Nam Jim Jaew, Carolina reaper

Put on gloves. Keep them on until the reaper is in the bowl.

Put the glutinous rice in a dry pan on medium heat. Shake the pan all the time.

Toast the rice until it is deep gold and smells nutty.

Pound the rice in the mortar to a coarse powder. Do not make it fine.

Put the dried chillies in the same dry pan on medium heat. Press and turn them.

Only the dried chillies go in the pan. Never the reaper.

Stop when they are dark red and smell roasted. Do not let them go black.

Pound the dried chillies coarse. Keep flakes and pieces.

Mince the flesh of one reaper by knife, almost to a paste.

A piece left whole puts the heat of a whole pod into one bite.

Stir the palm sugar into the fish sauce until it dissolves.

Palm sugar dissolves poorly once acid is present.

Add the lime juice. Stir.

Add the dried chilli, the rice powder, the shallot, the bird's eye chilli and the spring onion. Stir.

Stir in the minced reaper.

Leave the sauce for 5 minutes. Correct the salt and sour with fish sauce or lime juice.

Taste one small bite. Wait 15 minutes before you decide anything.

Only then mince and add the second reaper, if it needs more.

Stir in the coriander leaf just before you serve. Label the bowl.