Do different peppers go better with different foods?

[austin87]

The rule of thumb with wine is white wine with fish and chicken and red wine with beef and lamb, but a lot of people also say that you should drink what you like with whatever you like. If you want red wine with fish or white wine with a steak, by all means... After all, you're the one who's drinking it!

Along those lines, do certain peppers go especially well with certain foods? What about colors? Are green/yellow/orange/red/chocolate peppers particularly suited for certain dishes?

Excited to see what people come up with!

 

[twilliams386]

Well aside from the obvious geographical pairings, I've found that chocolates do well with red meats, smoky bbq in particular. Aji's are excellent with seafood. Scotch Bonnets are my go-to for most chicken. Reds I mostly use like I do chocolates, but I also cut up and use as toppings. So maybe this:

Chocolate- BBQ, Chili
Yellow- Chicken, Fish, Fruity Foods
Red- Pasta, Stew, Asian, Indian
Green- Salads, Fresh Salsa/Pico, Mexican

But yeah in reality, I throw in whatever's closest if I'm not looking for a specific flavor or presentation

 

[RaelThomas]

Slightly divorced from colour but..

Fresh, I prefer the annum/frutescens burn & flavour with anything Asian, except perhaps curry. I feel like superhots in a bowl of Pho or something would be a bit mismatched in regards to flavour.

I like powders and/or sauce on BBQ, fried meat and in chili and the like. Whatever the variety.

I think yellows (or any generally fruity pepper) go well with white meats and the fresh and zesty stuff.

Green peppers pickled on mex, pizza or similar...

 

[seasmoke]

IMHO Jamaican jerk is best with Scotch bonnet, or maybe a similar chinense (Burkina yellow, chocolate Congo,,,), Thai peppers for Thai food work best and of course Mexican food is best with traditional peppers called for in the recipe. (Chipotle, Mulato, Poblano, whatever.) Traditional foods seem best with what is traditionally  called for. Hot dogs or hamburgers, casseroles or fusion etc... anything goes .

 

[Jase4224]

In regards to wine.. what you choose can depend on what you want from the wine and how you want it to impact on the meal.

For example, a red wine can be matched to compliment the flavours in a steak. Or you could select a white wine to cut through the richness. Selecting wine to go with a meal and have real purpose in enhancing that meal is a real art.

I have had Gorgonzola gnocchi with grated orange zest on top, the zest cutting through the richness of the cheese, the difference was zest makes is incredible. Aji Pineapple could have been used here with great effect.

I really hope that chilli varieties and all the different flavours eventually become appreciated and matched to foods to enhance a meal in a more methodical way rather than to just 'add heat'.

I agree with the comments above and it's great people are beginning to think way.