Topic: Bolivian Aji and other mild chillies

[David R]

Hi, ive been growing bolivian aji chilies for a number of years, usually from seed sent from bolivia via the in-laws who buy the chillies in a local market by the carrier bag full. I always grow them outside and get huge crops of long fruit. From 12 plants i reckon i will get about 2-3 kilos of fresh fruit. The plants can get to 3 or 4 feet in height and will carry on flowering until the frosts.  I will be overwintering a couple of pot grown plants in the hope we can be getting a trickle of chillies in the colder months.

My wife makes a bolivian dish from the dried chillies and uses them to make a sauce which is based entirely on the chilli flesh, a bit like a bolognese but just chillies instead of tomatoes.  The heat in the sauce is mild, and is warming rather than blowing your head off! My question is - rather than have to source the seed from bolivia (although they are free), is there an alternative i can try?

[grawrc]

http://www.nickys-nursery.co.uk/seeds/pages/veg-chilipepper.htm

is this the right one? Aji dulce sounds about right. I googled and this is the first one I found. There are probably more.Various A4A folk have said Nicky's nurseries are good.

[Sholls]

The sauce your wife makes sounds delicious. :)

Do you grow any other varieties? If not, you could easily save your own seed; just scrape the seeds out of the ripe pods & allow to dry.

If you do grow other varieties you could isolate a flower or two before they open (some people wrap individual flowers with empty teabags, others use muslin, voile or an old pair of tights) and then pollinate by hand. Once the fruit sets remove the bag & tie some string/thread/ribbon to mark your pure pod & harvest the seed when it ripens.

Out of interest, do any of these look like your fruit? Or is this closer?

[ceres]

My wife makes a bolivian dish from the dried chillies and uses them to make a sauce which is based entirely on the chilli flesh, a bit like a bolognese but just chillies instead of tomatoes.  The heat in the sauce is mild, and is warming rather than blowing your head off!

Recipes please, they sound fab!  I've got some chillies isolated in voile bags like sholls suggests so worth a try.

[David R]

sholls,

the first lot of pictures seem to be about right. Its difficult to know exactly what vaiety it is because in bolivia they simply sell them all as aji, regardless  ???

We do save seed from one year to the next from cross pollinated fruits, but the vigor lessens each year, thats why i get fresh ones sent each year or two.

The recipe is pretty simple, its the flesh of the dried chillies, soaked in water for a few hours, then strained and put in a blender to make a paste.

A couple of onions get chopped and fried, add the meat (chicken on the bone), and brown. Chuck the paste in and mix. add water if neccessary to avoid a dry dish, cover and simmer till the chicken is cooked.

A simple dish, no tomatoes just chillies. Served with rice.  ;D

[ceres]

Thanks David, sounds yum.  Ned to experiment with some milder chillies.

[Jayb]

Mmm that does sound good, just need to dry some chilies first!

[dtw]

I grow Aji crystal, are they the same?

[Vinlander]

Hi DTW - have you tasted that chilli? I think it is probably very hot - mine that look the same are - very.

I think most of the ajis are hot except the ones labelled dulce maybe the Bolivian one is a dulce? though it also sounds a lot earlier - which would be great.

I suspect it is a halfway house - all the mild chillis with great flavour seem to be very late by all accounts - please please tell me I'm wrong...

Cheers