Varieties of Chillies - Capsicum chinense
It’s time
to plan what varieties of chillies to sow for growing season 2012. First out on
my list what to sow are some really hot stuff - Three Habaneros and a (in taste sweeter) cousin
from Trinidad a ‘Scotch Bonnet’. All these are from one of the five Capsicum
cultivars - Capsicum chinense. Misleading name chinense “from China” when it is
a matter of fact that they all (Capsica) originates from the New World.
Unripe the Habaneros as well as the Scotch
Bonnet are all green but as they mature they change colours. Common colours are
yellow, orange and red. But I also grow a brown. Typically a ripe habanero is
about 2–6 centimeters (0.8–2.4 in) long. I grow most of my chillies in the
greenhouse but still you seldom get bigger than 5 cm. I guess they wish for a more
humid and hot heather like the climate of the Caribbean or Mexico.
Habanero chili peppers are rated
100,000–350,000 on the Scoville scale and the Scotch Bonnet is about the same,
in other words VERY HOT!
1. Red Hot 'Scotch Bonnet'
2, Yellow 'Habanero'
3. Orange 'Congo', it turns more red later on.
4. Chocolate coloured Habanero
Tyra's Liquid Fire - Chili sauce
- Perfect to give your Bloody Mary an extra
killer taste.
Or do as
I do - spice up your morning tomato juice!
Take about a
dozen of deseeded and chopped ‘Habanero’ or ‘Scotch Bonnet’ chili peppers from your garden and then you need:
1/2 cup (1.2 dl ) yellow mustard seeds
1/2 cup (1.2 dl )
molasses
1/2 cup
(120g) light brown sugar
1 cup white
vinegar
2
tablespoons salt
2
tablespoons paprika
1
tablespoon of grated horseradish
1
tablespoon ground black pepper, cumin, coriander
1/2
teaspoon fresh grated ginger or ground ginger
1 regular can of sliced peaches or apricots in heavy syrup*
* You can
use dried fruit and add some extra light brown sugar
to give the
sauce the sweetness you desire. (Soak fruit before use)
Put all ingredients
above into a mixer - mix until smooth. Keep refrigerated.
The sauce taste best if
you let it mature.
Hold on to
your hat! This is HOT STUFF.
Warning!
Handle with care
- Do use gloves, knife and fork and glasses when handling
these extremely hot darlings.