Hot topic: Yotam Ottolenghi's chilli recipes

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Yotam Ottolenghi recipes

Recipes are by definition very prescriptive, but for some reason not when it comes to chillies. But there's a lot more to them than being 'hot' or 'very hot'

Yotam Ottolenghi

Fri 10 Jan 2014 22.00 CET

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Recipes can be incredibly vague where chillies are concerned. While instructions for other cooking staples are often very specific, things tend to get pretty general with chillies (and Iinclude myself among the guilty on this count). Given that chilli is the most widely grown spice in the world – there are more than 200 Mexican varieties alone – being told that a dish needs "a pinch of dried chilli flakes" or "one red chilli, chopped" is all a bit vague. Should the chilli belarge or small? Deseeded and chopped, or left whole? Should thedried flakes come from a fiery jalapeño or habanero, or from amore mellow ancho or urfa?

The main distinction for fresh chillies is whether they are red or green, the difference being one of ripeness. As with that other member of the capsicum family, the bell pepper, green chillies are unripe and not as sweet as when they turn red. The heat in a chilli comes from the presence of capsaicin, a flavourless, odourless compound that binds to pain receptors on the tongue, creating a sensation of burning. This increases as the green chillies ripen, but then loses its fire the riper, redder and sweeter they become. So, the hottest fresh chillies are those that are right at the turning point from green to red. Size is another factor: smaller varieties such as bird's eye, Thai and Scotch bonnets are among the hottest chillies out there.

The flavour and sweetness of chilli is intensified by the drying process, and it is with the dried varieties that the recipe writer's vocabulary really needs to be expanded from "hot" or "very hot" to adjectives we more commonly associate with wine. Once the flavour (rather than just the heat) of a chilli is assessed, degrees of smokiness or woodiness, notes of citrus or dried fruit, or hints of chocolate, tobacco, molasses and leather begin to emerge. For all its overuse as a word, "mellow" really is the only way to describe what a sprinkle of my favourite dark red urfa chilli flakes does to a plate of scrambled eggs, or the rich depth they bring to a marinade for meat. Ancho chilli flakes and the Turkish pul biber have a similar "mild heat, big aroma" impact; smoky, leathery dried chipotle, a staple of Mexican cooking, is another favourite.

All that said, and for all their subtlety and flavour range, chillies will, for some, always be about the heat. The Scoville scale, devised in 1912, assesses the number of times that extracts of chilli dissolved in alcohol can be diluted with sugar water before the capsaicin is no longer discernible to the palate. Putsimply, the more heat units it scores,the more fiery the chilli. Bell peppers score nothing on this scale, jalapeño and cayenne around 3,000, tabasco peppers 60,000 and habaneros from 100,000-300,000. It's such statistics that tempt many to ascertain their manhood by eating impossibly hot chillies, and why there are all sorts of festivals, competitions and record attempts where chilli-heads (or should that be gastromasoch*sts?) compete to breed and consume the hottest chilli.

Sweet and smoky Mexican chicken

Serves four.

2 medium red peppers
3 small cinnamon sticks, freshly ground (or, failing that, 1½ tbsp ground cinnamon)
4 chipotle chillies, soaked in boiling water for 30 minutes, drained, seedsand stalks removed
3 cloves garlic, peeled and roughlychopped
2½ tbsp white-wine vinegar
2½ tsp soft brown sugar
75ml olive oil
Salt and black pepper
1.75kg whole chicken legs (ie with both drumsticks and thighs), skin-on
20g dark chocolate, finely grated
650g baby maris peer potatoes (orother roasting potato), peeled and halved
2 medium sweet potatoes, cut into 2cm x 6cm wedges
2 medium red onions, peeled andquartered
10g coriander leaves, roughly chopped

Heat the oven to 200C/390F/gas mark 6. Put the peppers on a baking tray and roast for 30 minutes, until the skin has blackened. Transfer to asmall bowl, cover with cling-film and set aside. Once cool enough to handle, peel the peppers, and discard the skins, seeds and stalks. Put the pepper flesh in the small bowl of a food processor, and add the cinnamon, chilli, garlic, vinegar, sugar, three tablespoons of the oil, ateaspoon and half of salt and three tablespoons of water. Blitz for a minute, until smooth, then transfer to a large bowl. Add the chicken legs and chocolate, and mix to coat.

Put both types of potato in a separate large bowl with the onions, the remaining oil, half a teaspoon of salt and a good grind of pepper. Mixwell, combine with the chicken, then tip everything on to a large 30cm x 40cm baking tray. Arrange the chicken skin-side up and roast for about 50 minutes, until the chicken and vegetables are cooked and nicely coloured. Serve at once, with coriander sprinkled on top.

Spicy turnip

This is a heady condiment, a bit like a pickle, which keeps in the fridge for a few days. It's great with grilled meat or fish, or to add to sandwiches and salads. Serves six.

20g dried ancho chilli, stalk removed and deseeded
½ tsp dried aleppo chilli flakes (or, ifusing very hot chilli flakes, just apinch)
2 small cloves garlic, peeled and roughly chopped
½ tsp ground cumin
⅛ tsp ground cardamom
1 tsp caraway seeds, toasted
1½ tbsp olive oil
1½ tbsp sunflower oil
1½ tsp caster sugar
3 tbsp cider vinegar
2 tbsp lemon juice
1 tsp salt
5-6 small turnips, stalks removed but unpeeled
90g preserved lemon, halved, flesh and skin thinly sliced, seeds removed
15g coriander leaves, chopped

Put the ancho chilli in a small bowl and add enough boiling water just tocover. Leave to soak for 30 minutes, until soft, then squeeze out some of the moisture from thechilli. Set aside two tablespoons of the soaking water and discard therest.

Put the ancho chilli in the small bowl of a food processor, along with all the remaining ingredients up to and including a teaspoon of salt. Add the reserved chilli water, blitz to a rough paste, then transfer to amedium bowl and set aside.

Bring a medium pan of water to aboil, add the turnips and blanch for three minutes. Drain and refresh under cold water, pat dry and cut into 1cm-wide wedges. Stir these into the chilli paste, along with the preserved lemon. Cover and leave tomarinate for at least an hour. Sprinkle with coriander and serve.

• Yotam Ottolenghi is chef/patron of Ottolenghi and Nopi in London.

Hot topic: Yotam Ottolenghi's chilli recipes | Food (2024)

Sweet and smoky Mexican chicken

Spicy turnip

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