BULLETIN: Science may have discovered an answer to the ancient, aggravating question about what some of us say makes it impossible for us to enjoy the more-nuanced aspects of the chili pepper experience…
Classic Mexican Chili: Mostly beans and veggies… But incomparably piquante,
amazingly healthy, and as flavour-fresh as the veggies you use in it!
No kidding! I thought I’d never see this headline in my lifetime. But it’s true!
A simple fix…
As it turns out in some many such cases, the answer was there all along, right under our noses. But we were looking too far abroad to see it. For the guys: like the girl next door when you’re busy ogling the swim suit beauties on Baywatch…
It may have been an impenetrable mystery for the highest, most exalted culinary experts. They’ve been stumped in the search for a final, conclusive answer about how to alleviate that burning sen-sation many of us suffer when eating really hot chilis…
But now, a research team at Ohio State University says it’s confirmed that a trio of compounds well known to science has the ability to ‘naturally soften’ the effects on the palate of ‘opposing’ sub-stances that usually make chilis feel hot.
What they did
The team set up a panel of carefully-controlled taste tests to try and find out why some chilis taste ‘hotter’ than others.
They brought in professional taste testers and asked them to taste – and rate – samples of 10 dif-ferent hot peppers equalized for their content of capsaicinoids. The latter are the unique compounds that impart chilis’ tell-tale ‘hot’ sensation.
The results were not what they expected…
What they found
Surprisingly, some of the chilis were not rated by the tasters where they were expected to, based on how hot they rate on the standardized Scoville Heat Scale.
In fact, pepper varieties containing three natural compounds — capsianoside I, roseoside, and gin-gerglycolipid A — all tasted ‘milder’ than counterparts that contained the same amount of heat-causing chemicals.
According to an abstract of the study’s findings, the potentially ‘landmark’ finding suggests: ‘The compounds may work by interfering with TRPV1 receptors, which are responsible for detecting spice, potentially paving the way for milder-tasting spicy foods.”
The takeaway
“The team noted that this research could have significant culinary implications, opening the door for chefs, food scientists, and hot sauce makers to reformulate their recipes for better flavor and heat balance,” The study report concludes. “[T]he work could even lead to an anti-spice condiment you can pour or sprinkle over a dish to make it less spicy.”
My take
“What if – ” the abstract ponders, “we could guarantee that every individual enjoyed a bit of spice without the worry of tears streaming down their faces?”
For one thing, hot chili devotées would no longer lament the alleged ‘wimpiness’ of the medium and mild versions of ‘hot’ dishes offered on restaurant menus to appease less adventurous diners. In fact resto chefs would not even have to prepare different versions of chili dishes to accommodate all comers. Folks could ‘cut’ the spiciness of a single version to suit themselves using the appropriate ‘dose’ of the magic condiment.
Everyone could achieve the exact level of heat they preferred.
Researchers caution it could take some time before further explorations needed to confirm their findings – and nail down how to deliver the heat-suppressing compounds they’ve discovered – are complete, and the promised ‘anti-spice’ condiment can be developed for commercial distribution.
But, now they’ve been discovered, you can bet more than one team of food researchers will be racing to see who can be first to market with a ‘product’…
~ Maggie J.