Xmas for Chilli Heads Chili Pepper Fairy Lights

I first saw these Chilli Party Lights at the west dean Chilli fiesta in 2009 and thought they looked great, it was summer so I didn't pick myself up any. However since then I have been bought two boxes of them as gifts and have used them for Mexican nights and Tequila evenings. If you are looking or the ideal gift for your chilli head this Christmas or want an alternative Christmas tree then pick up a box by clicking the picture below and bring the same smile to their face as recieving them did to mine.

I have not yet managed to get them on the Christmas tree yet but thsi year I will succeed!  Ive also used them at BBQ's outside much to my friends amusement. Perhaps I should put them up in my chili potting shed instead? If you want to get your hands on some just click on the picture above to get a box from trusted hot sauces supplier Scorchio.

If you get some come back and leave a comment below, let me know where you have put them up or send a photo to me on twitter @jamopepper.

Chilli Christmas present Ideas Scorchio Hot Sauce Club

Over the last year I have been a member of the Scorchio Hot Sauce club. I have tried a lot of chilli sauces and it is easy to get stuck into the same selection by habit. The Scorchio Hot Sauce Club was in fact a gift for me and it has been soo good I though it was worth sharing with you all.

You have a choice of joining for six or twelve months at a time. Every month you will then receive a mystery package with a new sauce and on occasions this will be one you wouldn't have maybe tried and you will learn something new.

I did wonder if maybe I would receive all super hot sauces which may not be for everyone but in fact the selection has been very varied in spice and heat level and from different suppliers all around the world.

If you really love your hot sauces click the picture or one of the links below to find out more and expand your hot sauce horizons for yourself of as a perfect present for another chilli head!

The Scorchio Hot Sauce Club (12 Months Membership)

The Scorchio Hot Sauce Club (6 Months Membership)

@GrimReaperFoods White chilli chocolate review

#Purgatory I must start this review by explaining that I am not a great chocolate fan. Its just doesn't excite me and much to the confusion of my friends I freeze chocolate before eating it just to add some texture as I like the snap. Before now I have tried quite a few chili chocolates and almost all of them chicken out adding just hint of chilli into the bar generally leavign my taste buds disappointed. Grim Reaper's new white Chilli chocolate Purgatory has changed my views on chilli chocolate forever!

The packaging you can see on the left is simple and stunning. An awesome graphic and nice touch of branded ribbon in the side. The writing on the packet continues the familiar wonderful theatrical style accompanying all Grim Reaper products.

"Punished with Hot Naga Jolokia, mixed spices, Cocoa Nibs and Bergamot

Cleanse your soul and confess your sins with this precious White Chocolate Bar. Blended with Cocoa Nibs, Bergamot Oil and Mixed Spices... Are you pure enough to enter a world of heavenly taste?"

On opening the colourful packaging you are greeted with an innocent bar of white chocolate noticeably speckled with hidden treats. Once you bite into the creamy white bar you are greeted with  the delicate warming orange spice of the bergamont balanced with the natural vanilla. The cocoa nibs provide you with a crunchy texture and then BAM! almost unexpected you get the heat of the naga jolokia which is enough to gain the notice of a true chili head but not to much to make it unpleasant or an endurance test. Don't fear or avoid this chocolate if you don't like the power of the naga, the mix of the flavours may sound complex and powerful, possibly too many, but I assure you they are skillfully blended and balanced generating a moreish delight. This blows other chilli chocolates out of the water who just have two flavours and no texture. As I sit here there is one square left from the bar.... I must find some more...


You may be thinking... this sounds good. Don't just take my word for it I came home to a delivery of 2.5 bars of chocolate, the white one had been munched before I even got to open the packet myself!  Grim Reaper's Purgatory chocolate is also winner of a much deserved 2011 National Chilli Award. If you like what you hear pick yourself up a bar of Purgatory by clicking here from Scorchio


If you don't think you can stop at just one bar of chocolate you can buy the full set of these three innovative chili chocolates by clicking the picture below or clicking
here to get Hell Raiser, Black Widow and Purgatory be warned though these are literally so good that at the time of writing this review I know the entire first batch is sold out. But never fear the Reaper is working on a further 2200 bars over this weekend to feed your hunger!

Barcelona and Chilli Peppers

In Barcelona city spicy food or any kind of food with chili does not seem to exist apart from the padron pepper. I recently spent a week in Barcelona and hoped to bring back some different sauces. After several plates full of Padron peppers varying from 3 euro to 11 euro for the same plate I was becoming a little disheartened. On a visit to one of the main markets for locals and tourists I stumbled across a whole colourful section of vegetables and..... chillis so took some pictures to share



Padron Market Barcelona



We brought home a kilo fo these peppers to munch on when we got back, it was interesting packign them in a backpack

Little packets of red chilli delight in Barcelona

Endless dried chilli pepper strings

The amount of colour featured in the market is wonderful to see, everything sold looks so fresh and the prices are all cheaper than the UK despite being an expensive city and a tourist market!

Habanero punnets at a good price

Fresh Chilli Pepper String in Barcelona Market

Chilli Honey Review

@chilliheat from the mighty  "the chilli pepper company"  have produced something I haven't seen before Chilli Honey, its 95% honey and 5% Cayenne chilli! I have met Gerald, the brains behind the chilli pepper company, at a number of festivals watching him inflict both pleasure and pain on regular customers and unsuspecting cocky people that he hands a whole fresh naga for the first time, very amusing!!

This Chilli Honey enriched with cayenne pepper adds a wonderful warmth to your breakfast. There appears to be an increasing number of products arriving on the chilli market in the forms of spreads and I welcome the warmer wake up call they provide. This jar of chili honey has been described at liquid gold and can be used not just on your toast but in a stir fry to add both sweetness and heat and also in a drink instead of sugar.

At £3.49 a jar its not priced too bad for a gourmet specialist condiment but with postage may be a little much so make sure you buy your jar as part of a larger order. If you would like to get hold of some tasty Chilli Honey you can pick up some from scorchio by clicking here.

Book Review Gordons Great Escape Southeast Asia.

South East Asian food has many links with spice and chilli as ingredients. Mainly thin green finger chillis but lots of them! Gordon's Great Escape Southeast Asia. takes you through 100 of his recipes inspired from his visit there. It is worth noting that if you are after true authentic recipes this book is close but still a westernised version. This said, on the second leg of his Great Escapes series following on from Great Escape Indian book

In the South east Asia book Gordon sets out to discover the flavours of Asia, through Thailand, Cambodia, Malaysia and Vietnam. I have travelled through most of these countries so am highly critical about the food served to me back in the UK claiming to be south east Asian. I was please to see that the dishes i had hoped to be featured like Tom Yam Goong Nam Khon, a divine hot and sour prawn soup. Ngah Poh Kai Fan a slow-cooked clay-pot chicken and Karipap the Malay answer to a Cornish pastie. Some of these of course carry Gordons touch with minor adjustments but the basic authentic concept is there.

One of my favorite snack dishes in the book can be found on page 43. coconut prawns with a sweet chili sauce I have tried other recipes for the same dish without success or that flavor I was chasing. This one left me with an empty plate very quickly.

This accompanied the TV series if you missed it don't worry as everything you need to know is in the book. there is some stunning photography travel stories combine depicting a richly-textured portrait of a continent. Age-old traditions and secrets that underpin their native dishes are discussed and taken on by Gordon in the recipes. He meets characters with fascinating lives, shares delicious meals in beautiful surroundings, and is invited to take part in the customs and rituals.

There are over 100 new recipes showcasing the very essence of these cultures and cuisines. There are unique tastes and styles from across the region, with a wealth of enticing ingredients of course including chilli peppers. Don't let unfamiliar recipe names put you off they can all be easily sourced from any Asian or Thai shop that are featured in most towns these days and Gordon sometimes suggests alternative ingredients.

If you like South East Asian food and want to give it go for yourself and spice up your homemade meals then you can pick up a copy of Gordon's Great Escape Southeast Asia from Amazon by clicking here.