There are many great, healthy options for spices and other flavouring alternatives across Australia's supermarkets and health food stores, but none have quite the same benefits and versatility that chillies do. Not only can you buy chillies in many different forms, from peppers to powder, but the unique health benefits and distinctive flavour makes them a cut above the rest. The only real questions are what exactly all these health benefits are and how you can get them into as many meals as possible.

Good For Your Heart And Blood Pressure

Chilli peppers have been known to have positive effects on your blood pressure thanks to the compound capsaicin. This compound is what is behind the peppers spicy taste. Recent studies also suggest that when you buy chillies and add them into your diet it can help lower your cholesterol levels and also stop blockages in your arteries. All of these benefits come from the same chemical compound — capsaicin.

Getting Into Chilli 

The biggest problem that most people have with chillies is that they are simply too hot for their taste buds. This can certainly be a barrier that makes you stop and think when you go to buy chillies, but the only way to effectively counter this is by building up a tolerance over time. Start out small, with little bits of chilli powder sprinkled into a stew or pasta dish. You will find that it adds an extra dimension and, over time, your threshold for the heat will increase. You can start to add in real chilli peppers and different species until you forget how you ever lived without it. Chilli really does have an addictive component to it and, with so many health benefits, it is hard to see a negative.

Adding Chilli To Traditional Recipes 

Chilli is versatile because you can add it to old dishes and change them completely. When you do some experimenting as a home chef, the vast majority of what you try will come out well if you stick to some simple rules:

1. Buy chilli that is fresh and that still has a lively colour and strong skin.
2. Decide if chilli will be the focus of a meal or one of many flavours. Far too often, people accidentally ruin their own expectations by simply being overzealous with the amount of chilli they add into a dish. If you want to make a chilli or a curry great, decide that beforehand. Otherwise, keep chilli usage to a minimum. 
3. When cooking with chilli, remember that the longer you can leave the meal to stew, the better and more ingrained the flavour will be. Letting a chilli simmer away for 45 minutes to an hour will be well worth the time spent waiting.
4. Find a good chilli powder supplier and stick with it. There are many inexpensive chilli powder options, and lots are good value, but you want to find one that you love and that you can use for decades to come. Try a few different brands before settling on one you like. 

For more information or to buy chillies, contact a chilli supplier.