Chili

About

Chili's heat can make its underlying flavor hard to notice. Like their close relatives, bell peppers, green chilies are unripe and taste fresh and green, close to peas or green beans. Red chilies are sweeter and less easily categorized, and dried chilies are sweeter still, taking on rich, fruity, sometimes smoky, leathery notes similar to sun-dried tomatoes and olives. Chili products such as oils, sauces, vodkas, and pastes offer different ways to add heat and flavor, and cultivars vary widely in both.

Pairs well with chili

• CiLemonVery hot chiles like habanero carry citrus notes that are easy to miss under their heat but pair naturally with lemon in both savory and…
• EaPotatoPaprika's sharp, smoky quality pairs well with potato, as in Germany's popular paprika potato chips or homemade chili fries, potato strips…
• SuEggAn unlikely-seeming but classic combination, found in pad thai's sweetly fragrant scrambled egg topped with fresh red chili, and in huevos…
• CiOrangeRipe orange habanero has an aroma reminiscent of passion fruit, apricot, orange blossom and herbs, with tangerine-like sweetness alongside…
• FrTomatoPatatas bravas, fried potatoes in a tomato sauce spiked with pimentón and sometimes served with aioli, is a Spanish tapas classic popular…
• SuGarlicAglio, olio e peperoncino, spaghetti with garlic, oil and chili, is a simple late-night Italian dish, not always on restaurant menus but…
• WoAlmondRomesco sauce, from Tarragona in Catalonia, blends ground almonds (and/or hazelnuts) with tomato, garlic, and the dried nora pepper-a…
• RoChocolateOne of the classic globally recognized flavor pairings: ripening chiles develop sweet, fruity notes that complement bitter chocolate,…
• CrCoconutCoconut milk softens the sharper edges of Thai ingredients, mellowing lime's tartness, fish sauce's pungency and chili's heat, since…
• CiGingerChili's heat is sometimes added to ginger ale for extra kick, highlighting the pairing's natural intensity.
• MeBeefChili con carne, typically made with beef (sometimes combined with pork), is said to have originated in late-nineteenth-century San…
• BeMintVada pav, a Bombay street snack of spiced mashed-potato patty deep-fried in chickpea batter, is served in a soft roll with a chutney of…
• MaShellfishChili crab, a Singapore specialty, is fried with fresh chiles, ginger and garlic, then coated in a sticky sauce of chili sauce, ketchup,…
• MePorkChorizo pairs sweet dried red chili with pork, its flavor determined by the pimentón used, sweet (dulce), spicy (picante) or bittersweet…
• GrAniseWhen spicy Italian sausage isn't available, crushed fennel seeds and dried chili flakes added to plain pork sausage approximate its flavor.
• MeChickenChicken peri-peri (or piri-piri) - grilled chicken marinated in oil, chili, salt, and citrus - originated in Mozambique through Portuguese…
• BrBaconCrumbly cornbread gains savoriness from crumbled bacon and a touch of chili heat, dried flakes or fresh jalapeño, baked as muffins or in a…
• GrAvocadoThe Gwen avocado, a 1982 Hass derivative, has a smoky note reminiscent of chipotle chili.
• ChHard CheeseItalian pecorino con peperoncino is studded with chopped medium-hot dried red pepper; American jalapeño Jack works similarly and can be…
• CiLimeThe pairing flavors a range of Mexican dishes, including chapulines, grasshoppers fried in lime and chili powder, and similarly seasoned…
• MaOily FishA common pairing across Indian and Southeast Asian sauces.
• ChGoat CheeseSpain's fondness for heat extends to the Canary Islands, where one version of Majorero, a firm goat's-milk cheese similar in texture to…
• SuCauliflowerDeep-frying gives cauliflower a sweet, musky flavor and creamy texture.
• FrPineappleRipe pineapple is best judged by smelling the base rather than tugging at leaves; medium-sized, winter-or-spring fruit tends to be sweeter.
• WoWalnutChiles en nogada are green chiles stuffed and served with a white walnut sauce and red pomegranate seeds, a dish from Puebla, Mexico,…
• BrAnchovyPhrik nam pla, a simple mix of sliced fresh chilies and fish sauce, is a common table condiment in Thailand, functioning much like salt…
• RoPeanutCapsaicin dissolves in fat, not water, so oily peanuts are thought to help neutralize chili's burn; peanut's tryptophan may also counter…
• GrCilantroA common pairing: green chiles add a sharp freshness to cilantro's grassy character, and the two are often blended with lemon juice and…
• BrOliveResearch from UC Davis found that capsaicin, responsible for chili's heat, also suppresses the perception of bitterness, explaining why…
• SuCabbageKimchi, a Korean dish of fermented cabbage and chili in brine, historically relied on ginger and garlic for heat before chilies arrived…