More and more it seems to me that restaurants - even good ones - are adding pepper or some other "hot" spice to perfectly decent dishes. As one who is not terribly fond of spicy food, I find it frustrating. Sometimes I think it is done to hide the fact that the dish really doesn't have much flavor on its own. Or maybe there is just more demand among diners for spicy food.

Then I guess you'd not like the Mongolian Beef I get in at a Chinese place in BKW. It could be better called Black Pepper Beef. Lots of sliced green pepper and onion... and plenty of course ground black pepper. It's sooooo good!

I don't care for bland food. If it's got no zing, it's not for me.

Do you consider black peppercorns to be in the same category as hot peppers? Black pepper does not make a dish "spicy"; it adds flavor or enhances other flavors already in the dish.

I agree that a lot of restaurants seem to have the "Fresh ground pepper?" guy come by the table when pepper seems inappropriate for the dish. The mark of a good chef is that salt and pepper are not on the table, they are not offered to you, and the thought never crosses your mind that they might be needed.

As for hot peppers, I find that VERY few restaurants have any concept of what makes a pepper spicy, nor do they have any decently hot peppers in the kitchen. Chipotle, serrano/ancho, poblano, and most jalapenos are NOT hot peppers. Scotch bonnet/habanero, tabasco, cayenne, and those little Asian ones are what I would consider hot. Of course, the presence of seeds makes a big difference.

The taste for hot peppers seems to very region-dependent, with the Southern US probably the most amenable to hotter dishes. Where have you noticed your phenomenon? As someone who actively seeks very hot peppers, I must disagree with your hypothesis, based on my experience.

As for hot peppers, I find that VERY few restaurants have any concept of what makes a pepper spicy, nor do they have any decently hot peppers in the kitchen. Chipotle, serrano/ancho, poblano, and most jalapenos are NOT hot peppers. Scotch bonnet/habanero, tabasco, cayenne, and those little Asian ones are what I would consider hot. Of course, the presence of seeds makes a big difference.

If you are not fond of spicy food and are not tolerant to 'heat' this is completely irrelevant.

They ARE all hot peppers.

It's like saying that water at 70C/160F isn't scalding because water can commonly be found at much higher temperatures than that. For someone with a blister on their finger it makes little difference.

They may be comparatively mild in the spectrum of peppers, but to the OP and to others who's tastebuds haven't been indoctrinated into pepper's pleasures, all the peppers you mentioned are hot.

---
Otherwise, I kind of agree (and with the OP). Too many chefs have embraced hot flavours and run with them before learning how to walk sedately with these volatile materials. Instead of the teasing lip tingles and invigorating, life affirming fireworks that a masterfully blended dish from, say, a good Thai chef might provide, too often someone in the kitchen just chops in a chilli variety they don't even know the name of and all they add to a mediocre dish is the unpleasant and lingering sensation of a mouth and throat rash.

There are too many cooks out there masking unremarkable dishes with fiery ingredients, the complex properties of which they don't, and perhaps never will, fully understand.

Everything has got lots of pepper in it here in Bangalore and it's bloody delicious.

I love pepper.. :)

I love pepper, my complaint is always not enough spice and heat.
When I travel to the UK the food is so bland that I've got to kick it up with some hot sauce. Good thing tobasco is found on every continent these days!

So the answer to my original question is that most people like their food hot and spicy, no matter what it is. I am obviously in the minority.

So the answer to my original question is that most people like their food hot and spicy, no matter what it is. I am obviously in the minority.

I invite you to sample the food in Spain - there you are most certainly in the majority.

Whilst Portugal enjoys hot peri-peri sauces and Galicia (the Spanish region just above Portugal which has a similar language) also incorporates some chilli into their cuisine, for the rest of the Iberian Peninsula chillies are most definitely a minority taste. If you get chorizo sausage, make sure it isn't in the Galician style. They use a spicy/hot paprika whilst the rest of Spain makes their chorizo with mild paprika (pimenton)

Patatas Bravas are as close as many Spaniards will get to chilli pepper (a bit of pepper powder in tomato sauce). Hottest thing I ever remember on a Spanish menu whilst growing up were some of the aiolis that came on the side - the garlic could occasionally be quite fiery.

And there are regional variations too. It's part of the British culture for a certain kind of man to go out to a curry house with a group of friends where they drink huge amounts of lager and show off their bravado by ordering the hottest things on the menu. Unfortunately, there are parts of Britain where the Indian/Pakistan/Bangladeshi restaurants rely almost entirely on these groups for custom and seem to cater exclusively for their tastes. This means that in small cities like Preston (http://maps.google.co.uk/maps?f=q&hl=en&geocode=&q=Preston&ie=UTF8&ll=53.755207,-2.702637&spn=5.236949,14.249268&z=7&iwloc=addr&om=0) it's impossible for anyone but seriously hardened pepper enthusiasts to enjoy a spicy meal. Whilst I enjoy the occasional curry, I like to taste the rest of what I'm eating too. Thankfully, the restaurants frequented by members of the Asian communities don't season all their food to the same extreme - they don't generally like food to be 'hot' for the sake of being hot either.

Chilli is also very easy to avoid in Japanese food too.

I love pepper, my complaint is always not enough spice and heat.
When I travel to the UK the food is so bland that I've got to kick it up with some hot sauce. Good thing tobasco is found on every continent these days!
Lack of chilli does not automatically make a dish bland :rolleyes: I'd rather say your palate has been ruined by automatically adding chilli to everything, such that you can't taste properly anything which doesn't contain chilli. You seek just one flavour, and if it isn't present then you are disappointed. So therefore, it's a tad unfair to castigate the food of an entire country, because it doesn't agree with your presumption that chilli is good with everything.

I had some fabulous french food at the weekend - not a chilli in sight, yet the flavour was fantastic - Crepes followed by a form of bouillabaise. Adding chilli to that would have been a crime against eating.

I did read a study which suggests that women tend to have a more discriminating palate than men because we have a greater number of taste buds per square cm, such that we find chilli flavours more overpowering - LapLap's comments on men just wanting chilli heat in curries, whereas both she and I prefer mild but flavourful curries applies here I think.

Lack of chilli does not automatically make a dish bland :rolleyes: I'd rather say your palate has been ruined by automatically adding chilli to everything, such that you can't taste properly anything which doesn't contain chilli. You seek just one flavour, and if it isn't present then you are disappointed. So therefore, it's a tad unfair to castigate the food of an entire country, because it doesn't agree with your presumption that chilli is good with everything.

I had some fabulous french food at the weekend - not a chilli in sight, yet the flavour was fantastic - Crepes followed by a form of bouillabaise. Adding chilli to that would have been a crime against eating.

I agree with you chili is like heroin very addictive. Honestly I find it really brings out the flavour of food. I put it on anything and everything. Generally though I don't like the super hot sauces while the heat is fine I find they don't have a very nice taste almost plastic.

I think also certain cuisines are better suited to spice than others, more rustic/robust type cooking Italian, Mexican are better suited to spice than more delicate flavours like Japanese and French.

whereas both she and I prefer mild but flavourful curries applies here I think.
Just to add that 'mild' is a bit misleading for me. I'd have to embark on a full study to understand why, but there are some foods that I can tolerate lots of spice/heat in (Korean food comes to mind), and others where only a little chili becomes rapidly overpowering for me. Each chili seems to have its own qualities - just as fireworks do.

And then there are other elements, for instance, tomato seems to intensify chili to a frightening degree (I'm quite weary of chili in Italian food). But the balance of sour, salt and sweet flavours in some Thai and Vietnamese dishes lets me occasionally enjoy extremely hot curries.

Whilst I usually do enjoy milder curries, when there's a cook involved who understands how to blend tastes well I'm happy to turn up the heat.

Is this the right time to say that I was given 19 x 60ml bottles of Cholula sauce this weekend? I couldn't tolerate chili at all until I was in my early 20s. Thai and Surinamese food ended up being my gateway in.

JerryFF - are you also a supertaster?
http://www.bbc.co.uk/science/humanbody/body/interactives/supertaster/index_01.shtml

Wow I can't believe how passionate some people are about their food.

I better call my doctor and see if he can give me something for my "ruined palate".

I love pepper.. :)

I hate pepper.. :)

I hate pepper.. :)

I love pepper. :)

In fact, I blend my own peppercorns combining red, pink, white and black peppercorns from Ecuador, Thailand and Indonesia.

And I use a special copper burr-type grinder from Greece that does a superior job of grinding the pepper.

I just got back from a visit to my sister's house and all she had for pepper was a jar of stale 5 year-old pre-ground private label pepper. :(

And she doesn't like pepper either.

Surprise, surprise. :p

I hate pepper.. :) That might be a side effect of being pregnant. ;)

I should have said earlier though - I love black pepper and I adore cumin. Just cannot take chilli heat - and not a big fan of horseradish either :(

Love fresh ground pepper. I use it in place of salt or am able to reduce the salt content in most instances to provide a bit of flavor. Think mashed potatoes, casseroles etc.

I love pepper. :)

In fact, I blend my own peppercorns combining red, pink, white and black peppercorns from Ecuador, Thailand and Indonesia.

And I use a special copper burr-type grinder from Greece that does a superior job of grinding the pepper.

I just got back from a visit to my sister's house and all she had for pepper was a jar of stale 5 year-old pre-ground private label pepper. :(

And she doesn't like pepper either.

Surprise, surprise. :p

Hey Cholula your user name is a tasty Mexican hot sauce in case you didn't know. ;)

Love fresh ground pepper. I use it in place of salt or am able to reduce the salt content in most instances to provide a bit of flavor. Think mashed potatoes, casseroles etc.

Have you tried Sansyo/sansho? The pepper that isn't a pepper.
http://shop.parkhyatttokyo.com/en/product/138.924/ (mixed here with salt)

Has a lovely aromatic/citrus tinge to its pepperiness. Wonderful added to soups.

Thanks for the tip. Sounds wonderful to try.

I've actually been quite good about reducing my sodium intake by using ground pepper and some other fresh herbs in place of salt. I love trying different types of pepper and pepper corns.

That might be a side effect of being pregnant. ;)

Nah, just a side effect of being sane!!! MWWWHHhaaaa haaa!!

I'm a fond user of pepper when doing my own cookings as well. I use them in pastas, fried rice, etc.

I love pepper. And chili and anything else that makes a dish spicy. I was raised on spicy food, though, so all my taste buds were killed off by the time I was 2. :)

I love pepper. And chili and anything else that makes a dish spicy. I was raised on spicy food, though, so all my taste buds were killed off by the time I was 2. :)
Perhaps this is why you are so sensitive to food texture. :) You've demonstrated a violent dislike to what the Japanese call neba-neba foods (and what you probably think of as never-never foods.)

Perhaps this is why you are so sensitive to food texture. :) You've demonstrated a violent dislike to what the Japanese call neba-neba foods (and what you probably think of as never-never foods.)

Violent dislike. I like that, quite apropos if you have ever had to witness me trying a new and exotic food (and by new and exotic, I mean like a blueberry). :)

I think my pickiness comes from being raised by 2 picky eaters who were more than content to reward such behaviour in their children. Considering how mean they were about everything else ;) it surprises me how lenient they were in not forcing us to eat anything that was non-Indian.

In retrospect, not their best judgment call. But being able to tolerate spice has served me better than being able to tolerate anything slimy. :)

So the answer to my original question is that most people like their food hot and spicy, no matter what it is. I am obviously in the minority.


As long as the dish is described as spicy, I don't have a problem with it. I do know that many people don't like surprises when it comes to food.

Salt and pepper should be on most foods. Too often restaurants do not properly season their produce and proteins. @:-)

Add me to the list of people who like it spicy...and like 3TAL, I was raised on spicy food as well. However, my dad has made me paranoid about eating excessive and frequent spicy foods.

He had an ulcer at one point and is convinced it was because of him eating a lot of spicy food as a child in his home country. So unfortunately I am not as adventurous as I'd like to be :(

Add me to the list of people who like it spicy...and like 3TAL, I was raised on spicy food as well. However, my dad has made me paranoid about eating excessive and frequent spicy foods.

He had an ulcer at one point and is convinced it was because of him eating a lot of spicy food as a child in his home country. So unfortunately I am not as adventurous as I'd like to be :(

Check this (http://grande.nal.usda.gov/ibids/index.php?mode2=detail&origin=ibids_references&therow=122064) out!

Check this (http://grande.nal.usda.gov/ibids/index.php?mode2=detail&origin=ibids_references&therow=122064) out!

And you're seriously surprised about that??

Everything I've ever read about the benefits of eating peppers has been super positive. In many ways, they may be the most healthy food (http://www2.oprah.com/presents/2005/young/life/life_peppers_b.jhtml) we can consume.

And you're seriously surprised about that??

Not I; just wanted to put brosnan6's mind to rest.

I'm half Hunanese, after all.

Not I; just wanted to put brosnan6's mind to rest.

I'm half Hunanese, after all.

:cool:

Add me to the list of people who like it spicy...
You can add me as well. I can tolerate most of the spiciness that exist in Indonesian, Malaysian, Thai, etc cuisines. The spiciness in these cuisines are what makes them tasteful.

Ahhh just the way I like my mabodofu prepared.. spicy and hot! :D

Just my random $0.02 in here. :)

Sanosuke!

Hey Cholula your user name is a tasty Mexican hot sauce in case you didn't know. ;)

He does know and so does many of us here:D

Do a search under his name, read on and arent you gonna be surprissssed:)

Add me to those who like hot food ( I grow my own hybrid scotch bonnets), the suggestions that those who dont (or those do for that matter) have "better palates" is hogwash.
Besides its a proven fact that capriscum or whatever the chemical name of pepper endorphyns is good for you medically.

mike

Add me to those who like hot food ( I grow my own hybrid scotch bonnets), the suggestions that those who dont (or those do for that matter) have "better palates" is hogwash.

Nobody has suggested what you just said.

The suggestion was that those who don't like food unless it's hot have fried palates.

Different thing entirely, and one that I'll stick my neck out and agree with. (And it helps that I do like very hot food...occasionally)

Perhaps it's not the palate itself that's fried, but the reward of endorphins as a motivator becomes more important than the underlying meal. Kind of like a child refusing to eat unless they get a lollipop or toy with their food.

Question about the putative endorphin rush:

If there's this direct pain -> pleasure connex, then why aren't
more people banging their heads against the walls and having
dental work sans anesthetic?

Question about the putative endorphin rush:

If there's this direct pain -> pleasure connex, then why aren't
more people banging their heads against the walls and having
dental work sans anesthetic?

I started trying to answer this, but it became way too complicated for me to explain as a non-scientist.

When pepper is added to a dish, what kind of pepper do you prefer?

All I've ever had (about which I know) is freshly ground black pepper and not freshly ground black pepper; I greatly prefer the former (easy choice, I know).

But in stores, I've seen white, pink, and green peppercorns. Anyone ever try these? In a restaurant (so that we stay on-topic)?

Always been curious of the taste. But not curious enough to try (I am not what one would call an adventurous eater...).

When pepper is added to a dish, what kind of pepper do you prefer?

All I've ever had (about which I know) is freshly ground black pepper and not freshly ground black pepper; I greatly prefer the former (easy choice, I know).

But in stores, I've seen white, pink, and green peppercorns. Anyone ever try these? In a restaurant (so that we stay on-topic)?

Always been curious of the taste. But not curious enough to try (I am not what one would call an adventurous eater...).


Wow...and the award for "understatement of the year" goes to 3TAL
:D

I think this could be two threads, one about pepper and another about peppers, but anyway...

I do like spicy foods, why, I'm not sure. I enjoy anything with a kick to it, though not to the degree that some do. My wife has been known to eat habanero peppers as if they were grapes, and when given a choice, will order her food as spicy as she can get it (Thai is probably her favorite). I tend to back off a notch from what she likes, though.

Always been curious of the taste. But not curious enough to try (I am not what one would call an adventurous eater...).

Wow...and the award for "understatement of the year" goes to 3TAL
:D

IME, pretty girls tend to be picky eaters, sometimes infuriatingly so. ;)

(White, green, and pink peppercorns will not kill you..that mix is in my home pepper grinder right now.)

I think this could be two threads, one about pepper and another about peppers, but anyway...

I do like spicy foods, why, I'm not sure. I enjoy anything with a kick to it, though not to the degree that some do. My wife has been known to eat habanero peppers as if they were grapes, and when given a choice, will order her food as spicy as she can get it (Thai is probably her favorite). I tend to back off a notch from what she likes, though.


I need to meet [B]Mrs. BNA_Flyer....

Let's have a Thai DO one of these days, I might even fly down to SoCal!

Fresh ground pepper only for me but in small doses.

I need to meet [B]Mrs. BNA_Flyer....

Let's have a Thai DO one of these days, I might even fly down to SoCal!

Let me know if you're down this way, we'll gather some local FTers and eat. (iapetus lives not too far away, for starters.)