Using a mild chilli vs giving a small amount of hot chilli?
I was just wondering what the difference between using a tablespoon of mild chilli vs a very small amount of hot chilli would be when it comes to taste?
Is it just a case that it will be whatever has the smallest amount of capsaicin will taste less hot or are there other factors e.g. in the second case the chilli flavour would only concentrate in a small part of the oil its being mixed in.
Your thoughts please.
Best Answer
I'm guessing that you're referring to chili powder when you say a "tablespoon of chili"?
Well, regardless of whether you're talking about powdered chili, or chili paste, or fresh chili peppers, the fact is that many people use specific types of chili peppers (or powder derived from different types of chili pepper) because of other flavors beyond the basic "heat." Some chili peppers are more "fruity" and/or "sweet," others are "dark" and complex, others are strongly "vegetal" or "grassy" etc. in flavor. Some of very aromatic; others less so. Similarly, chili powders can vary significantly in their sweet or roasted or smoky or whatever notes.
If you're adding a lot of some form of chili, you'll be getting some of these other flavors too. This is perhaps an advantage of adding a larger amount of a pepper type that's less spicy: you can actually taste some other flavor components of the pepper. If all you're adding chili powder for is heat -- and particularly if you don't really want to taste the pepper -- you probably want to go with the purest and most concentrated form of capsaicin, thereby avoiding most of the actual flavor of the pepper (or the peppers a powder is derived from).
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Does chili get less spicy as it cooks?
If you're cooking with chiles, know that the longer they cook, the more they break down and release their capsaicin, which will permeate the dish, but with continued cooking, the capsaicin dissipates. Therefore, to reduce spiciness, cook chiles only briefly, or for several hours.How hot is mild chilli powder?
New Mexico University points out that the Scoville scale is a subjective spiciness scale and some people can be more sensitive to capsaicin than others. Chili powders come in at between 500 and 1,500 Scoville units. That's enough to produce a mild burn, but not enough to make really spicy foods.Does cooking chilli make them hotter?
Up to a point, boiling chili makes it hotter, due to the extraction of capsaicin from the grains/flakes of chili. This can happen even without boiling, such as refrigerating leftovers. You should always be cautious about letting something spicy sit, let alone cook longer. That said, you should not boil it longer.How much crushed chilli equals 1 dried chili?
Chilli powder is made from ground dried chillies and can be used in place of fresh chillies: half a teaspoon equals about one chopped fresh chilli. Chilli seasoning is made from ground dried chillies and mixed with other herbs and spices. Half a teaspoon equals about one chopped fresh chilli.Gordon Ramsay's Guide To Chili | Gordon Ramsay
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