# ISO help with red chilies?



## Gooch (May 21, 2007)

I'm learning more about cooking Chinese food, and many of the recipes I'm looking at call for red chili peppers. Can anyone tell me more about these peppers and if they go by another name?

The grocery store I went to didn't have them, and I ended up using Serrano peppers instead, which made it too hot. (Of course, the serrano is probably twice the size of a red chili, so maybe I should have used less.)

If I can't find these at my grocery stores, what would be a good substitute?

Also, I'm an avid gardener and might want to try growing these in my greenhouse. Anybody done this?

Thanks..


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## Mylegsbig (May 21, 2007)

Order them here Dried Red Chilli Peppers 7 oz.

and store them in your pantry for months.


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## Yakuta (May 21, 2007)

Look for arabol chili's that are available in Hispanic markets or in the Ethnic isle of most grocery stores.  

Arabol is what is used in a lot of Chinese dishes.  Also be careful how you use them.  They are extremely hot so here is what you do to get the chili flavor but not the heat. 

When the oil is smoking hot, add the dried red chili but ensure it's whole and not broken.  If it broken then ensure you tap the seeds out before throwing them in the oil.  This will give the food an intense aroma but not a lot of spiciness.


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## Andy M. (May 21, 2007)

Gooch, if there is an Asian market near you, you can get a large bagful for a buck.


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## Gooch (May 21, 2007)

Thanks for all the replies...unfortunately I live out in the sticks and don't have an Asian market nearby. We do have ethnic sections in the grocery stores, but I don't remember seeing dried peppers.

The Mexican foods section always has peppers, but I didn't know if they were the same kind or not.

I assume that if I do grow these, that if they're used fresh they should be de-seeded before being used?

Thanks..


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## Andy M. (May 21, 2007)

Remove the seeds and white ribs for the inside of the pepper to reduce the amount of heat in the dish.


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## BBQ Mikey (May 22, 2007)

tabasco and or hot sauce makes a fine substitute if youre going for heat in an asian dish.


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## Mylegsbig (May 22, 2007)

Be careful with subbing tabasco, it's more vinegar than peppers.


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## BBQ Mikey (May 22, 2007)

Mylegsbig said:
			
		

> Be careful with subbing tabasco, it's more vinegar than peppers.


 
This is true, Tabasco can make an impact on a delicate dish.  Sometimes too much,  if youre doing a gentile stir fry, dont use it, or use it in small amounts.

If youre doing a spicy chicken nuggets/General TSO type dish I recommend using Tabasco (I normally add soy to it as well)

Hot Chili Sauce is always good.


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## Mylegsbig (May 22, 2007)

My favorite thing with tabasco is American style tacos.  Hard for me to find a substitute for it with those.

i like to pat raw ground beef inside a heated corn tortilla, smash it together, and pan fry it until golden.  then open it up and throw in a piece of american cheese.

i keep tabasco in the house for that alone.


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## BBQ Mikey (May 22, 2007)

I steal packets of tabasco from a local food joint. Theyre free so its not really stealing! A packet or two is all ya need for anything. I use them on alot of meats and wings. I did a sausage cheese steak and spiced the sausage with tabasco. Came out well.

Chiles are a bit overrated in my opinion. If you are gonna use them in an asian dish I picked up a secret from an old chinese cookbook. When you bring the oil up to frying temperature in a stir fry, add the chiles before anything to spice the oil. It works! If I dont do that, chiles dont really add much heat unless you eat them


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## jennyema (May 22, 2007)

The chile you are looking for is called a BIRD CHILE also called a THAI CHILE.







You can find them in asian markets, generally fresh and dry. They are red when ripe -- they'll be red when they are dried.

You can buy the dry online.

I'm growing them in my garden this year.

I would never use Tabasco sauce in asian food. Better to sub dry chile flakes from the spice aisle.  Or seranno chiles -- just use less and remove the pith and seeds.


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## Yakuta (May 22, 2007)

I would agree with jennyema, I also never use tobasco in Chinese food.  It has a strong after taste that while may go well with Mexican or other All American fare is not suited to Chinese food.  

Dry Arabol chilis are  used (whole) in most Asian cooking (Chinese and even Indian for tempering).  They are widely available in any grocery store's Mexican isle.  In Mexican cuisine they normally grind these along with other chilis in Asia cuisine they are used to provide an aroma and not so much the heat.  

If you are looking at fresh chili's then  you can use what jennyema posted.  However fresh chilis are more forgiving (you can get away using finely chopped jalapeno or serrano for a birds eye).  I sometimes will substitute a finely chopped serrano for example to make hot vinegar.


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## Claire (Jun 13, 2007)

I try to keep chiles I dry over the summer to cook with.  I love Tabasco, but I find it has a distinctive (yes, vinegar) flavor I prefer not to use in Asian dishes.  

Anyone who gardens knows that chiles are very, very, very unpredictable.  You can pick one pepper off a bush and it will be mild, then next one might blow the top of your head off.  As a general rule smaller peppers are hotter, larger less so, but believe me, it isn't a rule.  Also the peppers will be milder if they grew up with a lot of rain.  But again, not a rule.  

For Asian cooking I go to the Asian counter in the grocery store and buy a jar of chile/garlic paste.  I find that it works fine in all kinds of cuisines if you're looking for one-product-does all (yes, I use in in Tex-Mex, Middle Eastern, and Indian cuisines).  Since I keep an extensive pantry, I also have Tabasco and several other hot sauces.  But if I were to only buy one, I'd buy the Asian chile/garlic sauce (you can buy it made in Vietnam, China, and California and probably a bunch of other places).


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## BBQ Mikey (Jun 15, 2007)

Claire said:
			
		

> I try to keep chiles I dry over the summer to cook with. I love Tabasco, but I find it has a distinctive (yes, vinegar) flavor I prefer not to use in Asian dishes.
> 
> Anyone who gardens knows that chiles are very, very, very unpredictable. You can pick one pepper off a bush and it will be mild, then next one might blow the top of your head off. As a general rule smaller peppers are hotter, larger less so, but believe me, it isn't a rule. Also the peppers will be milder if they grew up with a lot of rain. But again, not a rule.
> 
> For Asian cooking I go to the Asian counter in the grocery store and buy a jar of chile/garlic paste. I find that it works fine in all kinds of cuisines if you're looking for one-product-does all (yes, I use in in Tex-Mex, Middle Eastern, and Indian cuisines). Since I keep an extensive pantry, I also have Tabasco and several other hot sauces. But if I were to only buy one, I'd buy the Asian chile/garlic sauce (you can buy it made in Vietnam, China, and California and probably a bunch of other places).


 
The asian Chile and garlic sauce is widely available, Ill 2nd that its a good flavoring agent.  You can sometimes find it without the garlic too.

If you get the dried chiles by themselves,   I break the chiles over a bowl to remove seeds for a not so spicy dish, break over the food for a spicy dish..


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## Caine (Jun 15, 2007)

Commercially available crushed red pepper is the same as the red pepper pods used in Schezuan recipes, excpet it is, obviously, crushed.  You just have to remember that, unlike the whole peppers, you can't see the crushed red pepper to remove it while you are eating, so adjust the amount accordingly.


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## silentmeow (Jun 16, 2007)

I grow them every year.  I pierce them with a toothpick while green, thread them on a string and hang them in my kitchen,  Beautiful colors while they are drying!  This year I'm going to deseed them before drying, can't tolerate the heat of those tiny little seeds!  Buy them in bulk when on sale and dry them at home if possible then you'll always have a supply!


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## BreezyCooking (Jun 16, 2007)

I've used Serrano peppers in Asian dishes & they work fine.  Red chilies for Asian cooking are supposed to be very hot.  In fact, for Asian cooking I grow my own peppers - usually "Thai Dragon", which is just as hot, if not hotter, than Serranos.

As far as hot peppers go, a somewhat variable rule to keep in mind is that the smaller the pepper, the hotter it is.  Again, this is variable, but a good basic rule.

If you have a greenhouse, a small garden spot, or even just a few large containers in a sunny spot, the world is your oyster as far as hot peppers.  Get some seeds for "Thai Dragon" or any other thin-skinned hot red pepper.  They germinate quickly & have high yields.  I use mine fresh during the season, & then freeze & dry the rest for winter use.  Have fun experimenting!


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## Unclechili (Jun 16, 2007)

I agree with jennyema. I had the opportunity to purchase a Paul Gayler book on hot foods. The entire book is based around spices and peppers. He suggests either the Bird's Eye chili or the Thai Chili, both of which are fairly common at the grocery store.


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