I really only grew Peruvian Purple as it's such a pretty plant (purple leaves and fruit that turns from red to dark purple). The fruit is thin-walled and full of seeds. I didn't use it much for cooking. However, it's perfect for drying and then grinding up.
Cut off stems. I usually peek inside to check that the inside and seeds are all clean. I cut the longer ones in half. Either avoid touching the seeds or wear gloves.
Grind. Then very, very carefully and slowly lift the lid. And preferably away from your face.
Put in air-tight jar. By now you should have had a whiff of the chilli heat. If you must, very, very carefully taste the powder. You could use the spoon as provided here. But you would be mad to do so. With all the Serrano Tampequenos and Peruvian Purple it is potent stuff.
Don't forget to clean the grinder very, very thoroughly. Your next espresso or cappuccino might give you an unexpected kick. If you do grind chillies very often it might be wise to invest in a grinder specifically for that purpose. I shall now go and grind some coffee beans for our afternoon cappuccino. Wish me luck!
The Veggie Gnome
The Veggie Gnome
5 comments:
What kind of coffee grinder do you use? Mine is an ancient one that fits on my ancient Kenwood Chef. ( 40 years) I feed the beans in the top and the powder fall out at the other end - in other words it's not airtight and the ground powder spills into whatever container I put there, also on the deck, flying in the air and so on. I might be up for a new one - need one that is independent of the big machine, yours looks manageable. My chillies are just germinating. Thanks.
It's one of these really basic, standard, electric coffee grinders. You only have a plastic lid on top. The beans (or spices) stay in that one 'compartment' the whole time. There is quite a choice out there nowadays. They sell for around thirty dollars or so. Sometimes they are sold as spice/coffee grinders. Mine is a Turbo Line. I think there is one on sale on Ebay at the moment. It looks like the one I have. But there are quite a lot of brands out there.
Thanks Mad Gnome, I've put in a bid.
Wow, Looks shiok! For the chilli-padi lovers, maybe it could meet their taste? You think I could plant them in the tropics?
CTB, I think a chilli, such as the little Thai ones, would do the trick. Next time you buy these really small ones fresh from the market, save some seeds and plant them.
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