Estrek’s tribute to chili peppers – Chili Pequin Traditional Cache
estrek: Victim of muggles.
Estrek’s tribute to chili peppers – Chili Pequin
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One in a series celebrating our favorite producers of endorphins,
and the man who measured them. The exact origins of the Habanero
are unknown, but some speculate it originated in South America and
migrated north to Mexico and the Caribbean via Colombia; an intact
fruit of a small domesticated habanero was found in Pre-ceramic
levels in Guitarrero Cave in the Peruvian highlands, and was dated
to 6500 B.C.
Pequin peppers are very hot, often 13-40 times hotter than
jalapeños on the Scoville scale (100,000-140,000 units). Flavor is
described as citrusy, smoky, and nutty. The Scoville scale is a
measurement of the spicy heat (or piquance) of a chili pepper. The
number of Scoville heat units indicates the amount of capsaicin
present. Capsaicin is a chemical compound that stimulates
chemoreceptor nerve endings in the skin, especially the mucous
membranes. The scale is named after its creator, American
pharmacist Wilbur Scoville. His method, devised in 1912, is known
as the Scoville Organoleptic Test. In Scoville's method, an alcohol
extract of the capsaicin oil from a measured amount of dried pepper
is added incrementally to a solution of sugar in water until the
"heat" is just detectable by a panel of (usually five) tasters; the
degree of dilution gives its measure on the Scoville scale. Thus a
sweet pepper or a bell pepper, containing no capsaicin at all, has
a Scoville rating of zero, meaning no heat detectable. The hottest
chilis, such as habaneros and nagas, have a rating of 200,000 or
more, indicating that their extract must be diluted over 200,000
times before the capsaicin presence is undetectable. All chilies
found around the world today have their origins in Central America
and South America. Chilies were spread by the Spanish and the
Portuguese in their quest to build a global empire and are still
grown in their former colonies in Africa and Asia. The chili
varieties found in Southeast Asia today were imported and
cultivated by Spanish and the Portuguese colonists and
traders.
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