Light Cue 23

The BBC informs us today that the active ingredient in Chilli Peppers that makes them hot can also stave off cancerous tumors. This is very good news for me as I eat one to two Scotch Bonnets a day. I cook them in my meal.

I am very fortunate to have a favorite meal that is also very economical. Due to teh frequency with which I eat it, I have taken to calling it “My Meal.” It is quite simple. Basically it is nothing more than an evolution of my beans and rice days in college and after, a byproduct of my economic state. The more recent development is the salsa that I cook to go with the beans and rice.

For years I would eat black beans and rice, lending a friend of a friend to be convinced I was Cuban in a former life. Due to a string of bad luck with getting rotten cans of black beans I switched to pinto beans. I do not like the flavor as much as I do that of black beans, but after spending over $10 on rotten black beans I gave up hope. at $0.50 a can, that’s a lot of rotten beans!

But the real secret is the salsa. It started out simple. Jalapeños and red onions grilled in olive oil with salt and pepper. Simple enough. After a while I began adding Cilantro and tomatoes to the mixture. That helped to round out the flavors a bit as the tomato helps cut against the peppers. But Jalapeños really are not that spicy and can be eaten almost raw, so I would go back and forth on the tomatoes depending upon how strong I wanted My Meal to taste.

The spices too began to evolve. Cumin was a wonderful addition to the flavor palette, as was a dash of Cinnamon. The pepper became a mixture of finely ground black pepper for the bulk of the flavor with some coarsely ground peppercorns for a little extra kick.

Ginger is an occasional ingredient. Especially when I use multiple peppers as it aids digestion. I go back and forth on cheese. Often it cuts down the intensity of the peppers too much and so I leave it out that I might truly enjoy the spice. When included I use either sharp cheddar or jack cheese.

But the real amazing discovery was the Scotch Bonnet. These are the only peppers I have cooked with that actually have enough of a punch to them that I truly get the satisfaction of eating spicy foods. The spicier peppers allowed me to include tomatoes as a regular ingredient. Plus I have added tomatillos as a regular part of the dish. The red of the tomato, purple of the onion and green of the tomatillo and pepper make for a beautiful arrangement of colors when set against the white rice. Visually I still prefer the black beans combining with this, but some sacrifices must be made.

It seems in New York it is difficult to get really hot foods. It was much easier in California. Here, often, even if you ask at a restaurant to prepare a dish as spicy as possible, it is mild at best. A little more than black pepper perhaps.

Fortunately I live in an immigrant neighborhood that natively cooks spicy foods. The result is that I can get myself very hot dishes, and there is a wide variety of spices and peppers available at the various vegetable markets. I can get food, be it prepared or ingredients I cook at home, that really are spicy enough to be enjoyed.

I eat my meal probably five times a week when I am cooking dinner at home. I have been doing this for years. It is my favorite meal far and away from anything else. I can, and do, eat it day after day for years. Each time I sit down to it, I have the same rush of satisfaction right before I start, that I am about to eat my favorite food.

I can’t wait until dinner!