พริกขี้หนู
เป็นผลมีขนาดเรียวเล็ก ยาวประมาณ 2-3 ซ.ม. เมื่อดิบผลมีสีเขียวเข้ม เมื่อสุกจะค่อยๆ เปลี่ยนเป็น สีแดง มีรสเผ็ดจัดและมีกลิ่นฉุนเผ็ดร้อน นำมารับประทานได้ทั้งสด แห้ง ดอง เผา และแกง ช่วยชูรสอาหารไทยให้มีรสชาติอร่อยขึ้น ทั้งยำ น้ำพริก หรือผัดเผ็ดต่างๆ พริกมีคุณสมบัติทนความร้อนและความเย็นได้ดี ดังนั้น การต้มหรือการแช่แข็งจะไม่ทำให้พริกเผ็ดน้อยลงหรือมากขึ้นแต่อย่างใด แต่ถ้าต้องการจะแก้รสเผ็ด แนะนำว่าน้ำหรือเบียร์ก็พอช่วยได้ แต่ถ้าจะให้ดีให้กินอาหารที่มีไขมันจะช่วยได้ดีขึ้น หรือตามความเชื่อของไทยก็ให้เคี้ยวข้าวสุก
ในพริกขี้หนูมีวิตามิน C และมี beta carotene (หรือวิตามิน A) ซึ่งช่วยให้สายตาดี พริกขี้หนูช่วยกระตุ้นการทำงานของกระเพาะอาหารทำให้ระบบการย่อยอาหารดีขึ้น ช่วยเจริญอาหาร บำรุงธาตุ ขับเหงื่อ ขับลม ขับเสมหะ แก้อาเจียน แก้หิด กลาก เกลื้อน
มีสำนวนไทยที่ว่า “เล็กพริกขี้หนู” มีความหมายตามพจนานุกรมว่า เล็กแต่เก่งกล้าสามารถมาก, เล็กแต่มีพิษสง ก็เปรียบเสมือนพริกขี้หนู ที่เล็กแต่เผ็ดกว่าพริกเม็ดใหญ่ๆ หลายเท่าที่เดียว
Bird's Eye Chili
Bird's Eye Chili is called “Phrik Khi noo” in Thai. It’s a unique small chili, 2-3 cm in length maximum. When it not ripe, has a dark green color that will change to red when it becomes ripe, like any other chilli. Bird's Eye Chili is very hot and have a good fragrance. Can be eaten fresh, dry, pickled, grilled or even cooked. It gives a fabulous taste to Thai dishes such as spicy salad, chili paste or all any kind of spicy stir fried food. This chili has some special characteristic that make him immune to hot or cold temperatures. That’s why boiling or freezing don’t reduce his spiciness. However, if you want to relieve some spicy taste, drink water or beer. This can help but better is to eat food with fat. Thais believe that chewing cooked white rice can also help.
Bird's Eye Chili has Vitamin C and A that help to protect your eyesight. It also has properties that help stimulating the digestive system to work properly, help the digestion, makes you sweat, reduce gas in the intestines, relief nauseas and itchiness.
Thai people have a proverb about the Bird's Eye Chili. “Lek Phrik Khi noo”, which means, according to the Thai dictionary, “is small but full of abilities or small but full of power”. The reason that Thai people use the Bird's Eye Chili in this proverb it’s because is small but extremely spicy, more spicy than any other kind of bigger chili pepper.
Piripíri olho de pássaro
O piripíri olho de pássaro (tradução literal) chama-se “Phrik Khi noo” em tailandês. É uma malagueta muito pequena, com 2-3 cm de comprimento no máximo. Tem uma cor verde quando ainda não está maduro e muda para vermelho, como qualquer outro piripíri, quando madura. É muito picante e tem um cheiro bastante agradável. Pode ser consumido cru, seco, em pickles, grelhado ou mesmo cozido. Empresta um sabor muito bom a pratos tailandeses como a salada picante, paste de piripíri ou qualquer prato frito. Esta malagueta tem características únicas que a fazem imune a altas ou baixas temperaturas, pelo que nunca perde o seu poder picante, seja cozido ou congelado. Para cortar algum do sabor a picante beba água ou cerveja fresca. Isto ajuda mas o melhor é mesmo cozinhar a comida com alguma gordura, pois a mesma pode ajudar a diminuir o impacto do picante. Os tailandeses acreditam que mastigando arroz cozido pode também ajudar a cortar o picante.
O piripíri olho de pássaro tem Vitamina C e A que contribuem para proteger a visão. Tem também propriedades que ajudam a estimular o sistema digestivo, ajudando-o a funcionar regularmente, provoca transpiração, ajuda a reduzir a flatulência, náuseas e comichão de pele.
Os tailandeses têm um provérbio acerca do piripíri olho de pássaro. “Lek Phrik Khi noo”, que significa, de acordo com o dicionário, “pequeno mas com muitas capacidades ou pequeno mas cheio de força”. Isto porque o piripíri olho de pássaro, apesar de pequenino, é extremamente picante, mais picante do que qualquer outra malagueta maior. Em português poderíamos mesmo dizer que “os piripíris não se medem aos palmos”!
No comments:
Post a Comment