWNIES
Makes twenty-four 2 1/4 x 2 1/8-inch brownies
3/4 cup all-purpose flour, plus for the pan
1/4 cup plus 1 tablespoon pure chile powder
1 teaspoon baking powder
1 teaspoon salt
12 tablespoons (1 1/2 sticks) unsalted butter, plus additional for the pan, at room temperature
5 ounces bittersweet or semisweet chocolate, chopped, or semisweet chocolate chips
5 ounces unsweetened chocolate, chopped
1 1/4 cups sugar
3 large eggs, at room temperature
Position the rack in the lower third of the oven. Preheat the oven to 350°F. Butter and flour a 9x13-inch baking pan; set it aside.
In a medium bowl, whisk the flour, chile powder, baking powder, and salt until well combined. Set aside.
Place the butter and both kinds of chocolate in the top of a double boiler set over simmering water. If you don't have a double boiler, place the butter and both kinds of chocolate in a heat-safe bowl that fits snugly over a small pot of simmering water. Stir constantly until half the butter and chocolate is melted. Remove the top of the double boiler or the bowl from the pot; then continue stirring, away from the heat, until the butter and chocolate are completely melted. Transfer to a large bowl and allow to cool for 10 minutes.
Beat the sugar into the melted chocolate mixture with a whisk or with an electric mixer at medium speed; continue beating until smooth and silky, about 5 minutes by hand or 2 minutes with a mixer. Beat in the eggs until well incorporated.
With a wooden spoon or a rubber spatula, stir in the flour mixture just until incorporated. Do not beat. Spoon the batter into the prepared pan, spreading it gently to the corners.
Bake for 20 minutes, or until a toothpick or cake tester comes out with a few moist crumbs attached. Set the pan on a wire rack to cool for at least 30 minutes.
Cut the brownies into 24 pieces while they're still in the pan. Carefully remove them with an offset spatula. Serve immediately, or let cool completely before covering with plastic wrap for storage at room temperature. They will stay fresh for up to 3 days. The brownies can be tightly wrapped in wax paper, sealed in a freezer-safe bag, and frozen for up to 2 months; allow them to thaw at room temperature before serving.
JALAPENO MARTINI
3 ounces jalapeño vodka
1 teaspoon dry vermouth
crushed ice
Jalapeño Vodka:
1 750-ml bottle best quality vodka
2 fresh red jalapeno, slit in 1/2 lengthwise, stem left intact
2 fresh green jalapeno, slit in 1/2 lengthwise, stem left intact
2 cloves of garlic, peeled
To prepare vodka, pour out a little from the bottle to make room for the jalapenos. Drop peppers and garlic into the bottle. Put cap back on and store in freezer over night, but preferably for a week.
To make drink: Pour the vermouth into a chilled martini glass and swirl to coat the inside of the glass. Dispose of excess vermouth. In a shaker full of ice, gently swirl or stir the vodka before straining into glass. Garnish with thin slices of fresh jalapenos.