macedonian salmon soup

The Joys of Cooking in a Crisis

Dave DeWitt Chiles and Health Leave a Comment

Story by Sharon Hudgins A century from now when historians look back at how we coped with the 2020 pandemic, two things will stand out: toilet paper and home cooking. During the past three months, many of us have “sheltered in place” at home, willingly or not. Early into the lockdown, bloggers began posting stories about how they planned to …

scottish cottage

Stir Crazy | Cooking to Cope with Cabin Fever

Dave DeWitt Chiles and Health Leave a Comment

By Sharon Hudgins Recently, as the Covid-19 pandemic has spread and we’ve been asked to follow strict “stay-at-home” directives, I’ve been thinking about other times in my life when I’ve been isolated in a house or apartment building with other people, sometimes voluntarily, sometimes unwillingly but of necessity. And I remembered how cooking and sharing meals together was one of …

Jamaican Chiles, Rev. John Lindsay, 1767

When Hot Sauce is a Cure: Mandram and Asher Sauce

Dave DeWitt Chiles and Health Leave a Comment

Many folk remedies are made with chile peppers, as I detailed with two coauthors in The Healing Powers of Peppers (Three Rivers Pres, 1998). We discovered chile peppers being used in infusions, syrups, teas, tinctures, liniments, ointments, poultices, salves, and oils. Perhaps the most unusual treatments were two hot sauces, one to improve the appetite and the other to combat …

"Bird Pepper" Illustration, 1858

The Great Chile Pepper Health Debate

Dave DeWitt Chiles and Health Leave a Comment

If you’ve read some of the other articles in the Chiles and Health section of the SuperSite, you’re probably aware of just how contentious the debates have been, especially when chile peppers are accused of causing health problems like cancer and ulcers.  They don’t of course, but the debate about the healing properties versus the “damaging” aspects of chile pods …