Hot peppers add interest to otherwise bland foods, especially when they're combined with herbs that add aroma and contrast to their fire. The amount of capsaicin, and therefore heat, that a pepper packs is measured in Scoville units. The standard bell pepper, the mildest member of the family, has zero Scoville units, while the habanero, the hottest pepper in the world, has about 250,000 Scoville units.
To add hot peppers to a recipe, start with one minced fresh pepper in a dish to serve four. As a rule of thumb, the smaller the pepper, the hotter it tastes. The seeds and inside ribs of the pepper contain the most fire, so including them will make the dish hotter. If you prefer, you can mince one dried hot pepper into a dish to serve four people.
As you know, if you eat something that is too spicy, gulping water is likely to spread the fire. Try eating a piece of bread instead or a mouthful of plain rice, or the best antidote of all, rinse your mouth with vinegar.
Use your head when handling anything that contains capsaicin. Wear gloves, or be extra careful where you put your fingers after you've handled a hot pepper or salve, avoiding your eyes and other delicate areas. To help remove the capsaicin from our fingers, rinse them in cider vinegar, rub with toothpaste, and then rinse the toothpaste away with vinegar.
Here are five of the most common fresh hot peppers, or chilies, you will come across:
- Anaheim: Looks like a thin, dark green bell pepper. It has a moist texture and sweet-hot flavor. Add a whole minced Anaheim to a gazpacho or a pot of warm vegetable soup that serves 4.
- Banana: Peppers are pale yellow to light green, about four inches long, and an inch or so wide. They are moist-textured and hot. For a classic preparation, saute minced banana peppers with garlic in olive oil, then toss with hot pasta.
- Habanero: Peppers are bonnet shaped, slightly smaller than a golf ball, and range from light green to red, when ripe. The habanero, and its close relative, the Scotch bonnet, are the hottest peppers in the world, famous for spicing up red chili sauce. Add one minced havanero to a pot of chili to serve eight. The longer the habanero cooks, the hotter the chili will be, so beginners may want to add the pepper toward the end of cooking.
- Jalapeño: Peppers are two inch long blip shaped bullets that range from bright green to red, when ripe. They have a moist texture and a hot, tangy flavor. Mince one jalapeno and add it to one cup of dip or sandwich spread.
- Serrano: Peppers are thinner than jalapenos and about one inch long, ranging from dark green to red, when ripe. They are dry textured, hot, and spicy. Add on minced serrano to a garlicky stir-fry with tofu or beef.
