By: Jamie Ogilvie

The practice of cooking with chili and chocolate originated in Mexico with the Aztecs – it is very popular now worldwide. The Mexicans call their chilli chocolate sauce mole. In Aztec society cocoa was valued so highly that prostitutes were paid in cocoa! (Well it is an aphrodisiac!)

Chilli chocolate is heaven delicious on its own, just a small piece with a hot chocolate (try grating it on top) or perhaps with a glass of red wine after dinner. Wine buffs usually maintain that wine and chocolate do not partner each other well chilli chocolate however, defies this rule nicely and conveniently! Red wine, such as an intense Californian Zinfandel couples really well with it. If you havent ever tried this, youre missing out on an unusual taste explosion of chocolate with a subtle heat and tongue-tingling sensation that accompanies it! The added bonus is its a relatively inexpensive treat.

Dark mexican chocolate stimulates serotonin in the brain which results in heightened sensitivity and euphoria. Chili peppers contain capsaicin, which is a chemical that stimulates nerve endings (gives the tingle) and releases endorphins, giving a natural ‘high’- so combine the two together and you have the WOW-factor with an aphrodisiac effect! I just call it ‘the feel-good factor’, rather like hot ‘n’ sour dishes.

Until recently all I knew about chili with chocolate recipes was enough to add a few squares of good quality dark chocolate to my chilli con carne, at the end of cooking. However, I have experimented quite a lot over the past year to perfect my chilli chocolate recipes, using Mexican organic chocolate.

In all chili chocolate recipes I use first-rate quality dark chocolate that is dark chocolate with over 60% cocoa solids the most important ingredient in chocolate is the cocoa bean itself, each one having its own unique character and flavour. Professional chocolate tasters use terminology similar to wine tasters good dark chocolate should be intense, flooding the mouth with its deep flavours that can range from robust earthiness to passionate red fruitiness, as with grapes and wine, the beans provenance is the first consideration. Just like wine, chocolate too can be single estate i.e. made from beans grown on a named plantation giving them a unique intensity and clarity of taste in much the same way as Grand Cru wines. Thankfully, weve come a long way since the bland cooking chocolate block sold in the cake baking section at our stores.

Chilli chocolate pairs well with both shellfish and meat unusually and elevates a humble meat such as pigeon to dinner party status once coupled with chilli chocolate sauce, some good quality organic vegetables and fancy potatoes. However chilli chocolate recipes are not just for special occasions, I often make my chilli beef goulash which is finished with organic Mexican chili chocolate, as a midweek dinner, serving it straight from the casserole on the table, simply with rice and flat bread this recipe gets used also with pork to produce a completely different taste, just with the meat ingredient changed, enabling you to buy the meat that is being offered at the best discount on the day for my chili chocolate goulash recipe.
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