Habanero Chile

We love the games this soup plays with our senses: First, its fiery color tricks your brain into thinking it is hot, but when you take a sip, your tongue realizes the soup is cold. Then the spice of the habaneros sweeps in and deliciously complicates matters. Don't be alarmed by the number of chiles called for—habaneros' heat is complex and floral and partners perfectly with the sweetness of the red bell peppers.

Wear gloves when working with super-hot chiles like habaneros.

Papadzules con calabacitas We added zucchini to the eggs in this favorite from the Yucatán Peninsula. It's one of Mexico's great vegetarian dishes.

It's made from one of the hottest chiles on earth, so heat seekers can slather the salsa all over their rib eyes with bravado; but those with refined taste buds will appreciate how the peppers' sweet fruitiness cuts through the rich, meaty steaks.

A habanero chile gives these onions a nice bit of heat.

Fiery habaneros impart brightness to a rich pork dish like Yucatecan-style pork.

Named after the heart-shaped callaloo leaves from the taro plant, this traditional stew can be made with crab, lobster, and shrimp, or taro root and coconut milk. But all versions of the dish call for okra and, of course, callaloo leaves. Spinach makes a great substitute for the callaloo.

"Rundown" (also called "oiled down" or "oil dong") is a classic stew served throughout the islands, often using saltfish or mackerel. Stories proliferate as to where the term comes from, but Jamaicans say "cook it down" when they mean to cook something for a long time. This vegetarian take is luxurious and satisfying. Serve this as a side dish or over rice as an entrée.

"Shark and bake," a popular Trinidadian pocket sandwich, is found at beach shacks and street stalls throughout the island. Part of its appeal is the variety of go-withs, from mango chutney to sliced cucumbers. "Bake" is a catchall term for several types of bread, grilled or fried. Since blacktip shark — the traditional choice — is not readily available, catfish or tilapia fillets are substituted here. Pita pockets are a stand-in for the flatbread that's typically used to make the sandwich.

In Jamaica, this dish turns up by the seaside or near rivers, as janga (river crayfish) are often used. It is seriously, deliciously hot — wash the heat down with ice-cold beer. Using uncooked shrimp that have been deveined with the shells intact will make the shrimp much easier to peel.

Accompanies Alambre de Camarones, Alambres de Camarones.

Healthy bonus: Vitamin C from mangoes; iron from raisins

(Grilled Spicy Marinated Chicken)

Rita Martucci of Wilmington, Delaware, writes: "Can you please get the recipe for the Saigon beef served at Zinc in New Haven, Connecticut?" Active time: 1 hr Start to finish: 1 hr

Louis Osteen makes his mayonnaise fresh, but we've substituted bottled mayonnaise to avoid raw egg yolks.

Cooking chicken as described in the recipe below results in really crisp, almost transparent skin (like that on Peking duck) and moist flesh.

The habanero, reputedly the "hottest chile in the world" has a complex, citrusy aroma and flavor. This salsa from the Yucatan is a classic accompaniment to meat and seafood cooked in an achiote recado a brick-red paste made with achiote, or annatto, seeds. Can be prepared in 45 minutes or less.

Don't waste your time looking for green peas in this recipe. In Jamaica, you'll often hear kidney beans called peas. Locals consume "rice and peas" so frequently that some people say it should be on the nation's coat of arms. In this version — which Lezlene Brown, a cook at a villa in Ocho Rios, serves to guests and family — the Scotch bonnet chile is there to contribute only the merest hint of heat and to amplify the flavors of the other ingredients.