It's easy to grow your own hot chillies in England if you know what you're doing, and sometimes even if you don't.

They taste amazing, transforming food and giving you a feel good factor, and you can easily grow up to a hundred chillies or more each year from a few plants in pots or the ground. They preserve very easily - you can freeze them chopped or whole, and they can also be pickled in vinegar or dried.

Chillies taste fantastic in so many dishes, and I've included the recipe for the Hot Chilli Jelly Jam that was featured in the opening post of this UrbanFood blog. This can be eaten as a relish with cold food, or be used as part of a dish, eg coating ribs, chicken or roasted vegetables, for an extra flavorsome sticky kick. At the bottom of the page I've also included recipes for vegetable noodles, and glazed ribs.