When I was a kid, I remember being in my best friend's kitchen as he suckled a bottle of Tabasco sauce for sheer pleasure. I assumed he could inherently handle it because he was Asian, and I wasn't. In reality, the reason had to do with the differing cultural environments in which we were brought up. I simply wasn't exposed to spicy food on a day to day basis, so I had a minimal tolerance for it, and thus didn't find it palatable.
My misconception about spicy food changed soon after college. I was working for a dot com company and went out for Thai food with a few coworkers. It was only the second time I'd had it, the first being my last night in Paris several months earlier. It was a whole new world of flavors, and I also found out people have the ability to build a tolerance to spicy food in the same way they can build a tolerance for alcohol or nicotine. I decided to take a proactive approach toward building my tolerance for spicy food from that point forward. It was as simple as exposing myself to it on a more frequent basis, whether it be the selection of a spicy restaurant dish or a medium-spicy salsa instead of non-spicy.
Since developing a greater tolerance for spicy foods, I've found myself in a better position to taste a wider variety of salsas and foods abroad. Here's a sampling from my spicy past:
Belize
I took my tolerance for spicy salsas to a new level when I got hooked on the local favorite – Marie Sharp's Fiery Hot Habanero Pepper Sauce. I brought a bottle home and dabbed the orange salsa on everything from tortilla chips to waffles. Anything I ate lacking this fiery habanero sauce was deemed boring.
China
My friend Charlie made it a point to take me out for Hot Pot while I stayed with him in Chengdu, a city of 10 million located in China's spice province – Sichuan. I'd already become use to the ubiquitous pool of spicy oil which accompanied our foods of choice, however Hot Pot would take the experience to a whole new level. A cauldron of spicy oil is placed over a burner in the middle of your table, and allowed to gurgle until hot enough to cook your selected raw meats and vegetables. The cumulative effect after a few bites was akin to sucking face with the sun – damn HOT!
But as those who enjoy spicy food know, there is an undeniable pleasure and unique excitement that comes with eating spicy foods and pushing your boundaries.
My dare to eat one of India's hottest foods, a regional dish from Goa called vindaloo, wasn't completed until I reached Bangkok. Yes, I know it probably wasn't the same, but as the video proves, I did my due diligence to get the spiciest chicken vindaloo the Indian restaurant's chef could cook up for me.
These are my fondest food memories, filed under spicy. Now it's your turn.
Do you have a favorite memory from trying spicy foods abroad?
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Cate says
September 1, 2009 at 4:34 amMine’s from Thailand… I was feeling pretty gangster after we’d been in Bangkok for about of month, so I started asking for my som tham (papaya salad) extra spicy.
One day I watched as the lady put like 10 of those insanely hot chiles into the salad. I thought I could handle it, and about halfway through, I was doing OK. But the longer I sat there, the more my mouth started to burn and after a few minutes, I was in serious pain!
My husband ran from shop to shop trying to find me milk as my eyes teared up. Finally he found some and I chugged it as fast as I could…which gave me a pretty bad stomach ache.
I still love som tham, but not that spicy!
Cate says
August 31, 2009 at 11:34 pmMine’s from Thailand… I was feeling pretty gangster after we’d been in Bangkok for about of month, so I started asking for my som tham (papaya salad) extra spicy.
One day I watched as the lady put like 10 of those insanely hot chiles into the salad. I thought I could handle it, and about halfway through, I was doing OK. But the longer I sat there, the more my mouth started to burn and after a few minutes, I was in serious pain!
My husband ran from shop to shop trying to find me milk as my eyes teared up. Finally he found some and I chugged it as fast as I could…which gave me a pretty bad stomach ache.
I still love som tham, but not that spicy!
Mónica says
September 1, 2009 at 4:59 pmMine was in Brazil, not exactly a too spicy food country.
I was in a buffet restaurant and after filling my plate with delicious food (btw, Brazilian food is delicious), I poured an innofensive-looking sausage that ended up being like pure chile.
My first bite was enough to have me in tears and I couldn’t eat anything else from that plate.
Monica says
September 1, 2009 at 11:59 amMine was in Brazil, not exactly a too spicy food country.
I was in a buffet restaurant and after filling my plate with delicious food (btw, Brazilian food is delicious), I poured an innofensive-looking sausage that ended up being like pure chile.
My first bite was enough to have me in tears and I couldn’t eat anything else from that plate.
Dave says
September 1, 2009 at 5:26 pmAh yes, spicy papaya salad – I remember trying that for the first time last year. :)
Dave says
September 1, 2009 at 12:26 pmAh yes, spicy papaya salad – I remember trying that for the first time last year. :)
Elly says
September 3, 2009 at 3:47 amMy favourite is our Malaysian spicy food, especially when I’m going for seafood and order Szechuan soup. At first I thought it was deemed too spicy, but after awhile it’s actually very tasty.
On weekends, I like to make some stir-fried rice, or as we call it, ‘nasi goreng’. Each home has their way of making them, as it’s very simple. You only need a small amount of oil, slices of garlic and onion, ‘cili kampung’ or small chillies which I put into a blender, and small amount of salt. Once the oil is hot, just place the items and usually I add some anchovies and rice.
Hope you’ll be travelling to Malaysia soon!
Elly says
September 2, 2009 at 10:47 pmMy favourite is our Malaysian spicy food, especially when I’m going for seafood and order Szechuan soup. At first I thought it was deemed too spicy, but after awhile it’s actually very tasty.
On weekends, I like to make some stir-fried rice, or as we call it, ‘nasi goreng’. Each home has their way of making them, as it’s very simple. You only need a small amount of oil, slices of garlic and onion, ‘cili kampung’ or small chillies which I put into a blender, and small amount of salt. Once the oil is hot, just place the items and usually I add some anchovies and rice.
Hope you’ll be travelling to Malaysia soon!
Dave says
September 5, 2009 at 4:03 pmHi Elly –
I love nasi goreng! I discovered it when I arrived on Bali. Delicious! I ate it often during my 3 weeks in Indonesia.
Malaysia – I’ve heard great things. I’d definitely like to check out some of your beaches/islands in the north.
Dave says
September 5, 2009 at 11:03 amHi Elly –
I love nasi goreng! I discovered it when I arrived on Bali. Delicious! I ate it often during my 3 weeks in Indonesia.
Malaysia – I’ve heard great things. I’d definitely like to check out some of your beaches/islands in the north.
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