When I feel a cold coming on, nothing sets me right faster than a searing dose of scotch bonnet peppers, the more incendiary the better. Chicken soup is a fine cure, to be sure. But what I crave when the fog of a summer cold sets in is a good hot Trinidadian chicken curry. Served with a stinging hot choka and a drizzle of Devica’s hot pepper sauce, it’s sinus-clearing properties are unparalleled. Besides, curry and scotch bonnets are just about the only flavors that get through when I’m stopped up and feeling sorry for myself.
Alas, my hot pepper cure didn’t quite do the trick this time. My cold morphed into a lovely case of tonsillitis, particularly curious since I distinctly remember having my tonsils removed sometime back in the seventies. But my doctor assures me that when a nasty infection sets up house where your tonsils used to live, it’s still tonsillitis So, having simultaneously lost the ability to taste or swallow, I haven’t been cooking, eating or writing much lately.
Before I succumbed to the lurgy, I made this chow with a fresh pineapple Bones bought from a local farmer and some peppers grown by Devica’s sister that are so hot the local shops won’t sell them. Now that’s a pepper! Loaded with vitamin C and those sinus-clearing peppers, it just might cure what ails you. One note of caution – don’t try my hot pepper cure if your illness is at all digestive in nature. You might not live through the night.
This chow couldn’t be easier. Just prepare the pineapple and cut it into bite-sized chunks. Toss with a spoonful of Trinidad green seasoning, a minced hot pepper and a pinch of salt. If you don’t have any green seasoning, you can season the chow with a little chopped cilantro, a clove of minced garlic, some chopped green onion and the dose of hot peppers that you feel you can handle. If you’re not up to the scorch of the scotch bonnets, try starting with jalapeños and working your way up. Pineapple chow is, of course, a good accompaniment to a West Indian-style curry. But it also pairs particularly well with grilled chicken, fish or pork.
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Curious. I’m a Virginian, living on St Croix, who just stumbled upon your blog while eating a sugar apple.
Welcome Jeff! Funny how us Southerners end up down here.
I love heat and peppers. It never oocured for me to mix with pineapples. But why not. I will remember this next time I have a cold. After reading your blog, I do miss the Islands.
Hey Glamah girl! The heat of the peppers works really well against the sweet, tart pineapple. You can take it in a southwestern direction too with more cilantro and some red bell pepper.