My First Chilli

Here's my first Chilli of the year. This was grown outdoors, potted for I don't have a lawn for my seedlings at that moment. Actually, I didn't do anything special with it until it was already setting its first fruit. I didn't have any prior idea on how would it appear as a full-grown chilli after some time because I haven't tried to plant one before. I acquired those seedlings from a rotten chilli bought from the market. People in my country would only identify it as "sili" or "katumbal" in our local language. But those who were fervent about chilli around the world could name the variety of my own chilli as the "Passion Cayenne Chilli Pepper". Its fruit could reach about 20 centimeters long, but the longest it gave me was only 13 centimeters. Hay Why? Anyway, its beauty comes from its evolving colors - from the greenest to the purest red of glowing from its shiny and firm texture. My chilli fruit is not a spicy spice but a real sweet kind and no wonder for it has the real Passion Cayenne feature - deliciously sweet and impressive to show off over your newly cook dish. I would love to keep growing chillis in my garden because it is one of the most popular and widely used spices in the world and as a cook I could commit to the idea that its fresh fruit makes a difference to the flavor and quality of a meal and is also a healthy source of antioxidants.

For my little sharing, I have this recipe made for my Papa and his friends for their drinking session. As the saying goes, "The way to a man's heart is through his stomach", served as an inspiration for me to be more adventurous with my seeking and this recipe is a successful one for I have made the Chilli not only as an additional ingredient but the main element of the recipe itself. . .

Breaded Chilli Recipe

Ingredients:

10 Long Chilli fingers

1 tsp. Aromat powder

1 tsp. Ground pepper

5 tbsps. Flour

1 Egg, (beaten)

5 tbsps. Breadcrumbs

1 cup Cooking oil

Directions:

1. Marinate Chilli fingers with aromat powder and ground pepper for a minute.

2. Dredge Chilli fingers with flour, dip completely in egg, and then roll in breadcrumbs.

3. Heat oil in pan and deep-fry Chilli fingers until light golden. Remove excess oil by drying on paper towels.

For the sauce:

4 pcs. Calamansi (squeezed)

1 pc. Small garlic pounded

3 tbsps. Soy sauce

2 tbsps. Worcestershire sauce

2 tbsps. Ground pepper

2 tbsps. Raw sugar

Directions:

1. Combine all ingredients. Mix well and serve beside Breaded Chilli.

This is normally served as a "pulutan" which literally means "something that is picked up" or "finger food".

-dp