The Art of Spice

We normally hear it used in descriptions like 'hot and spicy' and i guess i really ought to put in another post one day on real spices like star anise, fennel seeds stuff like that. But i guess tonight's really all about chilli. Chilli is absolutely amazing. I think it doesn't just make your taste buds do somersaults, it really makes your dish really all the more exciting, and as singaporeans say - 'shiok'.
Ever since I moved to the east, i've tasted all sorts of chilli sauces. There's the one with dumpling noodles, and then there's this amazing sauce i tried with the chicken rice my friend bought for me across our workplace at Katong Mall. On the other hand, there's the other which is served with steaming hot prawn mee (not that i eat such things often :D) and gosh, the chilli my grandma makes! Yes, the chilli sauce you see here is a picture of my Grandma's Homemade Superhot Chilli.
It's really quite potent. Sourish from the vinegar, and wackily hot from good chilli padi. I don't know wad recipe she follows but this is pure chilli goodness. My sister just loves it and eats it with just bout anything. She worships chilli. I really can't understand how she can just eat it with white rice but hey, this is a free world ain't it?
I found out today too over dinner that when my dad was a boy and times were real bad, he had cleared a yard behind his house and grown chilli to barter trade. It was nice to hear him reminiscing the old days and it made me proud to hear how far my dad has come. And i found out too that chilli was the crop that sold for the highest price. $1.10 for a (forgot the word her used..it was a measurement the British used which equated to 600g)..let's use unit..unit of green chillis and $1.50 for a unit of red chillis. So my entrepreneuring father, in an attempt to gain as much profit as possible, had found a way to grow the best red chillis from his own backyard by sprinkling salt around the roots. Apparently, this method yielded the reddest chillis ever.

Anyway, thumbs up to my grandma cause this chilli is really good. I guess Dad's got the green thumb and Gramma's a goddess in the kitchen. She's managed to whip up this no-nonsense kind of sauce, without all that sweetness or gelatin rubbish of thai chilli sauce or an overpowering garlic flavour of other types of chilli. It's just right.

There you have it. Chilli, the Singaporean way.