Bringing spices back to Chile

[xilantro]

Hi;

Merkén is a traditional Mapuche preparation using the spiciest local chile (ají), a varietal called Cacho de Cabra, mixed with toasted corriander seeds (cilantro), salt, and a few other things. It is not necessarily hot. Hot foods are, for all intents, non-existent in Chile - so much so that people will claim one 'hot sauce' (mostly vinegar & salt) is 'hotter' than another when it has more salt...

As for the actual hot spices I've found so far: In the past decade a Peruvian chile called Rocoto has made its way into popular usage. It can be found mostly at farmers' markets, and is by far hotter than the Cacho de Cabra. On the other hand most supermarkets now carry a hot-sauce called 'Toro Diablo - Salsa Ají Putamadre' which is fairly hot, if still a little heavy on the vinegar & corn-starch action.

[the19trier]

I brought grounded spicy via US here without an issue either.

Are there any spicy food (I mean really spicy) here?

[Aysen]

Just saw some Vietnamese cinnamon at the Zona Franca in Punta Arenas...if you happen to be headed that way.

[Julito]

Declared them twice and they didn't bother opening my luggage each time, must have an honest face. Last time the customs bloke was more interested in my Skype address, he wanted to practice his English with me.

[Julito]

Me excessively like everyone of these flavors and furthermore have an immense zest set at rawspicewar. You can check out spice set from that point.

......Just say no to drugs!

Whew, thanks for clarifying Gloria. I read it 3 times and thought I'd had a minor stroke...

[mem]

If things don't go well with your bringing the spices back...you can ship yourself spices (organic too) from vitacost. The trick is to keep each order under $80 bucks USD. Better under $50. It also needs to be under 3.6 pounds...then the shipping is only 11.99 USD to Chile and we have never had to pay import fees (probably based on keeping the total amount low).

[KDnR]

This morning my wife came from the States and brought several pounds of different spices (seeds, not grounded). At customs, they searched her bag and they paid no attention at all to the plastic bag with spices. We always bring that here and never had any problems.

[72Shilden]

That's what my girlfriend does when bringing back Armenian and Georgian spices from Russia when she flies back home. As long as you've got less than 1 kilogram of the stuff and it's safely packed, they won't be bothering you. Some customs officers may ask you to open the bags, so take ones that can be opened and closed quickly and easily.

[KDnR]

I wish I can get my hands on some of those awesome Georgian spices. Food in Chile is so tasteless...

[Space Cat]

I wish I can get my hands on some of those awesome Georgian spices. Food in Chile is so tasteless...

Probably in your region, a lot of the available options here aren't based on the traditional cuisine at all.

[KDnR]

Of course, there are options. I prefer Peruvian food choices here. I just saw a post from 72Shilden regarding Georgian and Armenian spices and it reminded me a lot. Been there many times and know exactly how good that is.

[Space Cat]

I’m speaking about Chilean food though. Modern chefs are pretty globalized and don’t stick to traditional recipes.