Food: The Hot World of Chillies

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The Hot World of Chillies
Thursday, September 14, 2006

For the flavor they bring to meals, chilies hold unquestioned value by cooks round the globe. Once associated with hot climates, chilies are now very popular among the inhabitants of cooler climates owing to greater international travel and improved marketing. Whether you are walking in a European supermarket, an American one, or just looking at cooking stuff somewhere in Oceania, chilies are there on vegetable racks. They might be in form of dried chilies, in form of chili powder with spices, or as a variety of hot pepper sauces and salsas.

The use of chilies in food is rooted in antiquity. Ancestors of today's Mexicans used to cultivate chilies for centuries since they discovered wild capsicum that must have been a whole new sensation to taste. It appears that the spur of growing chilies took off since today we know of more than two hundred varieties of chilies, ranging in taste from mild to strong and extremely hot.

Chilies first came to Europe through one of the expeditions of Columbus. Here, their reception was not a very warm one due to the greater popularity of black pepper in culinary. In Portuguese and Spanish colonies, however, chilies were greeted warmly. Soon they were being grown in North and West Africa, Madagascar, and India, and in these places, chilies became a savory alternative to black pepper. Chilies also rapidly made their way to China, became an important part of the Szechuan cuisine, and spread onwards to Southeast Asia. In Thailand, Vietnam, and Korea chilies received an enthusiastic welcome, both for their tempting appearance and their flavor.

Today, chilies are cultivated globally. Mainly these are produced in Mexico, Thailand, and America, especially the states of California, Louisiana, New Mexico, Texas, and Arizona. India is a great producer of chilies (six to nine hundred thousand tons of dried chilies annually). Countries exporting greatest percentage of chilies worldwide include India, followed by China, Spain, Mexico, Pakistan, Morocco, and Turkey. While India leads the list of countries exporting chilies, Chin is becoming a close competitor. The Japanese produces some special types of chilies, e.g. Bird's Eye, Santaka and Hontaka. However there is a great local demand for chilies in Japan and so the country's export has not been of a competitive level. On the other hand, Japan is increasingly becoming a major importer of chilies. Bird's Eye chilies are also being produced an exported by Papua New Guinea.

Chilies are easier to grow in cooler regions, although their flavor is less intense as those grown in hot regions. In Latin America, especially in Mexico, the species Capsicum annum is mostly grown. The fruits of the plant are essentially berries but have come to be commonly known as pods. Fruits may be harvested fully ripe or at an earlier stage. If a relatively mild spice is intended, the seeds of the pods are removed. The most pungent chilies, known as Mombasa, come from Uganda. This pungency has earned them great value in the international trade.

The growth of chill crops normally requires a warm and humid climate. Tropical and sub-tropical locations are thus most favorable areas to grow the plant. However, chili plant is tolerant to a range of temperature and altitudes (anywhere from sea level to over 2000 meters). Ideal soils for its growth are black soils since they retain moisture for long. If the crops are being watered through irrigation, chalka soils, deltaic soils and loams with high proportions of sand serve the purpose better. Organic manures are applied to chili plant, especially sheep manure. In combination with organic products, biofertilizers can also be used for better growth. Two major diseases affect the growth of chili plant: Rot and Dieback, and Bacterial Wilt. To check these, cultivators need care in selecting seeds and adopting phyto-sanitary measures. Affected plants are to be removed early so as to check the spreading of the disease. In areas where these diseases are severe, disease resistant varieties are cultivated.

Today, chilies stand as a necessary condiment in every household. With the growing demand for natural pigments, the demand for chilies in world market is on a constant rise. Increasing production and improving productivity of chilies is thus becoming an issue of heightened interest among traders of culinary items around the world.

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