Reserving the review of the gardening portion, 2/3 of the book, till I read it. (It is next in my queue), 1/3 of this is also a cookbook. Nice food porn, with a wide variety of courses and styles, The Complete Chile Pepper Book is a quality acquisition for non-gardeners. With Early Reviewers recipe books, I make at least five recipes, usually chosen randomly. The first three of the five have been made.
White Chocolate Ancho Chile Ice Cream, p.311, by Susy Dayton, former pastry chef of Santa Fe's Coyote Cafe. Superb. Pairs very well with a Dogfish 60-minute Pale Ale clone. Double the recipe for our ice-cream maker.
Hungarian Gulyas (Goulash), p.247, poorly edited instructions, recommend using less oil, less spiced flour, smaller cuts of meat, yet good overall flavor. Paired well with Bodega Norton 2008 malbec.
Grilled Tuna Steaks with Salsa Pimentón, p.288. Good, awkward for one cook, reduce salsa by 1/2.

The Complete Chile Pepper Book is a nice thorough introduction to chile peppers, and is probably especially attractive to gardeners and cooks who want to grow their own peppers. The book is divided into four main sections: “Top Hundred (Or So) Chile Peppers for the Garden”, in which the best chile peppers for growing in a garden are described, including many color photographs. The section “Capsicum Cultivation” describes all aspects of chile pepper gardening from planning to basic cultivation aspects and such issues as diseases and pests. The “Processing and Preservation” section largely covers handling of fresh chiles such as pickling, mashes, sauces, canning, and other methods for using quantities of fresh chiles. Finally, “Cooking with Chile Peppers” details a variety of recipes from appetizers to main dishes and desserts. Cooks will at times need to reference the earlier section of types of peppers if they are not intimately familiar with the types of peppers recommended for a recipe. The Complete Chile Pepper Book is thoroughly illustrated and includes a useful glossary and index. The resource list could be a little longer, but overall this is a terrific resource for chile pepper enthusiasts. ( )

The Complete Chile Pepper Book is likely to remain the definitive work on chile peppers for a long time to come. The book is divided into three sections: an introduction and description of various types of chiles, a detailed guide to growing chiles, and a section on preserving and cooking with chiles. The entire book is beautifully produced and clearly written and will be a useful reference for anyone interested in these wonderful vegetables.

The first section classifies chiles by species; after an initial introduction to each of the five species of peppers, some of the more popular or common varieties of each are discussed. Appropriately, the bulk of this section is devoted to the most widespread species (C. annum) but the more unfamiliar species are not neglected; any chilehead should find new varieties to grow or seek out at the market from this section. I was pleased to see the Oaxacan manzano peppers that I get at the local Mexican market, and have never seen anywhere else, discussed here.

I personally found the second section on growing chiles to be the most useful; it assumes some basic gardening experience, and does not discuss which varieties are well-suited for different climates, but after an initial discussion of different gardening strategies for peppers and general advice on soil composition and watering strategies it provides a comprehensive guide to potential problems with peppers and their remedies. While this guide is suitable for casual gardeners it does not stop there, including suggestions for creating new hybrid strains of peppers through hand-pollination! I will certainly refer to this section of the book on a regular basis in my continuing attempts to grow more peppers.

The first part of the final section of the book discusses preserving peppers, ranging from methods as simple as drying or freezing to elaborate canning (requiring a pressure canner, as peppers are low-acid) and candying recipes. I now have a jar of my own Thai hot peppers pickling in the back of my cupboard, waiting to be ready to use. Finally, the recipes making up the last third of the book were a bit of a disappointment for me; someone coming to this book from a gardening rather than a culinary perspective would certainly find much to like here, but considered purely as a cookbook there are better options. Each recipe is illustrated, and they are clearly-written; they just aren't very exciting. (However, I've spent long enough in the Southwest that the idea of chiles in chocolate-based desserts is no longer new, or even novel enough to be noticeable, so my calibrations on this front may differ from that of the average reader.) While there are some potential gems that I have bookmarked to try, there was less attention paid to recipes to showcase a particular variety of pepper than I would have hoped, and most of the foods were those that, even if they were influenced by cuisines traditionally heavy on spices, would appeal to a fairly conventional "American" palate -- tandoori chicken, fish tacos, and the like. This section is not a net negative, but it's not reason enough to buy the book on its own.

Overall I recommend this book very highly. ( )

This book is awesome and I want a copy of it for myself. It covers pretty much everything to do with peppers - how to choose which ones to plant, how to care for them, how to harvest them, and the best recipes and preservation methods for dealing with your crop. It even tells you how to make chile pepper bonsai, how cool is that? ( )

As an amateur gardener, avid cook and, most importantly, a spicy food aficionado, this book really has it all for me. Reading this late in November made me ready to pull out the seed catalogues and start preparing for spring. The authors provide a wealth of information on the subject of chili peppers. The first portion of the book is devoted to gardening. Without turning into a general gardening book, enough basic information is covered to assist the new gardener. I especially appreciated the in-depth description of pepper varieties, both for spring gardening choices, but also for produce shopping.
In addition to a lot of great gardening information and inspirational photography, it provides botanical information, as well. The graphics and charts really contribute to the very readable quality of this book.
But, my favorite part of the book is the recipe section. A number of easy, unusual recipes are included. The pepper infused vodka is so superior to anything you can buy at the store and was a huge hit at Thanksgiving when I used it to make my marinated cherry tomato appetizer! I brought the Double Trouble chocolate truffles to a party and they were the focus of conversation while they lasted! My family’s favorites, so far, are Pasta with Green Chile Pesto and Thai Chile and Artichoke Pasta. But, I have a lot more on my list to try. In addition to recipes, a lot of good information is provided on preservation, including candied peppers, salt substitutes, pickling and canning.
A comprehensive glossary, bibliography and resource list provide even more information.
I appreciate having a book in my collection that covers all aspects of peppers. I know where to turn now for gardening questions, and, of course, really interesting recipes! ( )