Edible Ornamentals: The Tour Part 1

One of our friends offered us a tour of Edible Ornamentals chilli farm as a Christmas present so we were very excited to further our knowledge of chilli plants and discover some of Edible Ornamentals’ chilli sauces and preserves.

We arrived at Edible Ornamentals chilli farm last Sunday for the 11 am tour which was supposed to last one hour but ended up being three! We plagued Shawn, the owner and tour guide, with questions and he was great in answering all of them whilst managing the other people that had come to do the tour.

The farm is divided into several types of polytunnels. The main one is for the general public to come and view or buy chilli plants from Hungarian Hot Wax to Dorset Naga, Orange Habaneros, Serenade and many more. In the time that it took us to do the tour we saw many people just coming to the chilli farm out of the blue and buying chilli plants. They look so good and are so healthy that we do understand why Edible Ornamentals seems to be so popular with the locals.

Shawn took us to see the polytunnels called “Pick and Mix” which as you can imagine is the place where families can come and pick their own favourite chillies. This is still a work in progress although perfectly usable as it is but most chillies are still a bit too green to be picked. We can imagine how boisterous and amazing to see it must be at the height of the chilli picking season though!

The third polytunnels we saw was really impressive. Built with a special type of polyurethane that allows the heat to really stay in, we went from outside which was sunny albeit very windy to a wall of blistering heat upon entering the polytunnels. The chilli plants definitely seem to like it though and are very neatly kept!

Cambridge Chilli Farm Visit - Part 1

Since one of our friends had kindly offered us a tour of Edible Ornamentals chilli farm we decided we would take the opportunity to go and visit Cambridge Chilli Farm that is set up nearby.

We have been stocking Cambridge Chilli Farm’s products for about a year now and are addicted to chilli sauces such as Pineapple & Habanero Hot Sauce and of course Ghost Pepper 10 Hot Sauce although we are also partial to Cambridge Chilli Farm’s Habanero Gold Jam and Raspberry Chilli Jelly!

Tim is the man behind the brand and is a dedicated chilli grower who endeavours to bring out the best out of his chillies and create hot sauces and chilli preserves that people will trust and enjoy time and time again.

Cambridge Chilli Farm is set up on a quarter of an acre which is currently enough for the farm’s needs although we could sense that given the proper staff and technology Tim would be keen to have at least 6 acres to potter about with!

Cambridge Chilli Farm’s polytunnels are one of the best kept ones we have seen so far. The chilli plants are divided by type, with a dominance this year of Orange and Chocolate Habaneros and Seven Yellow Pots.

We went round each polytunnels, Tim explaining to us the influence that the weather has had on his current crop and going into detail about all the aspect of growing chillies on such a scale. The farm also has a glass greenhouse that holds several other varieties and we just loved seeing how attentive Tim was to every chilli plant, however small.

Tim definitely knows what he is on about, not only because of his knowledge in all things botanical but also because of a genuine passion for chillies.

Edible Ornamentals: An Overview

Shawn and Joanna Plumb set up Edible Ornamentals back in 2007 on the former site of Cherwood Nursery in the village of Chawston. One of our friends had gifted us a tour of the farm as a Christmas present so we jumped on the chance to see a working chilli farm.

The nursery hadn’t been used for four years when Shawn and Joanna took over so was in a pretty dilapidated state. After a few years of trial and errors they are now the proud owners of a superbly run environmentally conscious chilli farm that is making more and more noise every year that passes.

Although Shawn and Joanna started selling chilli plants at car boot sales, they have now moved on to much bigger things thanks to their hard work and dedication, supplying restaurants with their beautiful crops of chillies, making their own chilli sauces and preserves, growing specific types of chillies for other farms and private customers, allowing people to pick their own mix of fresh chillies at the farm and participating in numerous chilli festivals and farmers’ markets.

One of the integral part of who Edible Ornamentals are is providing not only the best possible crops of chillies such as Orange Habaneros, Dorset Naga, Hercules, Hungarian Hot Wax, Serenade or Jalapenos but also to produce crops of stabilised high yielding breeds of chillies for private and commercial use. There is no fleeting craze behind Edible Ornamentals. Shawn and Joanna are keen to gain a reputation for excellence without giving in to the latest trend. Their tour is definitely one we recommend to anybody remotely interested in chillies. It is a great day out for the family too even if you don’t know anything about chillies as Shawn is always around to share his passion for chillies.

Unsung Heroes: Cambridge Chilli Farm

It is hard sometimes to keep an impartial mind in the chilli world when the media is possessed with advertising the trendiest chilli sauces or hottest chillies rather than celebrating brands that value quality and integrity.

Cambridge Chilli Farm has only been around for a couple of years but Tim, the man behind the brand, is not short of ideas when it comes to chilli produce which, coupled with his great horticultural skills and knowledge, promises a great future for his up and coming chilli farm.

Cambridge Chilli Farm’s chilli sauces range from mild to rather insane, especially his Ghost Pepper 10 hot sauce which is hellish although we are also great fans of Cambridge Chilli Farm Pineapple and Habanero Hot Sauce which makes us salivate just looking at it.

Cambridge Chilli Farm chilli sauces also comprise Naga Napalm Hot Sauce, Smoky Chipotle Hot Sauce and Sweet Chilli Sauce. Although not available to trade yet, Cambridge Chilli Farm’s Lucky Seven, the only UK chilli sauce to be made with the highly fragrant (and hot!) Yellow 7 Pod Chilli Pepper, is our latest favourite and we cannot wait to offer it to the general public as soon as Cambridge Chilli Farm produces more of it.

On the other end of the spice spectrum Cambridge Chilli Farm has devised fantastic jams which are some of our bestsellers amongst which Cambridge Chilli Farm Habanero Gold and Cambridge Chilli Farm Raspberry & Chilli Jelly.

Cambridge Chilli Farm is keen to cater for all tastes so for those who like chilli chutneys and relishes just have a go at Cambridge Chilli Farm’s Red Onion and Smoky Chipotle Relish, Red Onion and Chilli Relish or Naga Napalm Onion Relish although we do recommend extreme care for your tastebuds with that one!

Cambridge Chilli Farm’s chilli jellies are starting to really be known and loved across the chilli community, especially the infamous Nagalade which is pure evil! Cambridge Chilli Farm Lime and Chilli Jelly is also a chilli jelly we would definitely recommend for its flavour which is perfectly balanced.

We aim to support UK based chilli suppliers as much as possible so why not go on The Devil’s Garden and pick something from Cambridge Chilli Farm? Your tastebuds will thank you!

Dave's Gourmet - New Products in Stock

Dave’s Gourmet is one of the staple chilli brands from the US, a brand that over the years has shown its worth by bringing us chilli sauces such as Dave’s Insanity Hot Sauce, Dave’s Hurtin’ Habanero or the ingenious Dave’s Adjustable Heat Hot Sauce.

At the Devil’s Garden we are always excited to get new products from Dave’s Gourmet and boy do we have a treat in store for you this week! First off is Dave’s Gourmet’s Jammin’ Jerk Hot Sauce which is the perfect chilli sauce to use this summer to flavour barbecued meat or vegetables (although it is a great chilli sauce to use all year round too!). We also love the particular jerk flavour of this chilli sauce when mixed into a salad dressing or simply spread on cheese on toast!

We have just received a great product from Dave’s Gourmet which is a spice shaker containing six different types of chillies either ground or in flakes. This Dave’s Gourmet’ 6 Pure Dried Chiles Shaker offers a gradual scale so you are aware of the flavour and intensity of the dried chilli you are using, namely: Ancho, New Mexico, De Arbol, Cayenne, Habanero and Chipotle.

Collectors are always contacting us, asking for the latest item to add to their collection. Well Dave’s Gourmet is notorious for their annual batch of Dave’s Insanity Ghost Pepper Private Reserve Limited Edition, numbered and signed by the man himself, presented in a cool wooden coffin box with authentication certificate inside. The 2011 batch has just arrived on British soil and is three times hotter than the original Dave’s Insanity Hot Sauce and although a collector’s item we are very tempted to open it up and have a good glug of it!

So there you go, Dave’s Gourmet is a brand close to our hearts and we hope you’ll have great fun experimenting with Dave’s Jammin Jerk Chilli Sauce, Dave’s Gourmet 6 Pure Dried Chiles Shaker and for those wanting something a bit special, Dave’s Gourmet Insanity Ghost Pepper Private Reserve Limited Edition 2011!!

Special Offers - May 2011

Here are just a few of our chilli produce on offer this month so make sure you grab yourself a treat before stock runs out!

Dartmoor Chilli Farm’s chocolate is made by Lessiter, a chocolate manufacturer that has been around for more than a hundred years so they definitely know a thing or two about chocolate! Dartmoor Chilli Farm’s fresh chillies are then added to their wonderful dark chocolate along with other goodies such as ginger pieces, apricot chunks, roasted almonds as well as cranberries and hazelnuts. The heat is sharp enough for most chilli lovers to fix their chilli cravings but not so hot that people wary of spice run away asking for mercy!

Cambridge Chilli Farm has been around for a couple of years now and is really starting to make some noise in the chilli community with evil chilli produce such as Nagalade or Ghost Pepper 10 hot sauce. On offer this month are chilli treats such as Cambridge Chilli Farm Habanero Gold Chilli Jam, a unique and delectable type of chilli jam (rather mild) that we just cannot get enough of. Cambridge Chilli Farm Lime & Chilli Jelly is a very refreshing type of chilli condiment that does wonders with chicken or mixed in a salad dressing. It is also fantastic in sandwiches and as part of a marinade.

Cambridge Chilli Farm’s Red Onion and Chilli Relish has a rich hearty flavour coming from chunky caramelised onions and Ring of Fire chilli peppers which derive from the cayenne family. It’s absolutely fantastic in a hot steak sandwich! Cambridge Chilli Farm’s Sweet Chilli Sauce is also on offer. This is a very popular sweet chilli sauce that uses the beloved scotch bonnet chilli pepper for spice and flavour!

For those who love the smoky flavour of the Chipotle, try Chilli Pepper Pete’s Dragon Hunter Hot Sauce. This is probably one of our top 3 chilli sauces using the smoked jalapeno. Dragon Hunter is a wonderful addition to pasta sauces, pizzas and can also be used as a dip with a twist!

From the States side we also have the iconic Cholula Hot Sauce that is made with the rare Pequin chilli pepper. Americans use it all the time just as you would ketchup so let yourself be taken over by its distinctive flavour!

Who Doesn't Love a Good Curry

It’s Friday night, you’re finally off work and planning to have a good weekend and the fancy of a dirty curry takes hold of you… that is until you are reminded that your pecuniary situation is not the greatest in these times of recession, and that when you did have a curry last time it wasn’t really that good in the end and certainly not healthy… By the time the driver arrived it was cold anyway or you weren’t that hungry anymore.

The answer to this age-old dilemma? Do what a lot of our customers are currently doing: Get a good curry paste and make your own spicy and flavoursome curry in a jiffy!

We have several curry pastes at the Devil’s Garden and each is different in composition and heat level. The one we use all the time is Mr Vikki’s North Indian Curry Paste. We recommend this curry paste to anyone who will hear us. There is no hassle at all thanks to Mr Vikki’s as the hard work has already been done for you! The heat is medium to hot and the jar keeps really well in the fridge so we tend to store it and use it as much as we would mustard or mayonnaise.

Chilli Pepper Pete is notorious for his chilli sauces such as Dragon’s Blood, Sphincter Shrinker or Satan’s Shit but his curry pastes are starting to make quite an impression on curry lovers. Chilli Pepper Pete’s Thai curry paste is relatively mild but the flavour is out of this world and really authentic. The lime and coriander shines through in this curry paste and when mixed in with coconut milk be prepared to have a whole crowd converging to your kitchen!

But if heat is what you are after, boy are you in for a treat with Chilli Pepper Pete’s Goan to the Loo Curry Paste. As its name indicates it is not to be taken lightly and Chilli Pepper Pete dares anybody to have a whole jar in one sitting. A lot of vegetables and spices have been combined to form this beautiful curry paste but the Naga Jolokia that provides the heat is absolutely merciless!

Unless you are made out of money, don’t mind the over-greasy taste or calories intake and are ready to wait for an hour or so before eating, curry takeaways are sometimes not worth the hassle. It is easier to get yourself a curry paste that you truly like and make yourself a dish that answers your needs at very little cost!