Hot chillies mistaken for chemical attack in London
Venerable Thai restaurant prepares extra-hot bird’s eye chillies as part of a six-month batch of nam prik pao; acrid smoke from the kitchen spreads through the Soho neighborhood, causing people to flee and emergency units to be dispatched
An acrid smoke hovered for three long hours over some of London’s busiest streets a couple of days ago, causing shoppers and pasers-by to run for cover, coughing and spluttering. The police sealed off three roads and evacuated homes and businesses in the heart of Soho, fearing a chemical attack or a dangerous toxic leak. Ambulances and Hazardous Area Response Team units were dispatched, and firefighters wearing specialist breathing apparatus cautiously entered the deserted streets to seek out the source. Shortly after 7 p.m. Monday, the emergency units emerged from the smoke carrying a huge cooking pot containing about 9 lb of smouldering dried chillies. The firefighters had broken down the door of the Thai Cottage restaurant in D’Arblay Street and seized the extra-hot bird’s eye chillies which had been left dry-frying. The chillies were being prepared as part of a six-month batch of nam prik pao, a super-hot Thai dip to accompany prawn crackers.
The London Times’s Steve Bird writes that people in the neighborhood may have run for cover, but the Thai staff at the restaurant, used to the smell of the sauce being prepared, were baffled by the commotion. Chalemchai Tangjariyapoon, the chef, said: “I was making a spicy dip with extra-hot chillies that are deliberately burnt. To us it smells like burnt chilli and it is slightly unusual. I can understand why people who weren’t Thai would not know what it was. But it doesn’t smell like chemicals. I’m a bit confused.” Sue Wasboonma, the owner of the restuarant, said: “The smoke didn’t go up into the sky because of the rain and the heavy air. It’s the hottest thing we make. We are very proud of this dish. It is home-cooked and the customers love it.” The restaurant has been in the same location for seventeen years, but there had never been any complaints about the chillies before.
Now, if you must know: The chef mixes the charred chillies with 4½ lb of garlic flakes, more than 2 lb of dried shrimps, 6½ lb of palm sugar, 2½ lb of shrimp paste, more than 2 lb of tamarind, and 9 pints of vegetable oil. It is served cold.
