Rarely do you set a Mexican table without a small bowl of canned jalapenos, the same as gringos put the black pepper mill on the table. Jenny McGill, our Consular Agent, knows Mexicans who have traveled to China, Russia and other parts of the world with chiles in their purses or luggage to compliment their foreign dishes. She even knows the wife a a Mexican Ambassador to Iceland who selected and packed her four-year supply of chiles before she thought about packing the silver or looking for warm clothes to wear. Some of our recipes need the pequin to impart the original flavor of the dish. Just crumble the dried pod between your thumb and forefinger and add to the other ingredients.
All peppers get their pep from oils concentrated in the seeds and membranes.
It's these oils that can cause irritation and burning of your skin and eyes. There is a legend that the Incas created a wall of smoke between themselves and the conquering Spaniards by burning hot peppers. These fumes contained natural irritants that temporarily blinded their invaders. This fruit looks like wild cherries, but tastes very different. It can be eaten fresh or stewed.