Green Chillie Paste

Chillies Galore!

Chillies... What can I say, I loooooove ‘em! In fact, the hotter, the better.

Let’s all agree and say, ‘thank God for the Spanish’, ‘cos if not for them, we may have never gotten to taste these hot little wonders. The Spanish discovered the ‘chilli peppers’ somewhere in the 16^th century on their travels through the Aztec and Mayan regions of Central and South America. They carried the plant to the humid areas of the Mediterranean, where it thrived. Later, Spaniard and Portuguese traders took it to Africa, India, Sri Lanka and beyond. Today, chillies are probably the most popular ingredient in the world, used both for flavouring and to add colour to the dish.

Sadly, not all chillies are hot. Well, that’s my opinion anyway! They come in all shapes, sizes and colours varying from the tiny pointed extremely hot, Birds Eye Chilli to the large mild fleshy peppers like the Anaheim.

It is said that the hottest chilli on Earth is found in India’s Assam region, called the ‘Naga Jolokia’. In fact, in 2007, the Guinness World Records certified that this chilli is the world's hottest chilli pepper, 401.5 times hotter than Tabasco Sauce! I for one, can't wait to try it!

Famous dishes around the world that use chillies include:

The recipe below is one that I got from a guy I used to work with. He used to bring it for lunch and all of us used to attack it. Finally, he started bringing us individual orders! His poor wife... imagine her having to cut up all those chillies every day! At office, we used to keep it in the fridge, and in the evenings, spread it on bread and butter and have it. We even had it with bread, butter and jam... Boy! It tasted wonderful. Then again, it could be that I was pregnant at that time... so weird cravings and food habits and all! Anyway, I loved it soooooo much that he gave me the recipe. I’ve made it now a couple of times, and I must say, I can’t get enough of it. You can eat it with almost anything. But for me, it still goes best with plain ol' bread and butter!

Get all of your ingredients together. 

Place all the ingredients in a food processor or ‘mixie’ and grind. 

 

Add the water a little at a time till it forms a fine paste. 

You may have to add more or less, depending on the amount of chillies you use.

Store it in the fridge. I'm not sure how long you can keep it for, so I would advice you to make a little at a time and use it fast. Enjoy!