If you’re looking for something a bit hot this May, then head to Dalston in London and be prepared to step outside your comfort zone. We are, of course, talking about chillies! The Chilli Chilli Bang Bang festival (yes, the name was inspired by the famous film score written by the Sherman Brothers!) takes place from 9th to 11th May and is described as an ‘epic festival of heat, flavour and fun’. Created by the co-founder of Wahaca, Thomasina Miers, and supported by Jose Cuervo, the tequila brand, top chefs will be giving demonstrations on the many uses of the humble chilli to spice up your taste buds including Gizzi Erskine, Martin Morales, Giorgio Locatelli and Atul Kochhar.
Miers is a self-confessed chilli addict; she herself uses the sweeter chilli de arbol every day, as well as Turkish flakes which she enjoys sprinkling on fried eggs on toast. And then there’s the ancho chilli (no, I hadn’t heard of that one either!). She explains: “It’s quite big so you can stuff it. It’s amazing on barbacoa and great for marinades and relishes.” And yes, she’s talking about the ancho chilli!
Miers has written a book full of chilli recipes called Chilli Notes: Recipes to warm the heart (not burn the tongue) and it will be published on 8th May. Within the book, not only does she give us a brief history of the chilli around the globe, she also goes on to marvel at the British thirst for new foods and dishes. She commented: “Brits, especially in London, are incredibly adventurous in food – we are so open to taste. We’re great adventurers. We’re all over food. And everyone is growing chillies everywhere. People are obsessed. Apart from the endorphin rush – they really make you feel good – there is a huge variety.”
But Miers isn’t the only one who extols the virtues of the chilli. The Rib Man, lesser known as Mark Gevaux, makes hundreds of bottles of his hot chilli-based sauces, principally using the scotch bonnet chilli. “I love chill… I absolutely love it,” he says and we note that his sauces are stocked by restaurants including Hawksmoor, Honest Burgers, Honky Tonk and Foxlow. And his latest project is to produce a bespoke spicy bourbon-based sauce for Blues Kitchen, a new restaurant that is soon to open in Shoreditch.
So, if you’re a chilli lover, enjoy hot and spicy food that warms the heart, and want to have a go at growing your own chillies, I suggest you put the date in your diary!