The most likely scenario for the introduction and spread of chile peppers into Africa south of the Sahara is as follows. Varieties of Capsicum annuum and chinense were introduced into all West and East African Portuguese ports during the 40 years between 1493 and 1533, with the introduction into West Africa logically preceding that of East Africa. The chiles were first grown in small garden plots in coastal towns by the Portuguese settlers and later by the Africans.
Dave DeWitt’s Book Tour Dates Set
I’ll be on the road to four locations in Texas in August to perform cooking demonstrations for one of two of my latest books, Dishing Up New Mexico, at four Central Market Cooking School locations. I’ll be in Dallas (August 11), Ft. Worth (August 12), Austin (August 13), and Houston (August 14). While in Houston, I will be making appearances around the city and particularly at the iBurn hot shop.
Garden Bounty: 3 Spicy and Chilled Summer Soups We Love
I guess I don’t need to tell you that these soups are refreshing to serve during hot summer days and you don’t need to turn on the stove. But I do need to tell you that fruits and vegetables fresh from the garden or farmer’s market make the most flavorful soups, and also that your food processor and/or blender will get quite a workout.
Smoking Takes Practice
I’ve discovered that I can smoke two large slabs of St. Louis-style ribs and four large chicken breasts at the same time in about 3 to 4 hours. That beats the hell out of 16-hour briskets. Not that I have anything against briskets–it’s all about staying awake, and frankly that’s a pain in the ass when you’re a senior smoker like me.
Chipotle Ale Wins Chile Beer Tasting
So far I haven’t found a chile-flavored coffee, but there are certainly a growing number of chile-flavored beers, vodkas, and tequilas. I decided to taste-test six bottled chile beers to see if they were just heated-up lagers or whether or not some of them had some respectability. I bought the six beers at Total Wine, which seems to have the largest selection of beers in the city.
Melissa’s Produce and The Great Chile Pepper Cookbook
The book should come with a warning: ‘Do not look at this book if you are hungry…’ You could start chewing on the pages!
Yucatán: Huge Book, Big Flavors
Weighing in at 6.5 pounds, this 560-page, oversized book has more than 275 recipes and truly captures the cuisine of the region. But more than that, Sterling does a great job as a culinary travel guide, offering the inside scoop on the people, places, and ingredients of one of the world’s great regional cuisines.
