CHILLI COAST

The brainchild of chef, grower, and coastline-enjoyer, Thomas Durham.

The Beginning

It started with a bay window in a top-floor flat in Leith. In 2016, Thomas had no garden, but a strong desire to grow something. He discovered chilli plants thrive indoors; as a chef and a committed chilli condiment enthusiast, this felt like an obvious avenue to explore.

Thomas grew up on his grandmother's farm, eating food straight from her kitchen garden. Something about tending those first windowsill chilli plants - watching the true leaves open, the delicately scented flowers appearing, and eventually the chillies pushing through - brought it all back. He was hooked.

Although Granny wasn’t much of a spice lover, she would love that she inspired Thomas’ passion for growing food.

East Lothian

When the pandemic hit, Thomas and his partner moved to Dunbar on the East Lothian coast, a place where they both have deep roots. They transformed their derelict, abandoned garden into a sanctuary with a small polytunnel, and began growing their own kitchen garden.

By then, having left cheffing, Thomas was ready to bring together his passions for cooking, growing and the East Lothian coastline. He launched his own business, named and inspired by the rugged coastline five minutes-walk from his front door: Chilli Coast.  

The Crunch

Chinese chilli crisp had been Thomas’ secret ingredient for years. He was inspired to create his own products in that spirit, but rooted in the land he calls home.

The result is Chilli Coast’s Chilli Crunch range: hand-cut, slow-fried, crunchy garlic and shallot, infused with chilli heat in cold-pressed, local rapeseed oil grown ten miles from our kitchen. It comes in two varieties — Original and Smoky — and it goes on everything.

This is just the beginning. The range will grow, new products are in development, all with chilli at the core. The long-term plan? To farm our own chillies here in East Lothian — shortening the distance between land and jar.

That's the dream – and we would be delighted if you joined us on the voyage.