Bhutanese love affair with their red hot chillies

Chilies are not only a big part of Bhutanese cuisine; they are also a big part of Bhutanese culture, tradition, and life. Growing chilies is practically a year-long process. The seeds are sown sometime in February & March, while transplanting of chilli saplings happen from May to July and harvesting of the fiery red chillies take place in the month of September and October. These flamed red chillies are left to dry for a month before it hits the market for consumption.

If you are in Bhutan during September and October, you can see chilies drying practically everywhere; on rooftops, hanging out of windows, lying out on the ground. It looks like the country is decorated with displays of red chilies. The weekend market in Thimphu sees a variety of chillies on sale. The variety of chillies that you get in the market is mind blowing; red, green, fleshy, slender, dried, powered and pickled. You also get red chilli paste that comes as a combination of onion, ginger, red chillies flakes and edible oil. These could be added in our Indian cuisine as well. Outside Bhutanese kitchen, chillies also hold importance in their rituals. From time to time, every house burns some chillies to keep the bad spirits or the demons away. Similarly, when brewing the local liquor arra, 2-3 chillies are added to it - not as a topping for flavour but as a sign of good luck, so that the arra isn't affected by any negative energy it comes in contact with. When you visit Bhutan, you'll understand that Chillies are a way of life in the country.