the spicy food thread: I like it hot, hot, hot :mad5:

[gaseousclay]

this thread will be about the culinary delight that can bring a man to tears - spicy foods.

got any hot recipes you'd like to share? know of any sauces with a little bit of extra kick? do you like cajun? Thai food? Indian food? jalapenos? let's talk about hot food and why we love it.

*edit*
ok, the emoticon I wanted to use in my header didn't work but it's supposed to be this :mad5:

[professorchaos]

I love spicy food without stint! Being from Louisiana, I have a strong preference for ... Louisiana Hot Sauce. This past summer, I really enjoyed jalapeños stuffed with manchego, wrapped in bacon and grilled.

[dpm802]

I love wasabi ... that green horseradish paste that they serve with Sushi.

Here's a neat trick to impress your friends: Take a huge chunk of wasabi, and swallow it whole. Then challenge them to do the same. Here's how: Pick up the wasabi with your chopsticks, and place it on the BACK of your tongue, then swallow. The taste-buds that respond to hot and spicy are all at the front of your tongue, so you don't taste the intense burn as the wasabi goes down. I've never tried it, but presumably, you can use this trick with Jalapenos, Habaneros, Tabasco sauce and other hot spices.

Today for dinner, I had a bowl of Pho, a Vietnamese rice-noodle soup (http://www.phofever.com) with green vegetables and thin slices of beef. You flavor it to your taste with Hoisin Sauce and a Chili Pepper Sauce ... the Chili Peppers can get quite intense, but what I do is to put the sauces in a side bowl, swish the meat around in the sauce, then wash it off in the soup bowl to dilute it. Mmmmmmm, good!

[gaseousclay]

I love spicy food without stint! Being from Louisiana, I have a strong preference for ... Louisiana Hot Sauce. This past summer, I really enjoyed jalapeños stuffed with manchego, wrapped in bacon and grilled.

wow, that sounds delicious. I don't get to enjoy spicy foods as much as i'd like. my wife can't tolerate spicy foods - she always claims it's because she's of Norwegian descent :rolleyes: otherwise, i'd eat it all the time. I did enjoy a bacon eggbake tonight smothered in habanero sauce

[gaseousclay]

I love wasabi ... that green horseradish paste that they serve with Sushi.

Here's a neat trick to impress your friends: Take a huge chunk of wasabi, and swallow it whole. Then challenge them to do the same. Here's how: Pick up the wasabi with your chopsticks, and place it on the BACK of your tongue, then swallow. The taste-buds that respond to hot and spicy are all at the front of your tongue, so you don't taste the intense burn as the wasabi goes down. I've never tried it, but presumably, you can use this trick with Jalapenos, Habaneros, Tabasco sauce and other hot spices.

Today for dinner, I had a bowl of Pho, a Vietnamese rice-noodle soup (http://www.phofever.com) with green vegetables and thin slices of beef. You flavor it to your taste with Hoisin Sauce and a Chili Pepper Sauce ... the Chili Peppers can get quite intense, but what I do is to put the sauces in a side bowl, swish the meat around in the sauce, then wash it off in the soup bowl to dilute it. Mmmmmmm, good!

yep, wasabi is awesome. never tried Pho though. I think I might have to try it based on your description. man, this thread is making me hungry

[professorchaos]

Pho is great, especially on a snowy winter day (not very reminiscent of Vietnam, I know). Load it up with slices of jalapenos, basil and cilantro. Some Sriracha too, if you are congested. Mmmmmm good! In addition to thin slices of beef, I recommend what they call "beef ball." No relation to Rocky Mountain Oysters, it is essentially Vietnamese meatballs.

[BobS]

I love spicy food without stint! Being from Louisiana, I have a strong preference for ... Louisiana Hot Sauce. This past summer, I really enjoyed jalapeños stuffed with manchego, wrapped in bacon and grilled.

In the grilling world, those are called ABT's (Atomic Buffalo Turds) and there are lots of variations in the stuffing. I think that they always have cheese, but you can then add baby shrimp, smoked baby sausages, pulled pork, etc.

Frequently people use cream cheese and stir in their favorite BBQ rub and then sprinkle a little on the bacon too.

I cut the jalapeños in half, lengthwise, use a teaspoon to scoop out the seeds and ribs, stuff them with cheese and sausage, slap the halves together and roll them in bacon. YUM

[Captain Flint]

I love spicy food without stint! Being from Louisiana, I have a strong preference for ... Louisiana Hot Sauce.

You mean Tabasco? Wow, I love that stuff! :tongue_sm It's my daily go-to sauce.

[thunderball]

Whatever you're cooking, chuck a bit of Blair's 16 Million Hot Sauce in there! :eek:

http://www.hotsauceblog.com/hotsaucearchives/blairs-16-million-product-review/

[TimMechEngr]

If you are one who thinks he can handle the hottest sauce available to mankind, try Dave's Gourmet Insanity Sauce (http://www.mohotta.com/product/Daves-Insanity-Sauce/Extreme-Hot-Sauces). I can't stand the flavor of tabasco, and I usually use a jalapeno based sauce to spice foods up, but Dave's has been around for quite a while now. There's a warning on the bottle: "Use one drop at a time!" :w00t::devil::devil:

[AsylumGuido]

You mean Tabasco? Wow, I love that stuff! :tongue_sm It's my daily go-to sauce.

Nope. We actually have sauces down here known as "Louisiana Hot Sauce".

http://dic.academic.ru/pictures/enwiki/76/Louisiana_brand_hot_sauce.jpg

http://www.saucenspice.com/images/products/detail/Trappeys-Louisiana_Hot_Sauce_12oz.jpg

[dpm802]

yep, wasabi is awesome. never tried Pho though. I think I might have to try it based on your description. man, this thread is making me hungryBe forewarned ... Pho can be addicting.

Yesterday, I drove 20 miles round-trip just to have some, and that was the ONLY thing I did when I left the house. Even though I had a pantry full of food at home, and hundreds of other eateries between here and the Vietnamese restaurant, nothing else will do when I'm in the mood for Pho.

There are several other Pho-natics here on B&B. See the thread called "Cheap Eats" (http://badgerandblade.com/vb/showthread.php?t=104352&highlight=Vietnamese) where various members chimed in.

You can find a restaurant near you at www.PhoFever.com (http://www.PhoFever.com)

P.S. Its pronounced "Fah?" ... the voice rises at the end of the word like you're asking a question, even when you use it in a declarative sentence. So it is pronounced the same in these two sentences "Would you like some Pho?" and "That Pho was delicious!"

[Macers]

In the grilling world, those are called ABT's (Atomic Buffalo Turds) and there are lots of variations in the stuffing. I think that they always have cheese, but you can then add baby shrimp, smoked baby sausages, pulled pork, etc. Yep, ABTs. They are best, imo, slow smoked. I use a combination of pecan and hickory wood in my smoker. thesmokering.com has a lot of great info for those who want to step back from grilling, and try slow smoking.

Louisiana hot sauce doesn't feel like hot sauce to me--no heat. It tastes like flavored ketchup, which isn't to say I don't like the flavor, it just isn't hot to me.

While I have a shelf dedicated to hot sauces in my fridge, currently I'm eating on a homemade batch with some habaneros from my garden. Onion, whitewine vinegar, garlic, carrots, lime juice and a little salt. If you like a little sweet, you can add mango puree, pineapple etc with a little honey or molasses.

[johsa]

I love Indian food when done properly. Just a simple dish like Butter chicken with freshly baked naan bread.

[The Mick]

My buddy mailed me a bunch of Hatch green chile's he roasted and canned. It's gonna be a spicy week. I can't get south western food out here in North Carolina. Being from Denver it's just always around. Thank god for friends.
over the winter I tried to make a batch of chili with some frozen chile's from the store but it just didn't fully cut it. I'm used to the real deal. I like just a big bowl of green with a little sour cream and some warm tortilla's Soooooooooooooooooo good

Then I make some home made mango lemonaid to go with it.

[PaulX608]

Nope. We actually have sauces down here known as "Louisiana Hot Sauce".


Crystal is my personal favorite!!!

http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/5/57/Crystal_Hot_Sauce.jpg

Good stuff from Metarie. I was born in Marrero and we lived in Gretna, so it's my hometown favortie!!

[Monkeydad]

I love it too. I put hot sauce on anything. :)


For this reason, I LOVE LOVE LOVE Indian food. (India, not Native American).

I was in an Indian restaurant in Virginia Beach on a vacation and laughed when their grades of hotness that you can order any dish in were:

*Mild (which is not mild)
*Medium (which is HOT)
*Hot (thought about trying)
*Indian Hot (knew better than to try)

[Captain Flint]

Nope. We actually have sauces down here known as "Louisiana Hot Sauce".

http://dic.academic.ru/pictures/enwiki/76/Louisiana_brand_hot_sauce.jpg

http://www.saucenspice.com/images/products/detail/Trappeys-Louisiana_Hot_Sauce_12oz.jpg

Thanks Guido. Now I know what I'm losing here... :frown:

[SmoovD]

Pho is great, especially on a snowy winter day (not very reminiscent of Vietnam, I know). Load it up with slices of jalapenos, basil and cilantro. Some Sriracha too, if you are congested. Mmmmmm good! In addition to thin slices of beef, I recommend what they call "beef ball." No relation to Rocky Mountain Oysters, it is essentially Vietnamese meatballs.

Another excellent addition to pho is ligament/tendons. I know it sounds less than appealing but the broth flavors the tendons and they provide a nice texture to the pho.

And Louisiana Hot Sauce is my favorite hot sauce.

[xriley]

A nice vindaloo dish (Indian hot) will do you for a while. I like mine a notch down (American hot). Good way to sweat out a cold.

Also, I just had thought about posting a thread about Pho 2 days ago. Didn't think anyone else would have the same appreciation for the dish so I talked myself out of it.

[Fnord5]

I love it too. I put hot sauce on anything. :)


For this reason, I LOVE LOVE LOVE Indian food. (India, not Native American).

I was in an Indian restaurant in Virginia Beach on a vacation and laughed when their grades of hotness that you can order any dish in were:

*Mild (which is not mild)
*Medium (which is HOT)
*Hot (thought about trying)
*Indian Hot (knew better than to try)

Went to a local Thai place.
Ordered "drunken noodles" and they asked me how hot I wanted it, mild, medium or hot.
My response: As hot as you would order it.
And boy was it hot! :w00t:
They had to ask me three times if I was sure.
I went back the next week and did it again. They love me now.:lol:

[Mandrake]

Good stuff from Metarie. I was born in Marrero and we lived in Gretna, so it's my hometown favortie!!

That is funny, my surname is...Marrero! Guess is a city founded by some Spaniards from the Canary Islands, is that so?

[professorchaos]

Nope. We actually have sauces down here known as "Louisiana Hot Sauce".

http://dic.academic.ru/pictures/enwiki/76/Louisiana_brand_hot_sauce.jpg



Yep, that is the stuff. It sho' is good!!

[thebikingengineer]

Whatever you're cooking, chuck a bit of Blair's 16 Million Hot Sauce in there! :eek:

http://www.hotsauceblog.com/hotsaucearchives/blairs-16-million-product-review/

Blair's 16M isn't so much a hot sauce as a pure capsicum extract. It will kill you.

I much prefer Montezuma's Pure Revenge Sauce (http://www.montezumabrand.com/cart/cart_045.htm). Hot enough for just about anyone and only about $6 a bottle at my local speciality grocer.

[sonny123]

make friends with an indian (or any other nationality for that matter) and eat at their house, that way you will get to try REAL indian food and of course, you can ask to try something authentically hot .

[NoFair]

wow, that sounds delicious. I don't get to enjoy spicy foods as much as i'd like. my wife can't tolerate spicy foods - she always claims it's because she's of Norwegian descent :rolleyes: otherwise, i'd eat it all the time. I did enjoy a bacon eggbake tonight smothered in habanero sauce

I'm Norwegian and eat whole raw Habanero chillies :biggrin:

Love spicy foods in general.

[professorchaos]

I'm Norwegian and eat whole raw Habanero chillies :biggrin:

Love spicy foods in general.

I shriek like a school girl at the thought of eating a whole, raw Habenero.

[silvertip beard]

"CaJohns" Stuff is all Fantastic. Sauce 10 and Lethal Ingestion are the two hottest natural sauces I know of. Their line of pepper purees is awesome too.

"Pain is Good": best Louisiana style, BBQ style, and Garlic Style Hot Sauces. One stop shopping.

DefCon wing sauce. The creator is probably a wet-shaver.

I'm a die-hard chilihead. Glad to share the burn!

[Spivey]

I have a recipe at home that I'll try to post for sure later, but it's something like this:

2 cups lime juice
4 cloves garlic
25 roasted habanero
salt to taste
blend

It is WONDERFUL on a smoked pork taco w/ some cilantro. In fact, I have some in my fridge right now....

[mretzloff]

I find spicy food ok. I prefer heat with some flavor; I cannot stand straight heat.

[strat1117]

If you are one who thinks he can handle the hottest sauce available to mankind, try Dave's Gourmet Insanity Sauce (http://www.mohotta.com/product/Daves-Insanity-Sauce/Extreme-Hot-Sauces). I can't stand the flavor of tabasco, and I usually use a jalapeno based sauce to spice foods up, but Dave's has been around for quite a while now. There's a warning on the bottle: "Use one drop at a time!" :w00t::devil::devil:

I've had Dave's Insanity. I actually think the one called Pure Hell is hotter still, but the Dave's tastes a little better. There's a place near my home called Pancho's Cantina which has all the hottest hot sauces they can get available to be tried and, of course, purchased at the register on the way out.

I particularly like the heat in Thai dishes. I always ask for the little tray of chili peppers in various forms just to spike it up a little more.

If I'm sweating bullets when I'm eating, it usually means I'm happy. :001_smile

[_JP_]

I like spicy foods from many different ethnic origins, but I don't approach it as a competition to see what's the hottest that I can stand. There needs to be a balance between the heat and the flavor. You can keep the death/insanity/passout sauces.

"Never feed a badger a Jalapeno." - Larry The Cable Guy

[airplanedoc]

ABT's (Atomic Buffalo Turds)

A buddy of mine introduced me to these as "dead soldiers"

shriveled up green covered in red and white stripes. He was a Ranger, so I guess that makes him a little warped at best.

Whatever you call them they are good.

[Captain Flint]

I have to step in and recall the wonderfull North African couscous with Harissa sauce: It's up there with the best Indian food.

[gaseousclay]

A nice vindaloo dish (Indian hot) will do you for a while. I like mine a notch down (American hot). Good way to sweat out a cold.



agreed. I love me some chicken or lamb vindaloo. I've tried to get the wife into Indian cuisine but the mixture of spicy/sweet flavors isn't palatable for her....she doesn't like coconut either which doesn't help. too bad because I feel like she's missing out on so much good food.

[thirdeye]

Whatever you're cooking, chuck a bit of Blair's 16 Million Hot Sauce in there! :eek:

http://www.hotsauceblog.com/hotsaucearchives/blairs-16-million-product-review/

Now we're talkin'

[xriley]

I like spicy foods from many different ethnic origins, but I don't approach it as a competition to see what's the hottest that I can stand. There needs to be a balance between the heat and the flavor. You can keep the death/insanity/passout sauces.

100% Agree. I like to enjoy what I'm eating. After a certain level of hot I don't.

[Spivey]

This (http://www.elyucateco.com/) is my favorite bottled sauce.

[DanOK]

My wife cannot abide hot spiciy food either. Thank God, hot sauce comes in bottles. No matter what hits the table I can pour on the Tabasco.

[Macion grey]

I used to be a chilli nut, eating raw African Bird's Eye chillis just for the fun of it. But then I sort of got over it a little, and now I need a balance of kick and flavour.

So, hot English Mustards like Colemans does it for me, as well as a liberal splash of Tabasco sauce where applicable. When I go out, I still order things as hot as possible... but I don't go out much with two kids under three years old.

[strat1117]

This (http://www.elyucateco.com/) is my favorite bottled sauce.

Very authentic. Do you prefer the green or the red?

[beginish]

Finding tasty spicy food was an obsession in grad school. Jamaican jerk sauce loaded with Scotch bonnet peppers blew my mind. Ethiopian food can also be incredibly hot. A chicken dish called Doro Wat is amazing. Served alongside q creamy lentil stew on the pancake-like bread called injera took me to another place. Ethiopian restaurants can be hard to find outside of cities, but if you have one near you, do yourself a favor and try it.

[SRock]

So, where are all the good recipes? I love hot food!

[Spivey]

Very authentic. Do you prefer the green or the red?

I always go with the green. I've had both and I feel that the green is a bit hotter. It's very easy to find here in Austin and it is under $2 a bottle.

[FLTiger]

I like hot wings. The best flavor/combination I've found is the Wild sauce at Buffalo Wild Wings. I've not yet tried their Blazin', and I'm not sure if I ever will, given my fondness for their signature sauce.


I shriek like a school girl at the thought of eating a whole, raw Habenero.

I stopped for gas in Opp, AL some years ago, at a place that did not yet have pay-at-the-pump. The fella behind the counter offered me a pepper, free of charge. I looked at it, and at how carefully he was holding it in the wax paper, and said, "That's one of them there habanero peppers, ain't it?" He busted out with laughter. He said, "Man, you should have been here an hour ago, I got an Alabama State Trooper with one of these!" :rolleyes:

[Tolduonce]

100% Agree. I like to enjoy what I'm eating. After a certain level of hot I don't.

I'm with you on the whole heat factor. Here's my one and only experience with Dave's Insanity. A guy at my workplace cafeteria was bragging about the heat in this sauce he had so I asked for a taste. He looked around the room, apparently to make certain no supervisor types were around and then pulled this barely used bottle from behind the counter. He stuck a toothpick into it, wiped the toothpick on a paper towel and handed it to me. I stuck it into my mouth (on the inhale by the way), and immediately began to tear up, gag and cough. All the while, he's laughing. Now, I can bite off chunks of jalapenos with a meal, and can take pretty good size nibbles of habaneros. No need for frat house trickery though. :001_smile

[strat1117]

I always go with the green. I've had both and I feel that the green is a bit hotter. It's very easy to find here in Austin and it is under $2 a bottle.

:thumbsup: Not as easy to find here in NY, but nevertheless available (although I pay double what you pay). I recently tried the "chipotle" flavor and didn't like it at all.

Green Yucateco and Cholula are my two "staples."

[MikeS]

I always go with the green. I've had both and I feel that the green is a bit hotter. It's very easy to find here in Austin and it is under $2 a bottle.

Big +1 on the Green. :thumbup1: The Extra Picante is also great but much harder to find.

[ratcheer]

I also love hot sauce, especially on fried catfish and fried oysters. Or ribeye steak. Or ....

My favorites are original (red) Tabasco and Yucatan Sunshine. But, I enjoy may others, too.

Tim

[Jim]

Pho is great, especially on a snowy winter day (not very reminiscent of Vietnam, I know). Load it up with slices of jalapenos, basil and cilantro. Some Sriracha too, if you are congested. Mmmmmm good! In addition to thin slices of beef, I recommend what they call "beef ball." No relation to Rocky Mountain Oysters, it is essentially Vietnamese meatballs.

Had shrimp Pho for lunch today. All is right wih the world.mmMMMmmm

[maheshanarine]

Specially on a snowy winter day Pho is great.:thumbup1::thumbup1:

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[dpm802]

Had shrimp Pho for lunch today. All is right wih the world.mmMMMmmmI've tried all the different varieties ... Shrimp, seafood, chicken, pork, and the dozen or so different kinds of beef, including the house specials where you get around six kinds of meat in one.

The Fatty Tendon is too chewy for me. Tripe is disgusting. I like Brisket, but it doesn't seem right to put it in a soup.

So I've settled on simple Steak as being my favorite. I love the way they put the meat in raw and it cooks in the bowl right before your eyes.

When they bring out the plate of mung beans and other condiments, I know my soup is only a minute or two behind. I squirt the lime into the soup, and drop the remainder into my ice water. I put the hot peppers in the bowl, on the outer edges. They are in there to flavor the soup, but not to eat. Then I tear up the (green leafy stuff? that's not Cilantro) into little pieces and put it in the bowl. Use my chopsticks to break up the clump of rice noodles at the bottom. Prepare a side-dish with half Hoisin sauce and half Chili sauce. Pick up a piece of meat, coat it with the hot sauces, then swish it around in the soup to dilute the sauce and impart flavor to the soup. Scoop up some noodles and veggies with that funny spoon. Repeat again and again until the solids are all gone. I don't eat the broth. Then I put some salt on the mung beans and munch on a few of those while I wash down the meal with ice water and hot tea.

And wasn't someone going to start a thread about Vietnamese Coffee?

[TimMechEngr]

I've had Dave's Insanity. I actually think the one called Pure Hell is hotter still, but the Dave's tastes a little better.

If you can actually taste Dave's Insanity Sauce before your entire head catches fire and your body is engulfed in flames, you're a better man than I! :devil::devil::devil: I know this much... If you put just a few drops of this stuff on a tortilla chip and put it in your mouth, you won't do it again! :w00t:

[xriley]

I've tried all the different varieties ... Shrimp, seafood, chicken, pork, and the dozen or so different kinds of beef, including the house specials where you get around six kinds of meat in one.

The Fatty Tendon is too chewy for me. Tripe is disgusting. I like Brisket, but it doesn't seem right to put it in a soup.

So I've settled on simple Steak as being my favorite. I love the way they put the meat in raw and it cooks in the bowl right before your eyes.

When they bring out the plate of mung beans and other condiments, I know my soup is only a minute or two behind. I squirt the lime into the soup, and drop the remainder into my ice water. I put the hot peppers in the bowl, on the outer edges. They are in there to flavor the soup, but not to eat. Then I tear up the (green leafy stuff? that's not Cilantro) into little pieces and put it in the bowl. Use my chopsticks to break up the clump of rice noodles at the bottom. Prepare a side-dish with half Hoisin sauce and half Chili sauce. Pick up a piece of meat, coat it with the hot sauces, then swish it around in the soup to dilute the sauce and impart flavor to the soup. Scoop up some noodles and veggies with that funny spoon. Repeat again and again until the solids are all gone. I don't eat the broth. Then I put some salt on the mung beans and munch on a few of those while I wash down the meal with ice water and hot tea.

And wasn't someone going to start a thread about Vietnamese Coffee?

Your not OC by any chance? :lol: I just put everything into the bowl, bean sprouts (mung beans?), Thai basil, peppers, hoisin sauce, sriracha sauce, lime and occaisonally some fish sauce. The soup will cook the bean sprouts a little. Then just eat. The soup acts as a drink. I like the beef version with the works or with just the beef. The trick is finding a good restaurant that makes a good base soup. As with all food, it's hit and miss.

[professorchaos]

Had shrimp Pho for lunch today. All is right wih the world.mmMMMmmm

Oh boy, that sounds terrific!

[strat1117]

If you can actually taste Dave's Insanity Sauce before your entire head catches fire and your body is engulfed in flames, you're a better man than I! :devil::devil::devil: I know this much... If you put just a few drops of this stuff on a tortilla chip and put it in your mouth, you won't do it again! :w00t:

Unless you really are insane, you can't use very much Dave's Insanity at all. A little bit goes a very long way. It's got a lot of heat, but there actually is some flavor in there, too. Pure Hell, on the other hand, simply tasted like lighter fluid that had been ignited. Nothing remotely pleasant about it.

Everyone's got a different level of tolerance for capsaicin. One of the people in my office suffered with "burning tongue syndrome" for a week after eating something that, to me, wasn't even remotely spicy (and I mean that objectively, not in the macho "nothing is too hot for me" kind of way). As with all such things, you should do what makes you happy and don't worry about what anyone else thinks about it.

[Macion grey]

Unless you really are insane, you can't use very much Dave's Insanity at all. A little bit goes a very long way. It's got a lot of heat, but there actually is some flavor in there, too. Pure Hell, on the other hand, simply tasted like lighter fluid that had been ignited. Nothing remotely pleasant about it.

Everyone's got a different level of tolerance for capsaicin. One of the people in my office suffered with "burning tongue syndrome" for a week after eating something that, to me, wasn't even remotely spicy (and I mean that objectively, not in the macho "nothing is too hot for me" kind of way). As with all such things, you should do what makes you happy and don't worry about what anyone else thinks about it.

My partner can taste one single grain of pepper, and subsequently complain about it expertly and relentlessly.. :lol:

[aggiejason]

Saw this bad boy on an episode of "Man vs. Food" on the Travel Channel.
http://i567.photobucket.com/albums/ss117/jasonjen_01/four-horsemen-burger-3.jpg
Clockwise from top left: Jalapenos, serranos, bhut jolokia (ghost chile), and habaneros in a sauce.
The ghost chiles, or bhut jolokias, are the hottest chile peppers in the world according to the Guinness World Records and the New Mexico State University's Chile Pepper Institute. Chile peppers' heat is measured by the Scoville Scale, and jalapenos clock in anywhere from 2,500 to 8,000 Scoville Heat Units. Bhut jolokias can get as high as 1,000,000 SHU.
http://i567.photobucket.com/albums/ss117/jasonjen_01/four-horsemen-burger-4.jpg

The Four Horsemen is the ultimate sandwich offered by Chunky's Burgers in San Antonio, Texas. The "four" in its name represent the four chile peppers present on the burger: jalapeno, serrano, habanero, and the ghost chile, better known as the bhut jolokia. Those supposedly "brave enough to eat it" must put on rubber gloves to avoid "spice burns" and are given 25 minutes on the clock to wolf down the entire thing. After taking the last bite, the challenger must wait an additional 5 minutes to let the pain from the peppers set in, and cannot wipe his or her face or drink or eat anything to alleviate the burning, such as milk or ice cream.

[Leche]

I saw that episode. He looked like death a few bites in. I love some hot food but I'll pass on ghosts.

[spinyeel]

Saw this bad boy on an episode of "Man vs. Food" on the Travel Channel.
http://i567.photobucket.com/albums/ss117/jasonjen_01/four-horsemen-burger-3.jpg
Clockwise from top left: Jalapenos, serranos, bhut jolokia (ghost chile), and habaneros in a sauce.
The ghost chiles, or bhut jolokias, are the hottest chile peppers in the world according to the Guinness World Records and the New Mexico State University's Chile Pepper Institute. Chile peppers' heat is measured by the Scoville Scale, and jalapenos clock in anywhere from 2,500 to 8,000 Scoville Heat Units. Bhut jolokias can get as high as 1,000,000 SHU.
http://i567.photobucket.com/albums/ss117/jasonjen_01/four-horsemen-burger-4.jpg

The Four Horsemen is the ultimate sandwich offered by Chunky's Burgers in San Antonio, Texas. The "four" in its name represent the four chile peppers present on the burger: jalapeno, serrano, habanero, and the ghost chile, better known as the bhut jolokia. Those supposedly "brave enough to eat it" must put on rubber gloves to avoid "spice burns" and are given 25 minutes on the clock to wolf down the entire thing. After taking the last bite, the challenger must wait an additional 5 minutes to let the pain from the peppers set in, and cannot wipe his or her face or drink or eat anything to alleviate the burning, such as milk or ice cream.Bloody sissy:rolleyes::lol::lol:

[MikeS]

Then I tear up the (green leafy stuff? that's not Cilantro) into little pieces and put it in the bowl.

I think that is sawgrass, and now I'm really craving Pho but the only good place I know is in Denver and I'm not likely to be there for a while.

There is a picture of sawgrass here:
http://www.phofever.com/ingredients.php

Has anyone ever tried to make Pho at home? I may have to after this thread :001_rolle

[kreigle]

Very authentic. Do you prefer the green or the red?

I actually prefer the Kutbil-Ik "Original Mayan Recipe".

Something about the artificial color in the red and green that puts me off flavor-wise.

My other current favorites are CaJohns Naga-saurus and Fatalli Puree.

I used to like Louisiana style sauces, but find them too vinegary anymore.

[Spivey]

I used to like Louisiana style sauces, but find them too vinegary anymore.

They are vinegary, but sometimes, that's juuust right! :001_smile

[Rughi]

I love a good vinegar sauce! The king of hot sauces, Tabasco, is just a really good vinegar sauce. I also like carrot-habanero sauces.

Once a year I make a vinegar table sauce, using a bouquet of Asian chilli peppers from my local farmer's market (thank god a lot of Asian immigrants brought their agricultural heritage with them!). The vinegar is imbued with chilli flavors and as I use up the vinegar I top it up, for a solera effect.

The method is simple: stuff peppers into bottle, top up with vinegar. I use rice wine vinegar, which is quite neutral, never distilled white, as it has a nasty chemically taste and aroma.

When I get the next year's batch put up, I joop the older batch in the Cuisinart to make an actual hot sauce, and use it peppers and all. This doesn't get topped up, just used up, to my great satisfaction.

The photo on the left is this year's batch, from a couple of weeks ago. On the right is last year's in three states, taken a few minutes apart: vinegar sauce (note how the vinegar has leeched the color), jooped in the Cuisinart for a chunky hot sauce, and depulped using the food mill. This is the first time I've taken it the last step; I wanted to see how close it would get to Tabasco.

The hot sauce is much more picante than the vinegar sauce, predictably enough. My hot sauce is somewhere in between Crystal and Tabasco, which is a good niche in my hot sauce collection.

Roger

PS - It took me longer to write about this than it takes to do it. Go make your own!

[Spivey]

MMMMM. That looks delicious! :w00t:

[Glassonion]

+1
El Yucateco is a great blend of flavor and heat.

[Glassonion]

I grew several Jolokia plants in my garden this year.
They are quite hot, but not inedible. I wouldn't advise eating a whole one raw, but eating slices of them on a cracker is an eye-opening and fully enjoyable experience.

I just made a batch of Jolokia jam with 5 of them last night. Haven't tried it since it set up, but I tasted it during preparation and it was quite fantastic. It was quite a bit hotter than the habanero jam that I've been making, and it has a very different flavor. The Jolokia chiles are really quite sweet with less of a citrus tang than the habaneros.

The habanero and green chile jam recipes are quite easy to make and very tasty:
Blend up a couple of seeded sweet bell peppers with 5-10 whole habanero peppers
Add 1.5c of white vinegar, 7c of sugar, bring to a boil. Lower heat and simmer for ~20 minutes. Add pectin and return to boil for 1min. Then just fill sterile canning jars and process for 5 minutes in a boiling water bath canner.

The New Mexico green chile jam is basically the same, but I just use 8-10 roasted peeled and chopped chiles and no bell peppers. You can also use part or all cider vinegar for a different flavor.

[Glassonion]

My buddy mailed me a bunch of Hatch green chile's he roasted and canned. It's gonna be a spicy week. I can't get south western food out here in North Carolina. Being from Denver it's just always around. Thank god for friends.
over the winter I tried to make a batch of chili with some frozen chile's from the store but it just didn't fully cut it. I'm used to the real deal. I like just a big bowl of green with a little sour cream and some warm tortilla's Soooooooooooooooooo good

Then I make some home made mango lemonaid to go with it.

Where in NC are you? I have been growing 4 different varieties of NM green chiles quite successfully in my garden in Durham. Being from a town about 30 minutes from Hatch, I used to have my parents bring me frozen chile, but now I just have them mail me seeds and I grow more than I know what to do with.

Oh, and incidentally, Trader Joe's has canned roasted green chile for something like $1 a can. It isn't the best or the cheapest, but it is a TON better than other canned green chile I've had.

[blue_titan]

I am not sure if anyone else has mentioned this particular bottled sauce, but my favorite is Devil's Duel Habanero Pepper Sauce. It has a good level of heat, but more importantly, it has a lot of flavor as well. It's a product of a bbq place in Harlem (http://www.dinosaurbarbque.com/viewProduct.php?p=43) and it's fantastic. Some supermarkets in the NYC area carry it but you can also order it online. A case of 12 does not last me long.

For something freshly made at home that is quick and easy I like to make fried hot peppers. What I've really come to enjoy is a combination of Serranos (12-15) and Habaneros (3-4) in a fair amount of olive oil (at least 1/3cup, maybe more, as I do this by eye), and salt to taste. To keep the heat level up I do not remove seeds or the membrane. This is a phenomenal addition to an Italian cold cut sandwich or, better yet, with your favorite chicken parm.

[gaseousclay]

I don't know if this would qualify as hot but do any of you like horseradish?

[Lo'Tek]

Yes, I am one of those freaks when it comes to the hotter than hell fire heat. I have one door shelf in the fridge devoted to it. It started with my brother and I begging our father to put hot sauce on our foods, then he would not allow us to leave the table without us finishing what we had requested (not wanting it to go to waste - "You wanted it hot."). Then when I was eight we would drink straight bottles of hot sauce to gross out girls - that got dull and we graduated to Tabasco. Today I often use Da'Bomb - Ground Zero. Though I've had much worse. Dave has a signature sauce that's the hottest I've seen. It comes in a casket. It's WAY hotter than pure cap., which I have used. I could go on with the stories and challanges.

I don't have my computer handy, but my recipes include:

Molten Lava Lasagna
Mount St. Hellen's Pizza
Dragon Meat - like Dragon Wings that's not made with wings, which is like buffolo Wings except Buffalo's don't have wings. The Secret sauce is Dragon Blood (or Venom if the blood part makes you sick).
Nuclear Chilli
Death Wish Tortillas
Tuco's (outlawed) Tacos
Burrito Loco - which is a hard taco in a soft burrito.
Nachos Diablo
Spanish Omelet Super Nova
Fire & Salsa - a play on Fire & Sulfur if you didn't catch it.

All recipes are made with mostly fresh, completely all natural ingredients - including the tortillas and tocos.

[TonyH]

This is the winner for me.
http://culturewizard.rw-3llc.com/wp-content/uploads/2009/02/sriracha.jpg

[Fnord5]

I love Sriacha!

I just tried a lime habenero sauce today at work.
It was on the hot bar, so I gave it a go.
First impression: Oh crap, what did I do to myself?!
Soon after, it settled into a nice pleasant throbbing burn.
I might have to buy some now.
(Can't find a pic, but it's Floyd & Freds Hotlime sauce)

[herbnerd]

but my wife likes any spicy dish to be extra mild... in fact, extra, extra mild. Show a chillie to the dish but don't ever dunk it in.

The Kiwis on the other hand don't tend to like things spicy. So when I go to a restaurant and ask for hot, I have to ask for Proper Thai hot not kiwi hot. In fact, one Indian restaurant used to do "Mild, Medium, Hot, Indian Hot and finally English hot"

I love the Dave's insanity sauce but impossible to find in NZ. if only some kind person would send some. But it would probably be intercepted by the Police for sending weapon's grade Chillie Sauce.

[rm71]

I don't know if this would qualify as hot but do any of you like horseradish?

Can't stand the stuff!

[WhosYerBob]

Two words - ghost peppers. And no, I don't eat the hot stuff much anymore.

[azmark]

:tongue_sm
This is the winner for me.
http://culturewizard.rw-3llc.com/wp-content/uploads/2009/02/sriracha.jpg

[Wendy]

Louisiana Hot sauce is great also any jalapeño sauce will go on just about anything. I love to cover my pizza in hot sauce and anything else for that matter.

[Kouros]

I like crushed red pepper flakes on just about everything because it tastes neutral. Most hot sauces add too much of their own flavor and alter the flavor of most foods.

[Venom8431]

This is the winner for me.
http://culturewizard.rw-3llc.com/wp-content/uploads/2009/02/sriracha.jpg

I could do shots of Sriracha! That stuff is so good. Mix that with crushed red pepper, cayenne, and Tabasco and you're Heaven. Well, at least I am.

[FiXXXer]

This thread has me really wanting to try pho. I'm planning to go to a Vietnamese restaurant tonight to try some, but I've never had Vietnamese food before. I've done a little research, so I'm familiar with the ingredients and the normal way of eating it, but I know very little about other Vietnamese cuisine. Is there anything I should try other than the pho?

[Rughi]

...Is there anything I should try other than the pho?

Vietnamese sandwiches!
They're based on French sandwiches, but made really good with freshly grilled or exotically unidentifiable meats, cilantro, lightly pickled vegetables, chili peppers (in California they slice jalapenos) and the interplay of a creamy and a vinegary sauce. Mmmmmmm.

Roger

[Spivey]

This thread has me really wanting to try pho. I'm planning to go to a Vietnamese restaurant tonight to try some, but I've never had Vietnamese food before. I've done a little research, so I'm familiar with the ingredients and the normal way of eating it, but I know very little about other Vietnamese cuisine. Is there anything I should try other than the pho?

Spring rolls are wonderful. :smile:

[Blondie]

Rocoto Pepper Sauce:

Just get some Rocoto Peppers
Blend them with a little bit of olive oil.

Enjoy!

Rocoto are one of the few peppers that like a cold climate. They are peruvian, and have a unique flavor. You can find them frozen at most latin/hispanic grocers. They are about the size of a bell pepper, and are in the range of habaneros for heat.

These are actually the preferred peppers for making peruvian ceviche, the REAL ceviche!

[VR6ofpain]

On the subject of hot sauce, does anyone like Tapatio? I love it for mexican food. Not super hot (on par with Tabasco), but brings with it great flavor.

[Fnord5]

On the subject of hot sauce, does anyone like Tapatio? I love it for mexican food. Not super hot (on par with Tabasco), but brings with it great flavor.

Tapatio is my new go-to sauce when I want to kick up the flavor.

[silvertip beard]

http://www.cajohns.com

Had to give a proper shout-out and thank you to CaJohns. Got an "off" bottle of sauce, an extremely rare occurrence, and it was instantly replaced (upgraded, in fact) free of charge.

Good people. Great Service.

I am in no way affiliated with this company, other than being a satisfied customer. I have received no compensation for this endorsement.

Cheers!

:yinyang:

[gaseousclay]

Rocoto Pepper Sauce:

Just get some Rocoto Peppers
Blend them with a little bit of olive oil.

Enjoy!

Rocoto are one of the few peppers that like a cold climate. They are peruvian, and have a unique flavor. You can find them frozen at most latin/hispanic grocers. They are about the size of a bell pepper, and are in the range of habaneros for heat.

These are actually the preferred peppers for making peruvian ceviche, the REAL ceviche!

what do you eat Rocoto Peppers with? is it like a cracker spread?

[SRock]

Pepperjack cheese. I've recently rediscovered this gem. Anyone have a favorite spicey cheese?

I've also returned to putting Jalapeno's on nearly all of my sandwiches.

[icon]

Merguez/Harissa sandwich ?

http://blogs.seattleweekly.com/voracious/merguez%20uncooked%20WEB.jpghttp://www.blogcdn.com/www.slashfood.com/media/2008/05/harissa.jpghttp://i.ehow.com/images/GlobalPhoto/Articles/5420817/369269_Full.jpg

I love it :tongue_sm

[kingfisher]

I find spicy food ok. I prefer heat with some flavor; I cannot stand straight heat.

In that case you should hunt for and buy a hot sauce called "Melinda's." Simply put, this is the most flavorful hot sauce I have ever tried, and I lived in New Orleans for 3 years and tried them all.

Now, it begins and ends with Melinda's. As soon as I'm getting low I buy another bottle. The only other hot sauce I use at all anymore is Texas Pete, which I like a lot better than Tabasco.

[Storer50]

http://www.crazyunclejester.com/Item180/The_Jester%E2%84%A2.aspx

One of my new favorites

[Blondie]

what do you eat Rocoto Peppers with? is it like a cracker spread?

Sorry, I just saw this. We typically eat it with ceviche. When you mix the ceviche, one of the final ingredients is some sort of pepper. We use the Rocotos sliced. If you blend them like I mentioned, it is a wonderful fresh tasting "salsa" that can be added to any dish you like heated up. Keep in mind though, it is HOT. They are rated like habaneros on the scoville scale, but have the most unique pepper flavor you will ever experience.

[GFlanagan3]

This thread has me really wanting to try pho. I'm planning to go to a Vietnamese restaurant tonight to try some, but I've never had Vietnamese food before. I've done a little research, so I'm familiar with the ingredients and the normal way of eating it, but I know very little about other Vietnamese cuisine. Is there anything I should try other than the pho?

my tip....make friends of your server (as in be nice etc) and IMMEDIATELY admit your ignorance of their cuisine. Ask 'what do you like' then let them tell you as well as describe it. I have found this approach almost NEVER goes wrong. People like to talk about things that are important to them...and in most cases food IS important-especially of an ethnic variety. It is similar to taking an interest in their culture. :thumbup1:

[rm71]

Nope. We actually have sauces down here known as "Louisiana Hot Sauce".

http://dic.academic.ru/pictures/enwiki/76/Louisiana_brand_hot_sauce.jpg



I saw this sauce in a supermarket here in Australia today. Is this stuff really hot? Any hint of sweetness? Worth getting a bottle?

[ratcheer]

We went to a Cajun restaurant last night and I ordered the Crawfish Etouffee. It was perfect and very spicy. I was using napkins to wipe the tears from my eyes.

As we were leaving, I paused to tell the owner that it was delicious. He replied, "I'm afraid I got it a little too spicy, tonight." I said, "Yes, it was spicy." He asked, "But, you still enjoyed it?" I said, "If you hadn't spiced it up, I would have been adding Tabasco."

Tim

[ratcheer]

I saw this sauce in a supermarket here in Australia today. Is this stuff really hot? Any hint of sweetness? Worth getting a bottle?

It is one of the standard Louisiana brands. Very tasty, not extremely hot. A very good example of what real Louisiana people use every day, themselves. Definitely worth trying. Another comparable brand would be Crystal.

Tim

[Spivey]

It is one of the standard Louisiana brands. Very tasty, not extremely hot. A very good example of what real Louisiana people use every day, themselves. Definitely worth trying. Another comparable brand would be Crystal.

Tim

+1 It's one of the best.

[Carlin]

This thread has me really wanting to try pho. I'm planning to go to a Vietnamese restaurant tonight to try some, but I've never had Vietnamese food before. I've done a little research, so I'm familiar with the ingredients and the normal way of eating it, but I know very little about other Vietnamese cuisine. Is there anything I should try other than the pho?

If you aren't in the soup/noodle mood, pick up "com thit nuong" or "com ga nuong"

[ofelas]

I always go with the green. I've had both and I feel that the green is a bit hotter. It's very easy to find here in Austin and it is under $2 a bottle.

+1. The green rocks, and I sometimes use the kutbil-ik for variety. Either one is a decent bottled substitute for taqueira sauce.

[rvmx]

One of my favorites is a mexican salsa named 'Salsa de la Viuda', it's hot and with good flavor...It's really good with pizza, breaded foods, shrimps, fish, chicken sandwiches and Boody Mary's...I'll try to get a picture here...

[rm71]

It is one of the standard Louisiana brands. Very tasty, not extremely hot. A very good example of what real Louisiana people use every day, themselves. Definitely worth trying. Another comparable brand would be Crystal.

Tim

Thanks Tim. I'll Definately buy it next week.

[Yushiro]

Malaysian by Indian descent and we're all from the South East part of India. Spicy stuff is like an everyday thing in our food. That being said, eating in Malaysia will expose you to cuisines form various cultures who ALL make spicy food. Mind blowing tom yums, Portuguese grilled fish (slathered liberally with load of hot chili paste) and many other kinds food. As luck would have it tho, I have tried the Crystal and Trappey varieties of the Louisiana Hot Sauce. They are pretty tasty. Also, a small little 'Western' Food joint has taken upon itself to bring in Dave's Insanity Sauce. I had some with my fish and chips and man, that stuff WILL burn ya. But it was tasty without the burn overpowering the sauce. I like it. Might even go back for a bottle to take back home. After Dave's, I've said good bye to Tobasco. meh.

[ofelas]

Those tom yums & Portuguese grilled fish sound great!