Hot and Spicy Latin Dishes: The Best Fiery Food from Las Americas

by Dave DeWitt, Melissa T. Stock, Mary Jane Wilan

Not for the faint of heart, this collection of eye-watering, temperature-raising recipes from fiery hot spots around the globe will thrill any adventuresome food lover. Intertwined with the recipes are fascinating food histories and stories from the authors' extensive culinary journeys.Peruvian Walnut Chicken, Guyana Pepperpot Soup, Gallo Pinto with Hot Sauce from Costa Rica, Nicaraguan Jalapeno Pork Salad -- this collection is a Latin American tour de force. Other hot recipes include Carne Quisado from Guatemala, Choriza Sausage from Argentina, and Duckling with Spicy Wine Sauce from Colombia.

Genres: Cookbooks

304 pages, Paperback

First published November 7, 1994

About the author

The New York Times calls this author "The Pope of Peppers" and TV viewers recognize Dave DeWitt as the ever-affable chile pepper expert and organizer of Albuquerque's huge annual National Fiery Foods and Barbecue Show. Dave is also the author of more than 40 food related books, including the best-selling "The Complete Chile Pepper Book," "The Southwest Table," and the forthcoming "Growing Medical Marijuana."
National TV appearances include "American Journal," Cable News Network, "The Today Show," "Home with Gary Collins," "Scientific American Frontiers," "Smart Solutions," and "CBS Sunday Morning." He has also been featured in The New Yorker, The New York Times, Los Angeles Times, USA Today, American Way, Smithsonian, and approximately 200 newspapers across the country.
Now, the world's authority on the Southwest's hottest food turns his attention to New Mexicos most compelling and legendary historical figures--the rag-tag group of Apache warriors led by an elderly gentleman set on avenging the death of Victorio--and those who pursued them, the officers and buffalo soldiers of the U.S. Army's Ninth Cavalry as told in Dave's novel "Avenging Victorio."
The people, the story and the settings are real; DeWitt poured through endless documentation in the form of military records, old photos, newspaper clippings, letters and other correspondence to piece together the facts. Then, drawing on his background as a university professor of composition and literature-- plus his almost uncanny grasp and sensibility of Apache customs, traditions, rituals (and humor) -- DeWitt has woven a fast-paced and engaging saga. Click here for more information."

Reviews

[Kate Atonic · Rating 2 out of 5]

A lot of these recipes are fatally flawed. As an example, the tamale recipe starts with white corn flour, not masa harina. They’re not interchangeable. Masa harina consists of dried field corn that has been treated in a solution of lime and water, nixtamalization. The lime reacts with the corn so that the nutrient niacin can be assimilated by the digestive tract - vitally important to the diet of Native Americans. They recommend “large jalapeños” as substitutes for Chile rellenos, not poblano or pasillas. Ingredients include Worcestershire sauce, but not soy sauce (which is the usual ingredient in lomo saltado.)

The cultural and regional information was really interesting though. As an example, I didn’t realize that the countries where the colonizers had more control/influence on the diet of the native populations tend to have a less spicy palette for to suit their palates.

[Redsteve · Rating 3 out of 5]

Decent book about spicy foods in South and Central America - the authors did not include Mexico, stating that the country's "great tradition of spicy food" needed to be dealt with separately (but it occurs to me that Mexico's accessibility to New Mexico-based Chile Pepper Magazine may also have something to do with this). The book includes a range of recipes from the region (primarily Brazil and Peru, with their national traditions of hot dishes, but also Panama, Guyana, Argentina, Columbia, Ecuador, Costa Rica, Belize, Uruguay, Chile, Venezuela, Nicaragua, and Bolivia), exclusively ones with ingredients readily obtainable in 1990s US, so, although dishes with cuy (guinea pig), llama, dog, iguana, monkey, tapir and vizcacha are discussed, there are no accompanying recipes. The one exception is a dish containing Rhea, where the authors suggest substituting turkey (although nowadays, ostrich would probably be better). There is also an excellent selection of African-influenced dishes from the Bahia region of Brazil. The book starts with a brief discussion of pepper species by type and region. Finally, each section (and some sidebars) includes details on food use and traditions in pre-Columbian, Colonial (under Spain and Portugal) and modern (independent) periods.