Bird’s eye chile peppers, sometimes called Thai chiles, are frequently used to add spice in Southeast Asian cuisine. The small chiles grow on small bushes in hot weather climates. Raw, dried, or cooked, the small but potent peppers pack real heat and are used to add spice to dishes or to make fiery sauces.
Bird’s eye chiles are small, thin, pointy peppers that are red when mature. They are green when unripe but can still be eaten, and are sometimes orange or purple depending on maturity. In the case of Thai cuisine, green peppers are typically used in green curries, while hotter, mature red peppers are used in red curries. When fresh, they often have a stem still attached and contain loose, edible seeds that are especially spicy. The peppers are affordable thanks to their low weight and can be used whole, sliced, or seeded and diced.
Bird’s eye chile peppers are used extensively in Thai, Vietnamese, Malaysian, and Indonesian cuisines. Fresh or dried chiles are added to salads, stir-fries, curries, sauces, sambals, soups, and marinades. The stems are removed, and the chiles can be left whole, sliced, diced, chopped, or pureed. The seeds are especially spicy and can be removed for less intense heat.
You may want to wear gloves when working with these chiles, especially if you wear contact lenses. Capsaicin, the chemical in the pepper that makes it hot, can stay on your fingers for several hours and really sting when you touch your face, especially the eye area. To guard against unnecessary pain, wear gloves and carefully clean the knife, surfaces, and anything else the cut chiles came in contact with before removing.
Chile peppers are very low in calories and fat and very high in the antioxidant vitamin C.They are also a good source of B-6. Studies are being done about the positive effects of capsaicin, the compound that makes peppers spicy, on certain health problems.While bird’s eye chiles are a guilt-free addition to your diet, remember that they are consumed in such small amounts that their health benefits will be minimal.
Bird’s eye chilies are known for weight reducing qualities. They can play a key role in increasing the metabolism of the body. As a result of this, your body temperature would increase. In order to bring back the body to original temperature body would burn more calories, thereby speeding up the metabolism rate. Increased metabolism is beneficial and would increase the usage of the unused fats stored in various parts of the body. As you would have noticed, an increase in metabolism results in more sweating and hence results in weight loss. Fast metabolism, proper digestion and waste expulsion, can decrease the chance of fat accumulation in the body.
The chemical compound present in bird’s chili which results in burning sensation is called Capsaicin. The effects of this compound can vary among individuals. However, most of them experience a burning sensation of the mouth, throat, and stomach upon ingestion. The consumption of bird’s eye chili thus increases the metabolism and hence reduces the body weight.