[CH] Re: Jim's Apple Smoked Red Savina Habanero Flakes
Steve Taylor (stevet@terabyte.co.nz)
Wed, 14 Jan 1998 20:38:44 -0800
All bow down to worship Jim. Have we nominated this hero for his sainthood yet?
It seems "THE BREAD" does not travel well overseas. I believe it has
something to do with international treaties prohibiting the transport of
chemical weapons. So I got "THE FLAKES" instead.
My morning mail at work today included a small innocous looking cardboard
box, nothing to get excited about until I spotted the return address:
"Franklin, Indiana". Upon tearing apart this gift from the gods I found a
jar of Apple Smoked Red Savina Habanero Flakes sealed in a plastic baggie.
(probably to protect the nostrils of drug sniffing dogs at customs)
I immediatly picked up the phone and called a meeting of the local
capsaicin society. The devotees gathered quickly in the kitchen. (I do
believe it is the first meeting that has ever started on time here.)
Opening the jar resulted in a beautifull smoky scented aroma that filled
the room. The heat is a typical habanero hit. Warm on the lips and tongue
for the first few seconds. Then you relax and think "well, that wasn't so
bad, what was everyone on about?" and swallow. When you swallow, the burn
hits the back of your throat. You can generally see this in people when
their eyes begin to bulge out. The best results came from heads who had a
bit, didn't feel anything too bad and then had some more. Generally, for
these fast moving individuals, the hit from the first little bit hits the
back of their throats about the same time they place the second "hit" in
their mouths. At that point they knew they judged too quickly. This
resulted in a run for the dairy section by more than one so called
chilehead. The seasoned experts (no pun intended) were all very positive:
Great heat, awesome taste.
The ensuing crowd of hotheads came up with several serving suggestions
ranging from the expected: "Hey, that would be great on scrambled eggs", to
the unusual: "How about sprinkled on breakfast cereal", to the insane: "Why
don't we coat a piece of steak with this and have cajun blackened steak."
Needless to say it will require serious culinary experimentation to find a
dish suited to this magnificent spice. Any suggestions? The flavor is a
damn hot, slightly sweet, smoky flavor. So far the only use has been
people dipping their fingers into the jar and then sucking on them. I
can't help but recall images of heroin addicts at the moment of their fix.
Many Thanks Jim -Steve
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ADDRESS: Steve Taylor - Producer - Terabyte Interactive
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