Peppercorn

Scavenged Sweetness

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Hello again, everyone. I feel like we’ve had a lot of red chilli lately, don’t you?

We’ve seen an impressive array of heats and flavours, this year, don’t get me wrong, but I still think that it’s time for something a bit different. Something that isn’t another red chilli. Or even another sauce.

So, instead, I’d like to bring you another item from Foraged Fire. Because, while we’ve seen the company before, Tim’s products are all completely unique and this Dulce de Leche is no exception:

He could have gone ahead and used generic red chillies for this argentinian-style, caramel spread and it’d’ve still been quite the talking point. But no, this sweet treat uses mexican pasillas and a chinese five spice blend, for something truly multicultural and, honestly, quite baffling.

I have no idea what to expect from the seemingly unrelated influences at play here. Yet, knowing Foraged Fire, I have faith that it’ll all make sense as soon as I get stuck in.

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Pink Pepper Brownies

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Hey folks, it’s sunday and you all know what that means. It’s recipe time again.

Given everything that’s been going on this month, though, I wanted to keep my april recipe simple and use only items that I had on hand. Since, you know, going out for ingredients more than you need to is a bit irresponsible right now.

So, with that in mind, I thought I’d revisit the idea of brownies and spice them up in a whole new way. One that’s a bit more about the spices and a little less about the infusion of superhots.

PeppercornBrownie

I have, after all, been wanting to play with pink peppercorns for quite some time.

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Salty Seconds

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Greetings again, fiery food fans. Today’s feature comes, at least in part, from one of you. So, if you’re reading this, Verminskyi, thanks for the suggestion!

But, that said, I didn’t want to bring you all just one product this week. I’m not just showcasing the requested Wiltshire Chilli Farm salt.

No, I’m pairing it with a second product from an equally well known brand. Another naga salt, similarly-spiked with peppercorns to enhance both heat and flavour. This week, we’re looking at The Chilli Jam Man, too:

WCFCJMsalts

A second salt-based showdown to test Wiltshire’s “fearless flavour” oncemore and see how they fair against a more mainstream opponent.

Will their second salt knock it out of the park, like their milder chipotle sort, or will the Jam Man prove himself the fiercer rival? Read on to find out!

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Stir-Fried Spuds

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Sup peeps. Earlier this week, we looked at some szechuan-style peanuts from Brighton Hot Stuff that I highly recommended using in a stir-fry.

I stand by that recommendation but, today, I’m going to add a caveat. They went really well into both noodle and rice-based stir-fries and they’d be just as good in a veg-heavy one but there’s a lesser known type of traditional stir-fry that I don’t see them working in. Potato Stir-fry.

Yep, you read that right. There’s a real chinese dish where they slice potatoes into ultra-fine strips and cook them like noodles. Albeit a touch more al denté.

I’m not going to lie, it’s super weird the first time you try it. It’s completely unlike any western form of spud. Yet keep going, for a few mouthfuls, and you’ll soon come to love it.

I discovered this dish at Xi’an Impressions, in london, on route to Challock Chilli Fest. I picked up a taste for it there that turned into a craving, during my recent brighton trip, but, unfortunately, I never made it back.

Instead, I’ve had to learn to cook shredded potato stir-fry myself. And now I’m going to teach you.

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Seven Pepper Tofu

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Hey there everyone, it’s recipe time again and, this month, I’m keeping things simple. A simple recipe for one of my favourite chinese side dishes that shows off a non-chilli spice that I’ve not featured before.

But, more interestingly, today’s recipe doubles as a review. A test to see how other versions of the spice affect the heat and flavour of my dish. Because I bet you didn’t know that there were more than two breeds of pepercorn.

This time around, I’m going to feature a whopping seven in my salt and pepper tofu but don’t worry – I’m still going to make a batch with the standard black that we all know and love.

And, while I enjoy the dish as is, you can easily swap out the tofu for fried chicken bits if you fancy something with more meat. Or just a different texture since I know that, even at its crispiest, tofu isn’t for everyone.

I’m not going to tell you how to fry that chicken in this post but there’s always my chipotle korma one if you need some pointers.

And, with all that out of the way, let’s get started, shall we?

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More Minis

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Hey everyone, you remember The Mini Jar Company, right? Well today I’m featuring them and them alone, with a couple more little jars from Reading:

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To be more specific, I have for you their Pineapple, Chilli And Mint Salsa and their Ginger & Wasabi Chutney, the latter of which doesn’t actually contain any chilli.

Between the mint in the salsa and the rhizomes in the chutney, though, both of these items focus on the sensation they create, along with their flavour. These aren’t heatless like that one marinade that Mahi sent me. They’re just a little different from the norm.

And that, my friends, is what I try my best to represent. Spice products after my own heart.

So, let’s get into the review.

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