Tiny Thai Devil

I have lived in many places and have had many gardens in my lifetime. It all began with my mom when she helped me grow sunflowers when we lived on base in Millington, wayyyy back when. They grew to, what seemed at the time, 10 feet tall. We baked the seeds, coated in salt, and ate them like crazy. I instantly had a green thumb. It runs throughout both sides of my family, mostly evident on my father's, where my grandmother had a garden so big, she could have opened up her own market. That tradition is now carried on by multiple family members, but nobody grows peppers like my brother and I do.

It has been a lot of trial and error, but I finally found the spot in my yard that yields the best mixture of sun and drainage. I am growing a LOT of peppers this year: bhut jolokias, jalapenos, habaneros, tabascos, and the pepper to mention in this post: one lowly, yet fruitful, Thai pepper plant. My travels to Thailand and Southern Cali have led me to some unique experiences. I have had multiple sauces, spices and dishes that had Thai peppers mixed in but I have never eaten a fresh one. I've always heard that this little devil is evil and burns mouths, so I decided to grow some in my new garden this year. It turns out now, that some red peppers are showing up, the critics were correct.

I decided to eat one the other day, right after picking the very first batch of reds. It was instant pain. It took one second for my tongue to flame up beyond control. A swig of water followed by multiple sips of milk helped very little. I didn't sweat a whole bunch, it was just a flame in my mouth that burned badly. It took about an hour for the feeling to come back. That combined with the small size, it's hard to explain the flavor of this pepper. It would make an awesome addition to some stir fry or curry, which is why I understand the use of this powerful, little devil in Thailand. I will continue to grow these every year and will be researching the uses of this pepper so stay tuned for a good recipe in the future.