Are you afraid of Spicy Food?

I have Indonesian roots, so I grew up with a lot of spice. Our Asian food never came without chillies, and lombok and rawit are the ones we used most. I still use those mainly for Indonesian recipes.
I also like cayenne pepper as a way to add a kick to some western or mexican food. For Mexican food I also love smoked dried chipotle.
But overal, I prefer a milder type of chilli. My relatives from Indonesia came from Sumatra, which is known for having a milder cuisine than Bali for example. Most Popular Traditional Food in Sumatra .
I prefer neutral or fruity chillies for Indian cooking, and more spicy ones for Thai.

I tried naga chillies (ghost pepper) raw, and I thought it was the worst thing I ever ate lol.
 
Windigo said:
I prefer neutral or fruity chillies for Indian cooking,
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It's a common misconception that the heat in quality Indian food comes from Chilies. "Black Pepper. ... Grown in India, black pepper is used to give a kick to a bland dish and is also used to make garam masala. Although most people associate the heat of a curry with its chilli content, the amount of pepper you have in your dish will also determine how hot it is."
This is a classic Dhal and rice, I use crispy fried chilies and onions as a garnish only.The brown gloop is homemade mango chutney, you can't get it here. I would add I love quality Indonesian food, I first tried it when I had a girlfriend who lived in Apeldoorn.
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Burt Blank said:
It's a common misconception that the heat in quality Indian food comes from Chilies. "Black Pepper. ... Grown in India, black pepper is used to give a kick to a bland dish and is also used to make garam masala. Although most people associate the heat of a curry with its chilli content, the amount of pepper you have in your dish will also determine how hot it is."
This is a classic Dhal and rice, I use crispy fried chilies and onions as a garnish only.The brown gloop is homemade mango chutney, you can't get it here. I would add I love quality Indonesian food, I first tried it when I had a girlfriend who lived in Apeldoorn. View attachment 43349
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I am aware of the black peppers being Indiaas main spice, but I didn't mention them as I assumed this was a chilli only thread.

Black pepper is THE base of my cooking.
 
Windigo said:
I have Indonesian roots, so I grew up with a lot of spice. Our Asian food never came without chillies, and lombok and rawit are the ones we used most. I still use those mainly for Indonesian recipes.
I also like cayenne pepper as a way to add a kick to some western or mexican food. For Mexican food I also love smoked dried chipotle.
But overal, I prefer a milder type of chilli. My relatives from Indonesia came from Sumatra, which is known for having a milder cuisine than Bali for example. Most Popular Traditional Food in Sumatra .
I prefer neutral or fruity chillies for Indian cooking, and more spicy ones for Thai.

I tried naga chillies (ghost pepper) raw, and I thought it was the worst thing I ever ate lol.
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Are you talking about naga vipers? Ghost peppers are Bhut Jolokia. The naga viper over came the bhut jolokia as the hottest chili pepper in the world at one point. At present the dragon's breath is the hottest chili pepper in the world at 2.48 million Scoville units. It is said that it can kill you.
 
CraigC said:
Are you talking about naga vipers? Ghost peppers are Bhut Jolokia. The naga viper over came the bhut jolokia as the hottest chili pepper in the world at one point. At present the dragon's breath is the hottest chili pepper in the world at 2.48 million Scoville units. It is said that it can kill you.
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I meant the naga, I thought they were the same. I ate it raw thinking as an Indo I could handle some sambal. Big mistake. I was drooling and begging it to stop for 30 mins after. And i only had the tip of the small plastic spoon!
 
TastyReuben said:
I like a good bit of heat, but not so much that it's the only thing. Here, Asian restaurants usually let you pick your heat level, with 1 being no heat, and 10 being head-exploding heat, and I usually go for a 7.

The hottest thing I ever ate was at a flea market/antique festival thing, somewhere in the UK, at a booth of this Indian family selling chutneys.

They had maybe 20 samples set out, and I was going down the line, trying them, and I got to one and put a big dollop on a cracker, and everyone in the family started waving their hands and shouting, "No! No! No! That's too much! Too hot!"

I was already committed to getting it down my neck, so I didn't heed any of that, and as soon as it hit me, I swear, I went blind for a few seconds, like a flash of light and then I couldn't see, and I fell down right there like I'd been knocked out. I almost peed my pants, I couldn't talk, I couldn't breathe, I was dizzy, my wife had to help me to a bench to sit down, and one of the kids from the family brought me a small cup of milk and explained that was the hottest one they'd had and you're supposed to have only a little bit, and I'd had about a tablespoon.

My stomach was upset for the rest of day. We had to leave and go home, my wife had to drive, and I couldn't eat anything until the next day.
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Craig and his oldest brother (RIP) did something like that once. They were going through craig's hot sauce collection, putting a few drops on a cracker, then eating it. They worked their way up to Dave's Insanity. Couldn't talk, turned beet red. I don't remember whether they used milk or honey or both, but I do remember asking if I needed to take them to the hospital.
 
CraigC said:
I've been a chili head most of my life and enjoy spicy food. I draw the line at idiots trying to prove they can eat stupidly spicy food, where you can't actually taste the food for all of the heat. How do you feel about spicy food?
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Not afraid. If my nose runs it is perfect. If my lips burn it’s too much.
 
Hungry Man said:
I do love spicy food (hot chilli taste) but I agree with the original post that it should not be overpowered you should have the taste of the food balanced with spices.
That said, I grow the hottest peppers (California Reapers, Bhut Jolokia etc..) in my garden and planning to make some super hot sauces this season.
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Snap, so does my wife.

Russ
 
Morning Glory said:
There is certainly an issue of conditioning involved - those who never or rarely eat spicy food (native French and Italians for example) are often unable to handle even medium strength curry in my experience and would no doubt find that the chilli eclipsed any other flavours.

Having eaten in Indian restaurants here since I was a teen, I'm well used to spicy food and will try anything, however hot. Sometimes it is more chilli tasting than anything else bit that isn't necessarily a bad thing. I rather like having my mouth on fire. Chilli has a natural high which can produce euphoria!
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That has been my disappointment with curries -- all heat, tastes mediocre, at best. I do NOT enjoy having my mouth on fire. That's why I love Cajun food. They get the balance of heat and flavor right! I've had friends give me a hard time when they want to go eat Indian food, and I don't. "Oh, you can't handle the heat (hahaha)."

Sorry, but I got tired of hearing that I am supposed to like certain kinds of food, like curries and sushi from trendy co-workers. It left me with a bit of an attitude.

CD
 
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