Chillichap's Review - Mr Naga Hot Chilli Pepper Pickle - UK Indian Restaurant's Secret Sauce Madras or Vindaloo Curry Ingredient

Hello!

As someone whose name is Chillichap, it's no surprise that I have a great love for all things chili. I usually have an average of about a dozen different chili sauces in my cupboard, which are usually stacked next to the cooker. I first discovered Mr. Naga about four years ago in a Deli in Stroud, and it remains one of my biggest regrets in life that I didn't find it earlier. I can't stress enough how awesome it is, and I'm going to tell you why.


The jar may be small, only 190g, but don't let that deceive you. It contains 12 ingredients, including hot pepper (70% Naga Morich), salt, vinegar (from barley), vegetable oil, paprika, citric acid e330 (an acidity regulator), sodium benzoate e211 (a preserving agent), and mixed spices. Although it may seem simple, the "mixed spices" are where the real magic happens. The Naga Morich chillis give it a unique taste and heat. These chillies are traditionally grown in Bangladesh and North East India and are relatives of the infamous Bhut Jolokia and Dorset Naga. In Bengali, "morich" actually means chilli. The Naga Morich chillies have an impressive Scoville rating of 1,000,000 to 1,500,000 SHU. The Scoville scale is used to measure the spiciness of chilli peppers and other spicy foods.


The Naga Morich chilli is, in my humble opinion, a fantastic ingredient for any cook. However, having a jar of Mr Naga is so much easier and it will last a long time. The maximum amount I use in my curries is 1 teaspoon (making it Vindaloo strength), and half (making it Madras strength) if my wife and children are eating what I cook. In that case, I just chop up three extra green chillies and sprinkle them on top of my dish.

The flavour of Mr Naga is sweet and tangy. The paprika provides a smoky, pungent hit. I'm salivating writing this. The mixed spices are where the devil is in the detail. I'm sure I can see mustard seeds in the sauce. The heat builds up slowly, taking about 30 seconds to fully get you. It's hot, but boy is it tasty and extremely moreish (bordering on addictive).

I put Mr Naga sauce on a lot of things I eat. A simple dip with mayo and a quarter teaspoon of Mr Naga is wonderful as a base for items on toast like boiled eggs. If I make a burger, I mix tomato ketchup with a quarter teaspoon of Mr Naga and spread it on the base of my toasted bun. Sometimes I just drizzle a bit of the flavorsome oil onto things.

You don't really see Mr Naga Sauce for sale in the shops much, so I tend to buy in bulk from eBay or Amazon. Try it, and you'll love it. Obviously, check out any allergens first.


Thanks for reading

Matt AKA Chillichap



Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Chillichap's Review - Oscar 1991 Comedy Crime Movie Starring Sylvester Stallone, Ornella Muti & Peter Reigert - A Film I've Just Watched

Image
Hello! This film popped up on YouTube this morning and I, being a bit of a fan of Sly Stallone, I thought I'd give it a whirl. Often if you've never heard of a film-there's usually a very good reason. Read on to find out why I think this film may have slipped under the radar... The film starts off quite poignantly with Angelo 'Snaps' Provolone a gangster played by Sly Stallone visiting his father played by Kirk Douglas on his deathbed. Although the legendary actor does indeed look close to death, in real life he actually goes on to live another 29 years! His father persuades Angelo known as 'Snaps' to go straight and Snaps promises to obey his father's dying wish.  Snaps' hired hands aren't sure about their boss going straight and pretty soon one of his competitors Aldo (played by Peter Reigert) hears about it. Nobody, including the police, believes Snaps has gone straight and end up spying on him. Meanwhile, Snaps sets about improving himself an...
Read more

Chillichap's A to Z Guide of Cockney Rhyming Slang - Includes a Decoding of the Lock, Stock and Two Smoking Barrels Bar Scene (I hope) CERT 18

Image
Alright me old China plates?  I was going to try and write this whole blog in Cockney rhyming slang, but I thought it might give us both a headache and you'd want to get your German bands around my Gregory Peck (see what I did there?). I first remember encountering this unusual way of communicating while watching the UK TV series Minder starring acting legends George Cole and Dennis Waterman, The characters would suddenly come out with a turn of phrase that I didn't get. My uncle used to try and help decipher them for me, but he was a Geordie from up north, so that didn't always work. Later in 1998, there was a resurgence in the interest of Cockney rhyming slang following the bar scene in Guy Richie's excellent movie Lock Stock and Two Smoking Barrels, so I've included a guide to the famous bar scene.  Normally when I write an A to Z guide, I pick one word for each letter, but you wouldn't believe your mince pies (eyes) at the variety of Cockney rhyming slang wo...
Read more

Chillichap's Review - Pride and Prejudice 1995 BBC TV Series Starring Colin Firth, Jennifer Ehle & Alison Steadman

Image
Chillichap’s Review — Pride and Prejudice 1995 BBC TV Series Starring Colin Firth, Jennifer Ehle & Alison Steadman Darcy and Elizabeth My heartiest greetings to you all! I’ve been itching to write a review of this BBC adaptation of the classic story Pride and Prejudice by Jane Austen. I can remember watching the series on TV in the nineties and being utterly hooked. What made this event remarkable was that I was in my early twenties at the time and was on something of a hedonistic rampage. Most of my time then was either in pubs, restaurants or on the cricket pitch. In this era of my life, any TV programmes that I watched had to be blooming good to leave a lasting impression. This did. If I were to say to you that I’ve watched this adaptation twenty times, it wouldn’t be an exaggeration (my suspicion is that it’s at least twice that). These days, my youngest daughter is as hooked on this drama as I am, and we know many scenes by heart, word for word. When either or both of us n...
Read more