Chilli

Chilli: if it’s too hot, you were too weak. Chilli can do far more than burn: capsaicin is one of the most fascinating natural compounds there is, powerful, healthy and full of energy. Our selection shows how versatile chilli really is: smoky, sweet, smooth, fruity-exotic or brutally hot with the world’s hottest chilli. One spice, a thousand facets. And every one of them brings the heat.

Buy chilli: from mild to brutally hot

Chilli is more than just the burn of capsaicin on your tongue. Sure, the heat is part of it, but if you reduce chilli to Scoville alone, you miss the best of it. The variety of flavours is huge: fruity, smoky, sweet, earthy, floral. With me you’ll find over 15 varieties, each with its own character. From the mild everyday chilli to the hottest in the world.

The mild ones: an easy start

Not everyone wants to break a sweat straight away. The Ancho chilli, crushed is perfect for anyone who puts aroma before heat. It’s a dried poblano chilli from Mexico, mild, sweetish, with notes of raisins and plums. Indispensable for authentic mole sauces and braises.

The Piment d’Espelette, fine from the French Basque Country is the darling of Michelin-starred kitchens: gentle warmth, fruity and spicy, with a light sweetness. Perfect with fish, egg or in a vinaigrette. In France it often replaces the pepper on the table, and rightly so.

The classics: Jalapeño and Cayenne

Everyone knows the jalapeño chilli, but the difference between green and red is bigger than you’d think. At around 2,500 to 8,000 Scoville, it’s the perfect way into the world of chillies. Green is fresh and grassy, red is riper and sweeter. Both bring moderate heat with real flavour. Ideal for salsas, nachos, tacos, anything that’s crying out for Tex-Mex.

Cayenne is the all-rounder in the kitchen. Around 30,000 to 50,000 Scoville, clear, direct heat with no fuss. Every kitchen needs the ground cayenne pepper, for sauces, marinades, soups, anywhere you want a kick. If you prefer texture, reach for the Cayenne chilli, crushed.

The smoky ones: Chipotle

If you love smoke, ground chipotle chilli is your chilli. These are smoked, dried jalapeños from Mexico, deep, smoky, with a leathery sweetness and moderate heat. Chipotle turns a simple burger into something special. In barbecue sauces, bean dishes or even chocolate desserts. Yes, really.

The fruity ones: Charapita and Wiri Wiri

This is where it gets exotic. The Charapita chilli, whole from Peru is tiny, yellow and expensive, it’s not called the ‘mother of all chillies’ for nothing. This chilli grows wild in the Peruvian Amazon and isn’t cultivated, but gathered by hand in the jungle. That’s exactly what makes it a rarity. Fruity and tropical, with a heat that surprises. Goes brilliantly with ceviche and fish dishes.

The Wiri Wiri cherry chilli, whole from Guyana looks like a small cherry, but brings plenty of fire. Fruity, lightly sweet, with a floral undertone. A classic for hot sauces in the Caribbean.

The hot ones: Bird’s Eye and Habanero

Now it gets serious. The Bird’s Eye chilli, whole is the standard in Asian cooking, small, thin, and at around 100,000 Scoville hotter than it looks. Perfect for Thai curries, stir-fries and anything that should taste of Southeast Asia.

Habanero Red Savina, crushed was the hottest chilli in the world for a long time. At up to 350,000 Scoville it’s ‘only’ very hot these days, but the aroma is fantastic: fruity, almost tropical, with a heat that explodes in your mouth and stays for a long time. A bit of respect is in order.

The extremes: Bhut Jolokia, Trinidad Scorpion, Carolina Reaper

For adrenaline junkies. The Bhut Jolokia chilli, crushed, also called ‘ghost pepper’, brings over a million Scoville. Smoky and sweet in aroma, brutal in heat. For the experienced only.

Trinidad Scorpion chilli goes even further: fruity, almost floral, then comes the sting. The name says it all.

And then the Carolina Reaper, at 2.3 million Scoville officially the hottest chilli in the world. With me in manufactory quality, not in some plastic bag. Sweet and fruity for a moment, then nuclear. Careful: a crumb is enough. Safety note: when handling Carolina Reaper or Trinidad Scorpion I recommend gloves. The capsaicin oils cling stubbornly to your fingers and burn for hours afterwards, especially if you touch your face.

For everyday: Chili Cut and chilli salt

Not in the mood for extremes? The Chili Cut is my household chilli, crushed chillies with balanced heat, perfect for sprinkling over. And the chilli salt is exactly that: salt with a kick. Ready-seasoned, onto the table. For anyone who’d rather have their chilli con carne ready-seasoned: there’s a matching blend for that too.

What to do if the food has become too hot?

Dairy products like cream, yoghurt or crème fraîche neutralise capsaicin best, because capsaicin is fat-soluble, not water-soluble. A little sugar, honey or acid (lemon, vinegar) can also soften the heat. In your mouth, a piece of bread or a sip of milk helps better than water. For vegan dishes or Asian curries, coconut milk or a spoon of peanut butter works just as well as cream to bind the capsaicin. Tip: if you’re sensitive, start with mild varieties like Piment d’Espelette, fine or Ancho chilli, crushed.

Where does the heat sit: in the seeds?

No, that’s a myth. The heat sits in the white placenta (the membranes) the seeds hang from. The seeds themselves contain hardly any capsaicin. If you like it milder, remove the pale inner membranes; that reduces the heat noticeably. When working with extreme varieties like Bhut Jolokia chilli, crushed or Trinidad Scorpion chilli, removing the inner membranes is almost a must to make the aroma enjoyable. With ground varieties like ground cayenne pepper or ground chipotle chilli the heat is evenly distributed.

How is heat measured: what does Scoville mean?

The Scoville scale measures the capsaicin content. The higher the value, the hotter. Piment d’Espelette, fine sits at around 4,000 Scoville, jalapeño at 2,500 to 8,000, Habanero Red Savina, crushed at 100,000 to 350,000. Our Carolina Reaper reaches over 2 million Scoville, the hottest chilli in the world. By the way: the original Scoville method with taste testers has now been replaced by the HPLC process (high-performance liquid chromatography), which determines the capsaicin content precisely through lab analysis.

What's the difference between chilli, cayenne and chilli powder?

Ground cayenne pepper is a specific chilli variety (30,000 to 50,000 Scoville), ground into a pure powder. Chilli powder from the supermarket can be a blend of different varieties, sometimes bulked out with spices like cumin, garlic or even fillers. With us it’s different: our Chili Cut and all ground varieties consist of pure, single-variety chillies, no admixture, no bulking agents. Chilli is the umbrella term for all hot capsicum fruits, from mild like Ancho chilli, crushed to extreme like Trinidad Scorpion chilli.

Which chilli goes with which dish?

Mild varieties like Piment d’Espelette, fine go with fish, egg dishes and vegetables. Smoky ground chipotle chilli is ideal for BBQ, burgers and Tex-Mex. Fruity Habanero Red Savina, crushed harmonises with mango, pineapple and Caribbean dishes. Ground cayenne pepper is the all-rounder for soups, sauces and marinades. My insider tip from Michelin-starred kitchens: a pinch of smoky chipotle in a dark chocolate mousse. The smoky aroma lifts the cocoa notes to a completely new level.