A case of mistaken identity

One of the most important ingredients used in Venezuelan cuisine is the "ají dulce" (literally, 'sweet pepper')...it really adds flavor to soups and sauces. So I was pretty excited to find some at the store yesterday. I began chopping them for a chicken dish, but thought I'd try them to see if they were hot or not. I took a bite and wham! Yeah, they were hot! I didn't think it would be that bad, though, so I chopped just a little bit and added them to the chicken. I cooked some rice and then served supper. Immediately, the kids began reacting to the food with complaints of how spicy it was! I served ice water and encouraged them to "do their best". But as Miguel and I continued to eat, we realized the food WAS pretty spicy and the more we ate, the spicier it got! So Gracia and Jojo both got to eat some rice-and-milk-and-sugar instead. Jkaile was happy with plain rice. Micah persevered, but had to drink a lot of water and could only eat the chicken, not the sauce...Miguel finally asked me, were those habanero chilies? I said, "NO!" But that got me thinking...finally I went and looked at the receipt and sure enough, I had mistaken habanero chilies for 'ají dulce'!!!!! Habaneros are pretty much the spiciest peppers around and here I was serving them to my kids! Oh goody, what a Mom!

Habanero chilies

Ají dulce

You will notice that they are about the same size and shape...and colors as well! The Habanero peppers shown are yellow, but can be green, orange, and red...