Buffalo

Chilli with a Cause

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Hello again, everyone. For this week’s review, I have another collaborative product on my hands, courtesy of Brighton Hot Stuff. A second free sample that they’ve sent me, made in conjunction with another organisation.

Unlike their Cauldron, however, this bird’s eye sauce is entirely their own creation. They aren’t working with another producer and they’re not using someone else’s fermented base but they are still making a big deal out of who supplies the product’s namesake peppers.

Because those peppers aren’t your average, supermarket sort. They’re a native african bird’s eye strain, grown in uganda by a charity called “Chilli Children”.

This sauce has been made, in conjunction with that charity, to highlight both their cause and the fierce heat and flavour of the peppers which they export. And it gives back two pounds fifty to them, with every bottle.

So let’s see what it – And they – are about, shall we?

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Irish Legends

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Hey folks, this week we’re exploring the far reaches of the UK with a couple of sauces from northern irish producer, Rock A Doodle Do. A company built on classic metal music puns.

If that’s what you’re after, though, you’re going to have to be patient because I’m not featuring their Can I Play with Mangos quite yet. Instead, I’m focussing on their “Irish Legends” bundle, designed to shine a light on the local mythology. Because, what can I say? I’m a sucker for fantasy themes done well.

IrishLegends2

It doesn’t take a real fantasy fan to know the one on the left, though. The banshee, famous for its bone-chilling, soul-piercing shriek, is definitely a part of popular culture. Albeit a tad less so than your dragons, unicorns and vampires.

It’s the second sauce – The one on the right – where we see something that I’d consider genuinely obscure.

The Pooka, according to Rock A Doodle Do, is “a Malevolent Spirit and a shape-shifter that can take any form it chooses”. Unlikely to do humans any harm but always eager to be their horse for a wild and death-defying night’s ride, taking delight in their terror.

What they don’t say, however, is that this dark creature is also the steed of the more well-known dullahan – The headless horseman – and that it, like the banshee, can be a deathly omen.

You’d think that that would be a selling point for these sauces.

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Mexican Buffalo Corn

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Howdy folks, today’s recipe is another one of my crazy fusion foods. It’s mexican and its american but it’s definitely not tex mex.

What it is is an invention all my own, cobbled together from random pub grub and then remade with slightly better ingredients back home.

It’s a quick, tasty, somewhat messy appetiser that I like to call “Mexican Buffalo Corn” and I really want to share it with you. But first, let’s clear up a few potential misconceptions:

First, it’s not mexican. It uses mexican hot sauce and mexican herbs for a mexican-style flavour but the closest actual mexican dish is a spicy, cheese-laden corn one known as “elotes”. This isn’t that.

Second, this dish is vegetarian. It doesn’t contain actual buffalo but rather a buffalo-style wing sauce, made from the above-mentioned mexican hot sauce. My own twist on a creamy and buttery, yet really rather tangy, american classic. Using corn on the cob where you’d normally find chicken.

And, finally, this is not my main recipe of the month. It’s a mini one that uses the black label Valentina sauce, even if small adjustments will allow you to use anything with a similar mexican flavour. So expect another recipe next week.

For now, though, let’s get started.

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High-Class Crisps

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Hey folks! It’s been a long time since 💀my last restaurant review💀 but, today, I’m coming to you from all the way out in london’s trendy soho district to feature the craziest establishment that I’ve ever seen.

HipShop

HipChips – A sit down or take away restaurant dedicated to providing the most gourmet version imaginable of a dish that I call “chips and dips”. But no, there aren’t any wide fries here. Every slice of potato is a wafer-thin crisp with a tonne of crunch.

It’s not usually a complex or well-balanced meal but it’s a darn good snack and I’m ever so curious to see what they’ve done to improve it. To spice it up, if you will.

And alright, they’ve provided a free lunch to entice me in but, honestly, I doubt I could have stayed away anyway. It’s just such a wild idea for an eatery!

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