Chilli Bath Madness??

Have you ever had a bath with chilies in it?

No, of course not. That would make you stupid. Think of the burning!

I have had a bath with Chilies in it. That would make me....  ...er stupid. Yes, but not for the reasons you’re thinking of.

The experience was actually a bit of a rotten tomato. Let me explain.

I was wandering the aisles of my local Sainsburys looking for two for ones and general bargains that I could buy, that I didn’t need, and that I could indulge in when I got home. There was nothing that jumped out at me aside from the usual chocolatey delights and alcoholic beverages.

I perused a few more aisles and found myself in the showery bath section. Mmmm, shall I treat my gorgeous, hard working, deserves-a-rest, wife? The lady who is there for me whenever I need her, the lady who....   ...oo, what’s that over there..... a, a, a bubble bath with Chilies in it. No way, I love Chilies. Me Me ME!! I want it. I must have a bath in that nectar.

The Bubble Bath in question is made by Original Source, a well known, and pretty darn good manufacturer of shower gels, bubble baths etc. My family use them all the time, I trust them. There is a mint shower gel made from 500 or so fresh Moroccan mint leaves that after you use it and step out of the shower any small breeze of any description feels like an arctic gale.

The bubble bath states, "We have mixed black pepper with with little Habanero Chillis which score between 100,000-350,000 on the Scoville Scale." So, I was hoping for a raging firey inferno of a bath. I wanted the bath to creak as the firey burning chilli death syrup ate away at the enamel of my bath. I wanted a bubbling cauldren of liquid lava to bathe in that would take a few layers of skin off and make me look young again! Hey, I would even have settled for a slight tingly sensation, but all I got was red water and the smell of 1980’s Gobstoppers. Yes, that’s right, It smells of Fireball Gobstoppers that I used to buy as a kid! Does that mean that the chemically manufactured taste of the gobstoppers were actually bang on the money? I guess they were.

I lay in the bath and felt a little deflated. Waste of money. I actually fell asleep for a few minutes and woke up in a bath of now cold water. Even less heat than before! I was slipping quickly down the Scoville scale, off the end and in to a very localised Ice Age. 

I love chilies but I have learned that I should not always purchase goods just because I like one ingredient, all be it a major ingredient in this case. I think i'll stick to my usual morning shower in the future.

Capsicum is the botanical name for the plants bearing the fruit peppers. Belonging to the same family as the tomato and aubergine, they were discovered by Christopher Columbus in America and described by botanists at the beginning of the 16th century. They soon spread through europe and the rest of the world. My favourite is the Scotch Bonnet Chilli. It is named for its resemblance to the Tam O'Shanter hat and used throughout the Caribbean and West Indies.

For a hit of Chilli try this for size next time you rent a movie.

Chilli & Lime Popcorn.

Splash of vegetable oil

200g Popcorn kernels

1 to 2 tsp chilli powder, the hotter the better.

Juice of 1 to 2 limes

Heat the oil in a saucepan and add the popcorn. Put a lid on and turn the heat up. Shake the pan to stop the corns from burning every once in a while. 

When most of the corns have stopped popping, turn off the heat and put to one side. Allow to cool a bit.Add the chilli powder to the pan and shake to disperse. 

Tip the popcorn in to a large bowl and sprinkle with the lime juice immediately prior to eating.


Stay tuned for the next blog entry. "Brains in Ibiza"