MY FIRST ENCOUNTER WITH VERY HOT CHILLI PEPPERS AT KOVURU

For a village boy of about 8 years, I was thin and frail looking contraption.Two sticks struck on a torso were my hands and two twigs stuck under served as by legs.Coming to face, I was like ol'man/boy Benjamin Button and was known as "Budhho" meaning old man.

Even though my grandfather was known to down a spoon or two of hot chilli powder with lentils, all of us, the rest of the family comprising of my widowed aunt, another widowed lady and three of us brothers, were medium hot food eaters.

It was in 1957 summer, that we went to Rajahmundry which falls in Hottest region (chilli pepper growing and consumption wise)of India. World's biggest chilli pepper market is not much far from there in Guntur.My uncle who was elder to my father , lived plumb on Godavari river opposite of Godavari station.

We would spend hours looking at sail boats slowly crossing the river and coming back from Kovur on opposite bank. Kovur was a very small village then. My elder brother Dilip bhai was the most naughty of my siblings and had an adventurous streak .

Since we had never sailed in a boat, he asked and got permission from my uncle to cross the river in a boat.The charges to cross the river were 2 paise per head. It roughly translates into 0.0004 USD.Actually, he was not interested in sailing across the river but he wanted to eat Idly Dosai in road side eatery in Kovur. He had about 4 annas in his pocket that would have bought us two days of food for all the three of us.

We set sail on a roughly two mile trip to Kovur. After about 45 minutes, we reached the opposite bank at Kovur.The boatman informed us that we would be sailing back immediately as a lot of people were waiting to be ferried back.My elder brother ran to the nearest Idly vendor lady who was dishing out steaming puffed rice-lentil steamed cakes with fresh coconut chutney.The smell was heavenly and we were hungry.

Each of us took two huge idlies and a big dollop of Coconut chutney in Banana Leaf and scurried back to the boat.No sooner the boat sailed back, we opened our steaming packets and started the first hottest encounter of our very young lives.I took a huge bite of steaming hot idly first and was pleasantly shocked to taste its warm loving taste.Next I took a piece and liberally spread the coconut chutney on it and put the heavenly smelling piece in my mouth.I felt a bit hot but enjoyed the first encounter.I took another in less than five seconds when the searing heat hit me like a flame of volcano.I was neither able to spit out nor able to swallow.My face went red and I could almost see my smoking ears through my tears filled eyes.With great difficulty, I ate just 1 idly. Condition of my brothers were not much different.My younger brother started howling. We threw the remaining Idlies in river Godavari for fish to have a feast.There was no water with us and our hands could not reach the sweet water running beneath us and around us.The boatman and his helpers started laughing . He took pity on us and gave us tumblerful water each , fresh from the river.

By the time we reached the home shore , we were all on fire and crying. My elder brother had warned that we should not say anything about eating Idlies because we belong to priest class and we were not supposed to eat road side food.On reaching home, our faces and crying eyes told the story to everyone that something was wrong.My brother reeled off a story that we were mortally afraid that we would sink in the river and were afraid so we were crying.

Since people were not interested in children due to a religious event that was to be held the other day, we were not grilled to get at the truth.

The heat subsided after about three hours but again raised its head the next day when we went to the loo.

Since that time, I came to know that Andhra people make coconut chutney with just two ingredients. Hot green Sannam peppers and same amount of Coconut by weight.

I still remember my plight after 52 years.

The above photograph shows the old bridge exactly as it was 50 years back and is taken from river bank just besides where our house was.

Thanks to Chaitanaya K

UNIQUE RECIPE.......I love the style

Gary's Salsa Godzilla Brand Habañero Sauce
Version 1.3(makes enough to alienate all your friends twice)

INGREDIENTS:
1/4 Oz. Dried habañero chiles. (This is the size package common in stores)

1/2 Tsp onion powder or the white section of one green onion.

3-4 Medium garlic cloves

1/4 Tsp sea salt

5 oz. Distilled water

1 Dozen strike anywhere kitchen matches.

1 #4 Grappling style fish hook.

1/2 Cup battery acid

1 Matchlite charcoal briquette.

1 G.E. Laundry iron.

1 1/2" X 4" Machine bolt.

DIRECTIONS:
Plug in the iron and turn it to the steam setting. Use a kitchen match to ignite the briquette, put the match out on the tip of your tongue. Remove the stems from the chilies and toss the chilies into a blender. Light the remaining kitchen matches on your teeth, putting them out as before. Add the garlic, onion, sea salt and water to the blender. Do your doggone best to swallow the fishhook. Set the Blender to frappé and fire that mother up. Gargle 1/2 cup battery acid but don't swallow any cause we don't want none of that macho crap here. Stop often to scrape the sides of the blender with a rubber spatula. Use the charcoal briquette to heat up the bolt to a cheerful cherry red then pick the red hot bolt up with your lips. You need to blend the ingredients in the blender for four or five minutes, until the chiles are completely liquefied. You can take this opportunity to see if the iron is ready by firmly pressing the flat of your tongue to it. Turn off the blender and pour the liquid into a small bottle. Extinguish the charcoal briquette by smothering it in your mouth. Turn off the iron. Refrigerate the habañero sauce between usage, and when you use this stuff, please try not to get any of it in your mouth!!

OK OK the REAL Directions:

Add the ingredients to a blender and blend on medium until smooth. Stop the blender occasionally and push down the chili sauce that has been splashed onto the side of the blender carafe with a spatula. This will probably take about 5 minutes. When fully blended, remove the carafe and hold it between your hands. Swirl the contents against the side of the container to remove all the bubbles. That's all there is to it!
Put this into one of those 5 ounce bottles of store bought pepper sauce such as Tapatio hot sauce. It has a plastic stoppered mouth with a small shaker hole that is a great way to apply this sauce to your food. Just pour the store bought swill down the drain and wash the bottle out. You can reuse the same bottle for years. You should have some room left in the bottle, top it off with more distilled water. If the sauce is too thick once chilled, add more distilled water when there is room. Once mixed, keep the bottle of sauce refrigerated between uses. Shake before using.
Double the recipe and put it into a 10 oz. bottle if you are insane like me.

I loved the presentation so much that even without getting the permission to re publish, I posted this recipe on my blog.Thanks Gary for your sense of humor and the recipe.

Naga Jolokia Addict

‘Chilli girl’ Anandita makes it to Shabash India

By A Staff Reporter GUWAHATI, Aug 2 –

When, as a five-year-old, she used some mild chilli preparations to cure a disorder of the tongue, little did she know that it would one day catapult her to fame and stardom. Anandita Dutta Tamuly’s claim to fame rests on this rather scary knack of relishing red-hot chillis in their dozens – the very thought of which is enough to make most of us go weak on our knees. Her love affair with chillis is not just confined to munching mouthfuls of Naga/Bhoot jalakia – the hottest known variety – but also smearing her eyes with its juice. Just back from the shooting of Zee TV’s Shabash India, which features extraordinary and bizarre feats by Indians, Anandita, a mother of a toddler, gave ample demonstration of her remarkable exploits before a jam-packed audience at the Swahid Nyas Bhavan today. She finished some 40 chillis in no time at all – and without the least indication of any discomfort. And followed it up by applying some more to her eyes, drawing a thunderous applause from the wide-eyed onlookers. For the Shabash India episode, which is scheduled for telecast at 10-30 pm on August 29, Anandita gobbled up a record-shattering 60 red-hot chillis in just a couple of minutes besides applying another dozen to her eyes in one minute. “The support and encouragement from my family, friends and well-wishers apart, I am thankful to the people of the State for giving me the motivation to take part in the programme and establish the record,” a modest Anandita said. Her next goal is the Guinness record, the ultimate aspiration of all record-setters. “After we had contacted the Guinness authorities, they asked me to give a demonstration of my abilities in the Guinness headquarters in London. However, financial constraints have affected my plan to perform there, as the whole exercise involves substantial expenditures. But with the blessings of the people and support from committed organisations, I do hope to set a mark at Guinness in the near future,” Anandita said. On her uncanny appetite for chillis, Anandita said that it began when she took some preparations made of chill to cure a sore on the tongue. “I was about five or six then, and after that incident I developed this unusual taste for eating chillis. Gradually I realized that I could eat even the hottest of chillis in great numbers,” she said.Did this practice ever affect her health, particularly her digestive system? “No, rather I can say that I have never experienced any stomach-related problems, and my overall health, too, is quite sound,” Anandita said. Before the demonstration, Anandita was accorded a warm felicitation by the All Assam Students Union (AASU) and Marwari Yuva Manch. Also present were a number of distinguished citizens including musician Ramen Baruah, veteran sports organiser Pulin Das and Khanindra Das, a leader of the Assam agitation besides Pankaj Tamuly, Anandita’s husband. Lauding her, AASU adviser Dr Samujjal Bhattacharya said Anandita was doing her motherland proud by her extraordinary feat. “The AASU will always be with her so that she can bring more glory for the State and the country,” he said.Anandita may very well become the first person from the State to etch her name in the famed Guinness Book of World Records, provided she gets the necessary support. People feel that the State Government and various social organizations should lend a helping hand to this young achiever in realizing her ultimate goal.

MORE ON "PAIN MANAGEMENT"

Hot chillies can help mitigate pain

25 Feb 2009, 1858 hrs IST, ANI


WASHINGTON: Capsaicin, the active agent in spicy hot chili peppers, often acts as an irritant, but it may also be used to reduce pain.
Feng Qin, associate professor of physiology and biophysics at the University at Buffalo School of Medicine, and Jing Yao used capsaicin to unravel how pain-receptor systems can adapt to painful stimuli. For example, adaptation happens when your eyes adjust from a dark movie theatre during a matinee to the bright sunlight outside. Whether pain receptors truly adapt or rescale their responses (versus simply desensitising) has been an open question. Scientists had previously linked the analgesic or pain-relieving effects of capsaicin to a lipid called PIP2, found in cell membranes. When capsaicin is applied to the skin it induces a strong depletion of PIP2 in the cell membrane. "The receptor acts like a gate to the neurons," said Qin. "When stimulated it opens, letting outside calcium enter the cells until the receptor shuts down, a process called desensitisation." "The analgesic action of capsaicin is believed to involve this desensitization process. However, how the entry of calcium leads to the loss of sensitivity of the neurons was not clear," he said, according to a Buffalo release. Capsaicin creams are commonly sold over the counter as effective treatment for a variety of pain syndromes, from minor muscle or joint aches to those that are very difficult to treat, such as arthritis and neuropathic pain


Posted with thanks from ANI

Great Brown Bears Love Hot Pepper smell

Some have heard that bear spray actually attracts bears?

Who would want to use something that does that?

I was under the impression that no mammal except humans like and love Chili Peppers in spite of its fiery nature. Just the day before , I posted something on these lines about Elephant's dislike for peppr smell.

I may be wrong about "All Mammals" . I was watching a documentry about Alaska today morning when a scientist was seen preparing his pepper spray canister to ward off bears. On researching more on line, I discovered a first person account by a knowledgable Bearologist (If I can call Tom Smith a scientist stationed at Anchorage Alsaka.) which informs a dummy like me that Bears actually were seen wallowing in the Hot pepper sprayed part of the earth even after five days.!! Is it because they associate heat of Hot peppers with the female heat or do they increase their chances of mating with the Pepper perfume?

We may never know the truth.

How touching !! (Pun Intended). Read a complete account here by Dr. Tom Smith PhD

Q: Who would want to use pepper spray if it attracts bears?

A: I published a paper in 1998 in the Wildlife Society Bulletin (Vol. 26: 92-94) demonstrating that some Alaskan brown bears (Ursus arctos horribilis) were attracted to bear pepper spray residues. I decided to conduct this work after I’d observed a bear vigorously rolling in pepper spray residues put down by a person who had hoped that the spray would repel bears from his floatplane tied to the beach. It hadn’t worked and his neoprene float covers were damaged. Now here I was watching a bear vigorously scent rub in the orangish stain on the beach. “What if this stuff actually attracted bears?” I began to worry, but not whether or not the spray worked as a bear deterrent but rather regarding their interest in residues on objects regardless of how they got there. I reflected on the fact that only days before I had shown a new field assistant how to use pepper spray... by discharging it just outside my field camp perimeter. It never occurred to me that the residue might prove troublesome. What if this residue actually attracted bears? Considering this further, I knew of people who had applied pepper spray to objects in the hopes of repelling bears from them. I even knew of a PhD bear research scientist who lectured on bear safety and had suggested that spray could be used in this manner to protect items that couldn’t be otherwise protected from curious bears. I felt I needed to further investigate because property and people could possibly be injured by this misuse of the product.

For this research I sprayed red pepper spray directly onto the ground then sat back and observed bears' reactions to it. Many bears were clearly attracted to spray residues, some vigorously head rubbing, back rolling, pawing and eating the soils tainted with spray. I also observed somebears responding to these sites for up to a 5 days after spray application. So not only were they attracted to it but for some time after it had been dispensed. So I published a short note hoping to warn others of the potential dangers associated with misuse of the product.

Some persons have concluded that because pepper spray was shown to elicit and hold a bear’s interest is ought not be used as a deterrent. Does this make any sense? Of course not. All it means is that these sprays should only be used as intended by their manufacturers: directly into the face of an aggressive bear. Other uses, such as applying it to objects in the hopes that the spray might have some sort of repellent effect would be an outright waste of the product, and given my findings, potentially dangerous. Even after noting that some red pepper spray deterrents have this attractive quality about them, I never questioned their use or effectiveness. I carry theses products in bear country, my field assistants carry them and they are effective.

Tom S. Smith, Ph.D.U.S. Geological SurveyAlaska Science Center - Biological Science Office1011 E. Tudor Rd., MS 701Anchorage, AK 99503Office: (907) 786-3456Fax: (907) 786-3636email: tom_smith@usgs.gov

Photograph taken with thanks from

chroniclesandexploits.com/1500MilestoAmerica.htm

Naga Jolokia Addict

Elephants and Bhut Jolokia are No Friends

One mammal that is highly allergic to Hotness of Chilli peppers is also the biggest land dwelling mammal. It also holds the record of having longest nose and also longest memory.

Yes, I am taling of MIGHTY ELEPHANTS.

Elephants are fearless animals and they stand their ground against any other animal of prey but when they come across Bhut Jolokia or other hot chili peppers, they raise their tails and run away as far as they can.

This fact was first discovered in Assam in India and quickly adopted by Africa and other countries people to ward of marauding hoards of elephants that destroyed crops and plantations.

Read the following stories from India and Africa.

Assam elephants are in for chilli shock

Rahul Karmakar, Hindustan TimesEmail AuthorGuwahati, November 14, 2007First Published: 00:27 IST(14/11/2007)

ELECTRIC FENCING has hardly proved a shocker for Assam's marauding elephants, so authorities have turned to a cheaper and hotter option. They are erecting rope fences dipped in chilli powder around paddy fields and plantations to reduce man-elephant conflicts.

The state Forest Department, in collaboration with WWF-India, has begun hot fencing using Bhot Jolokia in Balipara area of Sonitpur district. Bhot is the local term for anything of Bhutanese origin and Jolokia is the world's hottest chilli measuring 1,001,304 Scoville heat units nearly twice as hot as the Red Savina pepper it replaced in the record books in February.

We have begun work on this chilli-smeared rope fencing, Forest Minister Rockybul Hussain told the Assembly on Tuesday. These chillies are too hot even for the elephants, and we are banking on the success of this experiment to check man-animal conflicts.



Now we go to Africa for a similar story.

'Chilli brick' keeps elephants away

By Ed Stoddard

It has spiced up many a meal, but now the fiery chilli pepper is being used to cool an ancient feud between farmers and wild elephants in Africa.

In the Zambezi valley in southern Zambia, small-scale farmers are growing chilli peppers as a deterrent against elephants that raid their crops – and marketing the end result as an eco-friendly product.

“Elephants simply don't like the smell of chilli,” said Nina Gibson, project co-ordinator for the Elephant Pepper Development Trust.

'Elephants simply don't like the smell of chilli' The deterrents used are simpler to make than many chilli recipes, but probably have more kick.

“The farmers crush the chillies they grow and mix them with old engine oil. They smear that paste onto a simple string fence around their field, protecting their crops,” said Gibson.

Another approach involves mixing crushed, dried chillies with animal dung into a “chilli brick”.

These are burnt at night, carrying an extremely noxious smoke that will repel even the most ravenous pachyderm.

“Electric fences are clearly not an option for a small-scale farmer because of the costs, so they have to use other means to keep the elephants out,” said Gibson.

An extremely noxious smoke that will repel even the most ravenous pachyderm Eighty farmers are involved in the Zambezi Valley chilli project and they have an added incentive to grow the hot peppers – they can tap into the growing market of discerning consumers who want to buy “green products” that do not damage the environment.

From Kenya to Namibia, elephants and farmers are coming into closer contact as growing populations put pressure on land.

The animals can wipe out the annual harvests of entire villages with devastating consequences for the rural poor who often live on a knife-edge of survival.

Farmers crack whips, burn fires and beat drums to keep the animals out, but guarding their crops at night is dangerous, saps productivity and can leave them open to diseases like malaria.

Last month, Kenya began a massive operation to move 400 elephants from a crowded reserve on its Indian Ocean coast to protect the environment and reduce conflict with local people.

Elephants from Botswana sometimes thunder across the border into Namibia, trampling crops and sometimes even children.

“Human/wildlife conflicts are becoming more acute in Africa,” said Graeme Patterson of the World Conservation Society, which is based in the United States, one of the project's sponsors.

“Our belief is that unless you can resolve these conflicts, farmers will take things into their own hands. It's negative for people and wildlife,” he said.

The World Conservation Union – a body whose estimates on animal populations are among the most authoritative – said in June that elephant numbers in eastern and southern Africa were rising.

It said surveys showed elephant numbers in the two regions rose to 355 000 from 283 000 in the five years to 2002 – a growth rate of about 4,5 percent per year.

But human populations are also growing rapidly, stoking conflict with big animals and raising the stakes in the game to dangerous levels.

The Elephant Pepper Development Trust says farmers have resettled the Zambezi valley in large numbers in the last 20 years because of pressure on land elsewhere and they have found themselves competing with thousands of elephants.

Its chilli project aims to ease the tension, but the spin-off crops could also prove lucrative.

Three products have been launched under the label “Elephant Pepper” and have hit the shelves in South Africa, where the chillies grown in Zambezi are processed.

“Zambezi Red” is a sauce that claims to be “as hot as the valley from whence it comes”. A chilli jam and a chilli relish are also produced under the label. To drive the point home the labels proudly proclaim that “Elephants hate chilli”.

Turnover since March has only been around R250 000 but it is a start.

First tested in northern Zimbabwe, chilli deterrents are also used in Kenya, Sri Lanka, Laos and Thailand.

“We see a whole range of wildlife friendly products based on the concept that certain crops may be useful as barriers between humans and wildlife,” Patterson said.

Conservationists say the project is an innovative way to help subsistence farmers find markets for their cash crops while bringing some lasting peace between man and beast.



This article was originally published on page 7 of The Pretoria News on September 07, 2005

CHILLI...One spice, Many usages

CHILLIES...Spice, magic, supernatural powers, Myths and so on


Bolivian Lady...We thank Bolivia for gifting chili pepper to the world


Chili Pepper Traditions:

The Indians of the Cuna Islands off Panama tow chili peppers behind their boats to ward off sharks.

The Tarahumara Indians of Sonora, Mexico use the tiny chiltepins in curing ceremonies--not to rid someone of a current affliction, but to prevent maladies as a result of future witchcraft. Such witchcraft is caused by a sukurame sorcerer who uses a special bird called a disagiki as a pathogenic agent to transmit illness.

The sorcerer is the only one who can see the bird, which is no bigger than a finger tip but lives on meat and tortillas. It flies into houses crying ‘Sht! Sht!’ and then eats your food or defecates on you.

The only way to prevent its coming is to throw some Chiltepins into the air and eat some yourself. because the disagiki bird cannot stand chiles. This is where the common name of Bird Pepper comes from.

In Mexico the people are very fond of hot peppers. Their bodies get so thoroughly saturated with it, that if one of them happens to die on the prairie the vultures will not touch the body on account of its being so impregnated with the capsicum.

In the Ozarks and deep South of the United States, an African-American legend holds that in order for peppers to grow out and be hot, you have to be very angry when you plant them. The best peppers are said to be planted by a lunatic.

Chillies are one of the ingredients in the arrow poison of indigenous Bajak tribesmen of Borneo.

One of the commonest household uses of chile peppers in cultures all over the world is burning them as a fumigant for vermin ranging from bedbugs to rats. Since fumigation in ancient times was also believed to be protection against vampires and werewolves, we have a good introduction to the concept of the magical powers of peppers.

Chili Pepper Magic: To keep your mate faithful, buy two large, dried chili peppers, and tie them together with a red (passion) or pink (affection) ribbon. Place this beneath your pillow. It may also be added to love powders for lust.

Scattered around house, the acrid chili pepper is used to break spells. Because of its “bite,” chili pepper is also used to ‘curse’ others.

Naga Jolokia Addict

The story and Bolivian lady photograph taken with thanks from the net.