Food - Chilli Day

One of the most fun tapas to eat in Spain is a plate of pimientos de padron. They are little thumb-sized green peppers, fried in olive oil and salt, which you pick up by the stem and eat whole. The fun lies in the ‘Russian roulette’ element of the experience. Up to one in five of the peppers is blow-your-head-off hot, while the others hold no piquancy at all. ‘Pimientos de padron… unos pican y otros no’ runs a Spanish rhyme which celebrates the little chillies (‘some of them sting you, and others don’t’). The pimientos are just one of the many varieties of pepper you can buy in the annual Southease Chilli Day.

The flyer promises a range of produce from ‘wimpishly mild’ to ‘frighteningly hot’. “The format will be slightly different this year,” says organiser Adrian Orchard, “we hope to have more to interest the visitor. Including ‘Rocoto Red’ (gringo killer) and ‘Lemon Drop’, which has an unusual citrussy flavour.” A Viva visit to Adrian’s pepper nursery in the village last year was an eye-opener, showing the great variety of this wonderful plant, which change in form (some are shaped like tomatoes, to which they are related), colour (from pale yellow to deep red) and piquancy (from a mild ‘W’ to an extra-hot ‘HHH+’. Growing them requires a lot of attention in the polytunnel: they are germinated in March and need careful daily watering until they are ready to consume in early September. A tip: if you want seriously hot, go for the Hot Paper Lanterns. Just don’t put your fingers in your eyes after touching them. AL