Where To Buy Superhots in Manila | Chilliheads Philippines

Asians are known for their love of spicy food, Filipinos being one of them. Maybe not all, but most of us do enjoy our savory dishes with a kick. When Dave traveled the Mediterranean, he was given the chance to taste a variety of superhots used in international dishes, chillies that would pull our native Labuyo off its pedestal. So when he came back to the Philippines, eating the same old local chilli just didn't cut it anymore. I guess it's safe to say that once you've gone superhot you can never go back. 

Although I don't share Dave's passion for eating spicy food of that level, I also enjoy a bit of heat when it comes to food and had the opportunity to try out some fresh yellow Habaneros while I was in California. Watching a lot of Top Chef and other cooking shows made me familiar with a lot of not so common ingredients in the country, like the superhot variety of chillies. So when I saw some at a Chinese supermarket we frequent near our place in Sacramento, of course I just had to purchase some to check it out for myself. I could already tell how spicy the Habaneros were just by the smell permiating through the sealed plastic container and decided to just add a tiny slice of one pod to a small batch of fresh pico de gallo, to be on the safe side. The addition of the Habanero to my salsa changed the aroma all together and the heat, well let's just say I glugged a whole lot of milk after haha.

Coming back to live in the Philippines, I wanted Dave to have fresh pods of these superhots at his disposal. So I went in search for these not-so-common chilli variety in the metro. Here's where my search led me to, so far:

• Salcedo Market 
• Market Market
• Farmer's Market Cubao
• Rustan's Supermarket
• Landmark
  
  The places above are known for having imported produce, so it wasn't surprising to find some Habaneros and Jalapenos sometimes. I wasn't that keen on making any one of them the go to place for when we'll be needing superhots though since I prefer to do online shopping anyway.
  
  
• Chilliheads Philippines on Facebook
  
  We stumbled upon this wonderful society of local chilli enthusiasts and agri-people purely by accident and was truly blessed that our request to join the group was accepted. Here we found actual local growers of the chillies that belong on the list of hottest chillies in the world. Before joining the group, I thought that the Bhut Jolokia or Ghost Chili still held the top spot, but we discovered from these Pinoy Chilliheads that the Carolina Reaper was the new chilli to beat. We bought an assorted mix of chillies from one of the talented growers who had a batch of newly harvested pods on hand, all the way from Bukidnon. Ms. Charry sent us our pods thru JRS Express, and you can see how well that went from the photo below. Aren't they just lovely? But don't let their looks fool you though, they pack quite a punch when it comes to heat.

 

An added bonus in being a member of Chilliheads PH other than finding local growers of superhots is gaining access to products such as chilli garlic sauce and hot sauce made from these seriously spicy chillies, that aren't available in the supermarkets. Check out Tita Ludy's Chilli Sauce and Garlic Chilli Oil from Sir Rex of Isabela. It took a while before Dave was able to try them (around 2 weeks after we received them thru mail), and when he did, they didn't disappoint. Passed with flying colors both in flavor and amount of spiciness. The heat kept building up the more you ate it, and in his honest opinion they both go well with any savory dish you can think of.

We love the story behind these two bottled goodness by Sir Rex. How they were originally made purely for personal consumption, but then friends who came over and dined at their house were able to taste it and suggested that they make some more so that they could purchase and enjoy them in their on homes as well. Now both of this wonderful spicy products are available at Sir Rex's wife's restaurant, Tita Ludy's Garden Cafe, in Isabela, or you can order some and have it delivered just like we did. Another reason why we love Tita Ludy's chilli products is the fact that only natural ingredients were used in making them. Yes, no chemicals, additives whatsoever. They are simply all-natural products that satisfies a chilli head's taste buds. Order na!

Do you want to know more about superhots or Chilliheads Philippines? Then you're in for a treat this coming October, how does a Chilli Festival sound to you? More details about this event here.