To sweat or not to sweat, that is the question answered here.
"The 'warm fuzzy' concept (a marketing expression for a 'cute' product that is popular because it stimulates several senses simultaneously) has caused chile peppers to be plastered over every product imaginable because the public loves everything about the chile pepper. Chile peppers appear to be a fad, but they are not. First, they have been around a long time in the human diet - since about 7500 B.C. Second, they have penetrated into most of the world's cuisines, and it is estimated that three-fourths of the world's population uses chile peppers as a regular part of their diet." (p. 315)
The above excerpt from THE WHOLE CHILE PEPPER BOOK, which was published in 1990, tried to answer the question: Are Chile Peppers a Trend or just a Fad? Well, their argument that these fiery treats are a trend and won't go the way of the Hula Hoop or Edsel has proved to be correct. Just go down the aisle of any supermarket where international foods or condiments are shelved and you will see dozens of bottles of hot sauce, marinades, and salsas with heat levels ranging from mild to scorching. There seem to be new products popping up everywhere every day. But let me get back to the book...
This is a well-researched and well-written reference/cookbook about the ubiquitous world of chile peppers. It contains interesting information about the many varieties of peppers (with 4 full pages of color photographs of peppers), historical tidbits of trivia (such as the birth of Tabasco Sauce and the American hot sauce industry in general), tips on growing your own chile peppers at home, and pepper recipes from around the world (e.g. New Mexico Green Chile Stew, Hungarian Chicken Paprikas, African Jollof Rice, as well as recipes from Mexico, India, Thailand, and China).
I confess! I'm a Chilehead...and I love the taste and heat, though I do not like my hot sauce to be so hot it's of the Death by Capsaicin kind. Most chile pepper lovers do not want their tastebuds to be so burned that the flavor of the food is lost. O...I did learn that the hotter the pepper, the shorter the burning sensation. Though that's little relief when you bite into a Habanero measuring a hellishly hot 300,000 Scoville Units on the Heat Scale. The book does explain in plain English what Scoville Units are to help those of us who aren't scientifically minded understand how a chile pepper's heat level is measured.
While I may be a tad biased, I highly recommend this book to chile pepper newbies and Chileheads alike. It's chock full of interesting info...and the recipes are good, too.
Chiles, Chiles, Chiles!
Wow! These chiles are HOT! An excellent, well researched
piece of work. I especially enjoyed the detailed ethno-botanical
portions, and the histories of how the use of chiles evolved
throughout the world. Great recipes too!
Not as extensive as I thought it'd be...
This book includes a short history of the chile pepper, 4 pages of color photos, and about 180 recipes. It doesn't include much about growing peppers or explain their basic uses (other than as part of recipes). While it includes a few pages of color photos, all other photos in the book are black and white.
The history of the pepper, while sometimes interesting, wasn't as inclusive as I thought it would be. Basically, it explains how the pepper moved from area to area and how the local people grew it and used it in their cooking. According to the authors, the American chili pepper is the ancestor of the spicy dishes from Thailand, China, and elsewhere.
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