As much as The Chilli Man likes to waft into rooms with an intriguing air of mystery, we do feel that it’s important to tell you exactly what’s under his big lustrous moustache…

What follows is a list of the major ingredients used in The Chilli Man products. (The minor ingredients are the not-so-interesting ones, like natural vegetable gum to hold it all together. See? Boring.)

Food facts from various sources, including www.foodreference.com and www.wikipedia.org

apple

In Greek mythology, apples were associated with the healing god Apollo. (Maybe this is where “an apple a day keeps the doctor away” comes from...?)

The Chilli Man likes his apples because of their malic and tartaric acids. These sound sinister but they’re not. Actually, the custom of serving fresh fruit, (particularly apples) at the end of a meal came about
because the physicians Hippocrates and Galen raved about the favorable effects of the fruit on their digestion. The acids of the apple not only make the fruit itself digestible, but help with the digestion of other foods too.

basil

Now, you may not know it, but Basil is a bit of a lurrrve herb. It has been considered an aphrodisiac by some, is associated with the pagan love goddess Erzuli and is used in love spells. (And we thought chilli was saucy.)

In Italy, where basil is called “bacia-nicola” (kiss me Nicholas), it is thought to attract husbands to wives and a pot of basil on a windowsill is meant to signal a lover. (Down, Chilli Man, down!)

In Moldavian folklore, if a man accepts a sprig of basil from a woman, he will fall in love with her. The Chilli Man likes to think that his chilli has the same effect.

But back to basil in cooking. Usually it’s added at the last moment to make the most of the flavour. That’s what happens in The Chilli Man products (or is it because The Chilli Man wants to keep the basil on his windowsill for the longest time possible, just in case…?)
chilli

Surely the best way to talk about chilli is in short, sharp, hot little bursts? Here we go…

• Chilli will grab you by the taste buds and leave you panting for more. More! MORE!
• Chilli has been hailed as a stimulant for the whole body (aye-carumba), increasing blood flow, metabolism and appetite, and encouraging the body to sweat (as part of traditional fever cures)
• Capsaicin, the bite in chilli, has been studied extensively and has shown it enhances sugary or salty solutions. The increased flavour impact may be because chilli triggers the release of endorphins—the natural morphine that creates the feeling of pleasure.
• The Chilli Man likes that last point so much, he’s going to repeat it: chilli triggers the release of endorphins—the natural morphine that creates the feeling of pleasure. Yeeeeeeooooooooowwwwwwwwwzzzaaaa!
• Chillies cool you down as well as warm you up. The more you sweat, the more body moisture will evaporate, leaving your body cooler.
• Contrary to folklore, chillies do not irritate the stomach lining and can, in fact, help stomach ulcers.
• Chilli is still widely used as a medicine by people of many different cultures.
• Mayan Indians used chilli pepper for asthma, coughs, sore throats and respiratory disorders.
• In the 19th century, a couple of drops of chilli pepper extract were used to ease toothache. Yikes.
• Chilli promotes salivation, which may help digestion.
• Chillies are high in protein and higher in vitamin C than oranges!
• Chilli is mildly antibacterial and is an excellent gargle for sore throats and laryngitis.

cloves

Cloves are actually dried flower buds, which are picked before they open. (The Chilli Man doesn’t want anyone to feel bad about this. When your number’s up, your number’s up.) Besides, cloves really come into their own when they’re used in cooking… especially in The Chilli Man products. They have an extremely strong aroma, so they’re only used sparingly. Cloves are used for incense in Chinese and Japanese culture, and in Indonesia they’re mixed with tobacco to make kretek cigarettes. (Sometimes they’re mixed with other substances too, to make ‘special’ cigarettes. At least that’s what The Chilli Man’s operatives in Indonesia
tell him.)
coconut

The scientific name for coconut is Cocos nucifera. Apparently early Spanish explorers called it coco, which means “monkey face” because … well, that’s a bit of a no-brainer. Nucifera means “nut-bearing.”

The coconut not only provides a nutritious source of meat, juice, milk, and oil that has fed and nourished populations around the world for generations, it has probably fallen on a lot of people’s heads. It’s highly nutritious and rich in fibre, vitamins, and minerals.

coriander

Coriander is mentioned as an aphrodisiac in The Tales of the Arabian Nights. (The Chilli Man thinks that this, combined with pleasurable effects of chilli, is enough to make any hot-blooded person want The Chilli Man at every meal!) References for coriander have been found as far back as 1550 B.C., which leads many people to believe it is one of the ancient herbs. (No kidding guys.) It was also mentioned in the Bible and found in tombs of pharaohs. Coriander is a member of the parsley family and comes from the Eastern Mediterranean region. Nutritionally, it has been demonstrated that coriander can help to reduce excess fat in the bloodstream. It is also an excellent digestive aid, a substantive antioxidant, and an anti-inflammatory agent that can help soothe arthritis. What a wonder herb.
Needless to say, The Chilli Man loves his coriander!

cumin

Cumin is the second most popular spice in the world (black pepper is the big celebrity). Cumin can be used to season many dishes, as it draws out their natural sweetness. It’s traditionally added to curries, enchiladas, tacos and other Middle Eastern, Indian, Cuban and Mexican style foods. It can also be added to salsa to give it extra flavour—but The Chilli Man already knew that.

curry powder

Curry powder is a mixture of spices developed by the British during their colonial rule of India as a means of getting the ‘next best thing’ to the flavour of Indian cuisine at home. What a shame The Chilli Man wasn’t around then. Oh well, you can’t have everything.

Most recipes and producers of curry powder usually include coriander, turmeric, cumin and fenugreek in their blends. Depending on the recipe, additional ingredients such as ginger, garlic, fennel seed, clove, mustard seed, green cardamom, black cardamom, nutmeg, capsicum, cinnamon and black pepper (gasp!) may also be added. That was one helluva list!

dates

Date stones have been found in Egypt that date (“Date—ha ha ha!” The Chilli Man) to 4500 BC. There are 60 references to date palms in the Old Testament (The Chilli Man had a few hours to kill at a remote motor inn one night, and the TV wasn’t working, so—it’s a long story.)

Dates can be used in a variety of both sweet and savoury dishes. When used in their dried form, they add a richness and sweetness unrivalled by most other dried fruit.

garlic

Garlic is one of the most powerful foods on the planet (chilli’s another one, of course!). Garlic is known for its pungent aroma, its strong taste and its healing power. The plant we know as garlic has been cultivated for more than 5000 years, and garlic has been used in natural healing and traditional medicine for a very long time.
Garlic has been reported to lower cholesterol, prevent dangerous blood clots, reduce blood pressure, prevent cancer, and protect against bacterial and fungal infections. (We don’t believe everything we read, but somehow we just know that garlic is good for you!)

Garlic is available in many forms, including natural cloves, garlic powder and garlic paste.

Oh, and if you’re worried about blood-sucking creatures of the night, keep a string of vampire-repellent garlic handy at all times. A stake wouldn’t hurt either.

ginger

Ginger has been revered for thousands of years as a universal medicine, especially in areas such as China and India. It has been said to help provide relief for conditions as diverse as asthma, painful menstruation, migraines, indigestion and infection and is said to promote vitality and longevity.

Ginger contains gingerol, shogaol and zingiberene, which have antioxidant properties. (The Chilli Man will gladly take the word of the experts on this one.) It is a good source of dietary fibre, vitamin E, vitamin B6, iron, magnesium, potassium and selenium, and a very good source of manganese. Ginger root is very low in cholesterol and sodium. Go ginger!

Some people say that ginger root is full of natural anti-inflammatories, and good for headaches. (Hey, The Chilli Man knows that when you’ve got a headache, you’ll try anything.)

Ginger is also good for the stomach, and VERY good for The Chilli Man sauces, salsas, jams, pastes….

honey

Honey is commonly used as substitute for sugar or as a flavor enhancer. Honey is also effective in treating burns and wounds and it has been used for this purpose for many centuries. Now it is known that the secret of honey lies in its antibacterial activity. (The Chilli Man guesses that no one knows more about activity than bees.

lemons & limes

Lemons contain 30–45% juice depending on variety, climate, maturity at the time of harvest, and storage conditions. The extracted juice contains between 4.5 and 8.5% organic acids (mostly citric).

Limes are closely related to lemons, and both are typically squeezed onto fish dishes; the acidic juice neutralizes the taste of amines in fish by converting them to nonvolatile ammonium salts. No one like volatile ammonium salts on their fish, that’s for sure.

Lemon juice is widely used, along with other ingredients, when marinating meat before cooking. The acid provided by the juice partially hydrolyzes the tough collagen fibres in the meat (tenderizes the meat).

Lemons and limes are also pretty good for margaritas, which happen to go VERY WELL with chilli. In fact, The Chilli Man’s favourite party drink is the margarita. Coincidence? We think not.

mango

More fresh mangoes are eaten every day than any other fruit in the world. When they’re in season, The Chilli Man certainly does his fair share help this statistic. (And he always has plenty of dental floss handy. Sucking the seed can be a dirty job.)

Mangoes are high in fibre, but low in calories. The flesh of a ripe mango contains about 15% sugar, up to 1% protein, and significant amounts of vitamins A, B and C.

And here’s one to keep up your sleeve for pub trivia nights: the ‘Paisley’ design motif is a design from India based on the mango. BINGO! (Oops sorry, wrong game.)

mustard seeds

Mustard is a member of the Brassica family of plants which bears tiny round edible seeds as well as tasty leaves. Its English name, mustard, is derived from a contraction of the Latin mustum ardens meaning burning wine. (No, nothing to do with The Chilli Man’s chilli juice, in case you were wondering.) This is simply a reference to the spicy heat of the crushed mustard seeds and the French practice of mixing the ground seeds with must, the young, unfermented juice of wine grapes. You learn something new every day, don’t you.

Prepared mustard dates (“There are those dates again!” The Chilli Man) back thousands of years to the early Romans, who used to grind mustard seeds and mix them with wine into a paste not much different from the prepared mustards we know today. You’ve gotta hand it to the Romans. They could really cut the mustard.

Onion
If (sniff) tears come to your (sniff) eyes whenever you slice an onion, you’ll be glad to know that the very things that give onions their pungency, taste and smell have been identified as substances that may fight cancer.
But wait—there’s more!
Onions contain as many as 150 phytochemicals. (That may sound dodgy but really, they’re good.) The flavonoid quercetin, an antioxidant (phytochemical) found in onions, helps eliminate free radicals in the body, inhibits low-density lipoprotein oxidation, protects and regenerates vitamin E, and helps to circumvent the harmful effects of heavy metal ions. You’re not expected to know how to say all of those words. The Chilli Man just wants you to know that onions are good, even if they do make you cry. They certainly make him cry (but then, he’s a big softie at heart).

parsley

Parsley is the world’s most popular herb. (Sexy beast that it is.) Its name comes from the Greek word meaning “rock celery” (parsley is a relative to celery, although The Chilli Man doesn’t know on whose side of the family. Could be a cousin twice removed.)
Parsley contains three times as much vitamin C as oranges, twice as much iron as spinach, is rich in vitamin A and contains folate, potassium and calcium. What’s more, parsley is also recognized for its cancer-fighting potential. (And if you’re suffering from a bit of the old halitosis, chew on a sprig of parsley. It’s a natural breath freshener. It’s The Chilli Man’s secret weapon.)

pectin

Pectin is a natural carbohydrate that is extracted from the inner peel of many fruits; it is most commonly extracted from lemons, as well as limes, oranges and grapefruits. The peels are washed, ground and processed to extract the pectin. It’s commonly used as a natural thickener in jams and jellies. Pectin sounds like a suburb in the south west of England, according to The Chilli Man.

sultanas

The sultana grape contains 18-20% fruit sugar, which means that the fruit remains plump and succulent after the evaporation of its water content. Also, because of their high sugar content, they don’t need preservatives to keep them fresh (The Chilli Man loves that).

Being seedless, succulent and sweet—almost honey-like—sultanas are a natural choice for cakes, biscuits… and chilli concoctions of course!

tomato

There are at least 10,000 varieties of tomatoes.
The highest concentration of vitamin C in tomatoes is in the jelly-like substance around the seeds. (Doesn’t sound good, but The Chilli Man makes sure this always goes in the mix… he’s always looking after his fans!)
Lycopene, one of nature’s most powerful antioxidants, is present in tomatoes and has been found to be beneficial in preventing prostate cancer, among other things. “Bring on the tomatoes!” –The Chilli Man.

turmeric

Turmeric is the root of a tropical plant that has been used in cooking since 600 B.C. (The Chilli Man wants you to know that he doesn’t use any 600-year-old roots, he only uses the new stuff.) Turmeric is native to the Orient and now can be found in India and the Caribbean. It has a bitter, pungent almost woodsy flavor, is yellowish-orange in color.

In Ayurvedic medicine, turmeric is thought to have many healthy properties. It is taken in some Asian countries as a dietary supplement, which allegedly helps with stomach problems and other ailments. It is popular as a tea in Okinawa, Japan. It is currently being investigated for possible benefits in Alzheimer’s disease, cancer and liver disorders.

Sangli, a town in the southern part of the Indian state of Maharashtra is the largest and most important trading centre for turmeric in Asia or perhaps in the entire world. The Chilli Man calls it the centre of the Turmeric Universe.