I like this thread. I do most of the cooking and gardening here at home, but Duane's starting to really get a feel for the timing of meals and has made a few on his own (not always on time, but he's improving there). If I had to pick just one pepper that he grows, I'd pick one that I can't easily find at the store and that would be the Billy Biker Jalapeño F1. He grows a lot of these so he can make a lot of poppers. For the Superbowl, he didn't have a lot of time, so he didn't smoke them, instead he roasted them in the oven and they still turned out great. He found the recipe here a few years ago. I forget who it was, but it's the bacon-wrapped one with a cream cheese filling that includes roasted Anaheims.
I really like Golden Lantern Hab, Yellow Cayenne, and Lemon Drop for dried powders. I use them quite often in marinades and I put the Yellow Cayenne in dark chocolates that I make for Duane.
I like Tolli's Sweet Italian, Golden Greek Pepperoncini, Friariello, and Padrone for frying and pickling. I keep hoping to find a really prolific Shepherd type for the numerous dishes I make that use a sweet bell. Bells will not turn from green in our climate and there are many times when a vegetative green flavour won't do.
I also love to make Asian dishes and I've expanded the Asian vegetables part of the garden a fair bit. I love Prik Maan, Thai Yellow, Thai Orange, Korean Dark Green, Korean Salad, and Lombok Orange quite a bit for anything from salads to hot pots to stir fries. I'm hoping that Duane can find Hanoi Market and Thai Dragon to try next year.
I use Peach Habanero exclusively for sweet jellies like Habanero Gold and Golden Raspberry-Peach Hab jellies. I really like the colour, but it also seems to pair quite well with fruit.
I could write a ton about the Mexican chilies, but my favourite for recipes apart from the poppers, is Fresno. I really love that pepper in things like Tamale Pie and Enchiladas.
You'll notice I have nothing to say about those super-hots. I don't use them at all. That's Duane's domain. It's just too much for me to handle. He has to prep them and cook them downstairs - otherwise I cough up a lung.
it was the first Aji i ever ate
