Chile peppers are such a deep, essential feature of so many food cultures that it seems hard to believe they occurred only in South and Central America until brought to the Caribbean by seafaring indigenous people and, later, to the rest of the world by Christopher Columbus, Vasco da Gama and the rise of global plunder and trade. Some chiles are bright and fruity, others dark and broody; some have sharp vegetal flavors when eaten fresh; others, dried or smoked, are rich and deep. Heat varies from none to nuclear. Peppers are promiscuous cross-breeders, and birds, unaffected by their heat, spread the seeds. Thousands of global varieties are used in a diverse group of pastes, powders and sauces that are perfect for cooks seeking fresh kick in their dishes. When we were researching The Global Pantry Cookbook (Workman)—which explores pantry ingredients from around the world for both traditional and cross-cultural recipes—we often turned to chile heat and flavors for inspiration. Look for these products in specialty shops and, of course, from the virtual global pantry—the internet.
Chipotles in Adobe
Mexico
Mexico is the greatest chile empire of all, embracing fresh and dried versions of every size and power. Readily found in supermarkets in tins, chipotles in adobo reveal both the heat and complexity of the cuisine, with supple, smoked chipotle peppers enrobed in a complex sauce of onion, garlic and herbs. Hence its appearance in our quick, birria-inspired beef-dip sandwiches.
Tabasco Sauce
Louisiana
After the Civil War, the McIlhenny family began brewing Mexican Tabasco chiles in vinegar on Avery Island in Louisiana. Long aging in white oak barrels yields one of the most complex hot sauces anywhere, and it enlivens the mayo sauce for our version of the iconic Southern snack, hush puppies.
Aji Amarillo
Peru
Aji Amarillo is most commonly found outside Peru in a brilliant yellow-to-orange paste, though frozen peppers can be found in South American food stores. Its not-too-hot, unique, fruity flavor is essential to the sublime national chicken stew, Aji de gallina. Here, we borrowed its bright punch to balance the sweetness of a butternut soup with leeks and crisped prosciutto.
Scotch Bonnet
Jamaica
The scotch bonnet, iconic to Jamaican food, looks a bit like a habanero (it isn't) but shares some of its heat and fruity deliciousness. Combined with aromatics like allspice, it gives jerk rubs and curries their glorious, distinctive Caribbean flavor. There are good scotch bonnet hot sauces, but if you score some fresh peppers, make your own; just wear gloves when handling these wonderful firecrackers!
Harissa
Tunisia
In 2022, the U.N. deemed harissa an essential part of Tunisian heritage. Sun-dried red chiles are blended into a thick paste with garlic, oil and spices. We borrowed that rich, roasty, concentrated complexity for a thoroughly non-Tunisian vegan bowl of greens, onions, tofu and grains. Look online for small-batch harissas made under the Tunisian sun.
Paprika
Hungary
If you're used to dusty, generic paprika, a taste of Hungary's sweet version—one of eight grades— is a revelation of earthiness and fruitiness with virtually no heat. At the other end of the scale lies chile gunpowder. Smoked paprika, eaten in both Hungary and Spain, lends our veggie burger some grill-smoke aromas.
Kashmiri Mirch
India
Ground Kashmiri mirch chiles lend both heat and color to tandoor-roasted dishes, curries and more. Medium-hot, tangy, faintly smoky and astringent, it's like a powerful paprika. We created a mashup shakshuka with a nod to India by using Kashmiri mirch, curry leaves and other Indian spices to warm up the iconic Israeli dish of tomatoes and eggs.
Chili Crisp
China
Chile-infusing oil is an old Chinese practice, but in the late '90s, Tao Huabi of Guizhou created a domestic pantry staple by bottling her restaurant's condiment of fried chiles, soybeans, Szechuan peppercorns and onion. There followed a chili crisp craze in the U.S. and elsewhere. Its heat and crunch finish the cookbook's cross-cultural napa cabbage rolls, which are stuffed with pork and rice and served on an oyster-sauce broth.
Sambals
Indonesia
Sambals are the hot, rich soul of Indonesian cooking. There are well over 100 varieties, some sweet and mild, others pungent and fiery. Chiles are mixed, and sometimes cooked, with garlic, shallots, tomatoes, shrimp paste, palm sugar, basil, peanuts and more. We used sambal in our plate of bakmi goreng noodles, and serve alongside for more heat.
Gochujang
Korea
The sweet, savory, umami-rich taste of Korean barbecue comes from gochujang in glazes and sauces. Ground peppers (gochu-garu) are fermented with glutinous rice, soybeans and more into the thick, complex paste sold in red tubs in every Korean food shop. Gochujang and honey form the glaze on our Korean-inspired baked wings.
Shichimi Togarashi
Japan
In casual restaurants in Japan, shichimi togarashi is sprinkled from shakers onto ramen and pretty much anything savory. It's a complex, crunchy, medium-hot mix of ground chiles, plus sesame, citrus peel, sansho (tingly, like Szechuan peppercorns) and more. It's the finishing touch on our quick, sesame-broth-based ramen, inspired by a bowl Scott had in Tokyo.
Adapted from The Global Pantry Cookbook © 2023 Scott Mowbray and Ann Taylor Pittman; Workman Publishing
