Thai Bird Chile Powder

Description

There is no one “Thai chile”, as there are roughly 79 sub-varieties of chiles grown in Thailand. All Thai chiles originate from one of three different species -- Capsicum annuum, Capsicum chinense and Capsicum frutescens.  Our Thai Chiles, Capsicum annuum, are closely related to cayenne chiles.

History of Thai Chiles

Chile peppers have been a key flavoring ingredient in Thailand for the better part of the last 500 years. While chiles are not native to this region, they are indispensable to their cooking and are deeply entrenched in their culture.

Some food historians believe that chiles were introduced to the country by Portuguese traders in 1511 during the Ayutthaya Period (1351-1767). Others theorize that they were introduced by Portuguese missionaries in the mid-1500s who had just left South America and brought these fiery chiles with them. And still other Chile Historians believe that it is most likely that the real import of chiles didn't occur until King Narai’s reign of the Ayutthayan Empire (1656-1688), when he greatly expanded trade with Portugal as well as with France, China, India and Malaysia. No matter when they actually arrived, chiles where quickly embraced throughout the country.

Prior to the arrival of chiles, the Thai people spiced their food with strong aromatics such as galangal, garlic, ginger and black pepper. Chiles quickly displaced black pepper as the primary source of heat and the Thai's took to calling chiles “phrik” (meaning pepper).  

Cultivating Thai Chiles

Chiles are considered one of the most important vegetable crops in Thailand, and of the 79 types of chiles grown in the country there are two varieties in particular that make up the majority of the commercial production -- “bird pepper”, called “prik khee nu”, and the ubiquitously named "chili", called “prik khee fab”. The Bird Pepper variety is the more popular of the two and in the last reporting year (according to the Food and Agricultural Organization of the United Nations) there were over 175,000 acres devoted to chile production in the country, with almost 70% of this acreage devoted exclusively to the bird peppers.

Bird Peppers are typically 1.2" to 2" long and the crop is primarily raised from farmer-saved seed, which leads to some flavor and heat differences from area to area. Four of the most popular of this group of chiles are Huarea, Huaysithon, Jinda and Yodsoen.

Thai Bird Peppers should not be confused with Bird's Eye Chiles, which are smaller and grown primarily in Africa and India.  

Our Ground Thai Bird Chiles are from chiles cultivated in Thailand.

Cooking with Thai Chiles

Over the last 10 or so years, Americans have become captivated with hot chile peppers and hot sauces. Now, while Thai food is some of spiciest in the world, Thai chefs find the West’s infatuation with heat for heat’s sake to be a bit of an immature approach to chiles. In Thailand, chiles have been an integral part of the cuisine for hundreds of years and chiles are fully utilized not just for their heat, but as a way to intensify the flavors of other ingredients. Each component of a Thai meal must sufficiently appeal to four of your five senses, and Thai cuisine is centered round the five essential flavors -- salty, sour, spicy, bitter and sweet. Chiles are considered the “spicy” flavor and aren’t meant to overwhelm the taste buds, but to act as a contrast to the other four essential flavors.   

When it comes to Thai cuisine, attention to detail is paramount and every step of the meal as it is prepared is just as important as the one before it and the one that follows. Thai cuisine’s subtle complexity revolves around chiles, cilantro, coconut, galangal, lemongrass and rice. While dried red chiles are a critical component in Thai cuisine, Thai cooks also make extensive use of fresh green and yellow chiles, to form a “holy trinity” of sorts similar to the Mexican holy trinity of ancho, pasilla and mulato chiles used in preparing moles and the Cajun holy trinity of bell peppers, onions and celery.

Each Thai dish will typically feature one of these chiles (fresh green, red or yellow or dried red) although they can be substituted for each other in a pinch. Proper presentation is a crucial component of authentic Thai cuisine, and the three chile colors are utilized to heighten the visual appeal of their dishes in addition to adding sought after spiciness. Both dried and fresh chile peppers are often used whole.

In Thai cuisine, dried Thai chiles are added to broths, coconut soups, authentic Thai curry, noodle dishes, salads (only use a few), sauces and stir fries.

Thai Chiles may be mixed with salt and sugar to create a condiment that complements just about any fresh fruit. Make ahead of time so that the flavors have enough time to marry. The whole chiles are removed before seasoning the fruit. Thai chiles are lightly roasted with fish sauce, garlic and sugar, then mixed with cooked shrimp and topped with fresh Thai basil. Used to make a paste is from Thai chiles, shredded coconut, ground curry leaves, garlic and ginger and used on sweet potatoes. A light marinade for chicken or fish is made by combining Thai chiles with fish sauce, lime juice and sugar.

What Do Thai Chiles Taste Like

The flavor profile of Ground Thai Bird Chiles is a slight fruity with a strong spiciness.

How Hot is Thai Bird Chile Powder

Ground Thai Bird Chile comes in at 70,000-130,000 SHU.

Thai Chile Substitutions and Conversions

If you’re looking for a substitution for Thai chiles in a recipe you can use dried or fresh cayenne or serrano chiles.

If converting from dried chiles to a ground powder use 1 Thai Chile equals approximately ½ teaspoon of Thai Chile Powder.

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