<gasp>....need....water.... - or - Jadis eats a chipotle pepper...

Miscellaneous and Personal Stuff I Must Share
1

OK…so I watch Food TV all of the time, and they’re always talking about how wonderfully flavorful chipotle peppers are (for those of you who are uninitiated, a chipotle is basically a smoked jalapeno pepper). So, one on of my forays through the international aisle at the local grocery one day, I picked up a can of these ever lauded items and stashed them away for future culinary adventures.

Today, I’m browing up some ground beef with green pepper and onion, and I’m rummaging around in the cabinet, looking for something to spice it up. Aha!! The mysterious and yet untried chipotle peppers!! I open the can and being the courageous and bold young lass that I am, I pull one out, cut a piece off and pop it in my mouth. Mmmmm…sweet smokey goodness…wait…what’s this??..tongue…burning…ARRRRGHHHHHHHH!!!

Object lesson? A smoked jalapeno is still a JALAPENO!

<sigh>

Jadis <-- quaffing water like there’s no tomorrow.

[sup]BTW, 2 tablespoons (yes, tablespoons) of minced chipotles spiced up 2 pounds (yes, pounds) of ground beef quite nicely…[/sup]

2

Water won’t work. You need something that will mix with the oil from the pepper. As we all know water won’t mix with oil. Drinks such as alcohol or milk or other dairy products. Hence the sour cream.

3

To help with that burning sensation, try gulping a little dairy product–some milk, or yogurt, or sour cream. The capsatian (sp?) which produces the burn is oil-based, and it will bind with the fats in the dairy product.

I love chipotles. Adobo sauce (a Mexican sauce using chipotles) is perfect for pork and chicken. Yum.

4

I’m past the mouth-burning crisis for now…but I’ll keep the dairy product idea in mind for the future.

JavaMaven1…the chipotles I bought were packed in the adobo sauce…I added that to my ground beef mixture as well as the minced chipotles. All in all, it turned out quite well. :slight_smile:

5

I always keep a slice of buttered bread at hand when testing peppers… Works better that buttermilk or beer.

6

Jadis:

I’m sure I had that exact experience the first time I had chipotles en adobo in my house. Glad you survived.

The only thing that might possibly be worse is eating a scotch bonnet or habanero (don’t say I didn’t warn you). Cut these peppers under running water so you don’t inhale the oil. The oil will make you cough something fierce.

7

Also another tip when handling peppers:

Wear latex gloves when you’re cutting them. Not only does it protect your hands from the oils in the pepper, but when you take them off, the oils have not touched your hands. So, the inevitable eye-itch that always seems to happen right after cutting peppers will not be followed by your eyes burning with the oils on your fingers.

8

When visiting Chicago, I bought a bag of dried habaneros.

Back in my hotel room, I tried chowing down on one.

BIG mistake.

The only thing even approximating a dairy product in my room was a bag of M&Ms, so I frantically stuffed my mouth with those to at least take the edge off the heat.

(The pain didn’t last more than a few hours. :slight_smile: )

9

Yes! I chopped up some jalapenos for a dinner dish one evening and, although I washed my hands thouroughly afterwards, when I tried to take out my contact lenses that night…YOW!
BTW, I’ve been told that if you don’t have any latex gloves you can coat your hands with cooking oil, (actually I was told olive oil), before cutting up the peppers and most (but not all) of the capscacin(sp) will wash off with the oil. I’ve tried this with jalapenos and it seems to work.

10

Oh, it’s not the taking out of contacts that’s the problem. It’s the putting them back in hte next morning. I experienced that deal this morning, after cutting up boring old jalapeno peppers for a marinade last night. HOO BOY! You’d think I would have learned, though. I did the very same thing while in college. I actually had to call my professor and tell her I couldn’t make it to class because I couldn’t get my contacts in. She told me to scrub under my fingernails with a toothbrush and milk, and it worked like a charm. Guess that’s why she’s a professor.

Mmmmm… I recently made a recipe where you puree a can of chipoltes in adobo sauce, and then marinade a pork tenderloin or flank steak in it overnight. Grill the meat and serve it over slices of jicama and this yummy mango-tomatillo salsa. Hot damn, it was good. Mmmmm.

11

Do you add anything to the pureed chipotle/adobo? This sounds really good…I’d like to try it. :slight_smile:

[sup]And while you’re at it…where can I get mango-tomatillo salsa??[/sup]

12

Hoo hoo! You really want to know my tastilicious recipe? I’ve only made it once, but it was super easy. It is as follows:

1 can Chipoltes in Adobo Sauce, pureed
1 - 3 lbs. Pork Tenderloin or Flank Steak

Place the meat in a glass container. Puree the chipoltes and pour over the meat. Refridgerate for up to 24 hours-- the longer it marinates, the spicier it will be (I like it spicy, so I went more than 24 hours. Mmmm.).

1 large, ripe mango, diced
4 medium tomatilloes, diced
3 jalapeno peppers, minced (include seeds for extra spice)
1/2 red onion, diced
1/2 C. fresh cilantro
Juice of 1 lime
Salt and pepper to taste

Combine the mango, tomatillo, onion, jalapenos, cilantro and lime juice, and season. May be stored overnight.

1 medium jicama, julienned

Grill the meat on the barbie, or George Foreman, or stove-top grill pan (I used the George Foreman and it rocked) for 12-15 minutes. Let the meat rest for 10 minutes. Slice very thin.

Arrange the salsa on your serving plates. Place the jicama pieces over the salsa, and put the meat slices on top of the jicama. And voila! You have a beautiful, tasty, spicy and exotic meal. Mmmmm.

I don’t know how familiar you are with this stuff, so here are some cool tips I learned.

  1. To test how well-done meat is without cutting into it, press the meat. If it feels like you pressing your own cheek, it’s rare. If it feels like pressing the tip of your nose, it’s medium. And if it feels like pressing the center of your forehead, it’s well done.

  2. Mangoes are ripe when they have some red coloring. If they’re all green, they’re not ripe. To get all the fruit out of the peel, stand it on its end and cut off each side, as close as you can get to the seed. Score the fruit while it’s in the peel, then turn the peel inside out. The fruit cubes will stick out, easy to slice off.

  3. Tomatillos and jicama are both in the fruits section of produce. Remove the husks from the tomatillos and rinse with warm water to remove the sticky residue. Jicama look like a cross between a turnip and a potato. They’re crispy and slightly sweet. Serve them raw here, but they can be cooked. Good in salads, too.

  4. I don’t like cilantro, and what I will do next time is leave it out of the salsa but offer it as a garnish. It got a little overpowering in that recipe.
    That’s all I got. Hope you like it! If you decide to make it, let me know how it turns out!

13

Also, I forgot: granny smith apple can be substituted for the tomatillo in the salsa.

And one more cool tip: the inner temperature of the meat goes up by 30 degrees while it’s resting. Ok, I will shut up now.