Poll of the Day > I don't understand cultures that only eat super hot things.

(+) Yeah! (+)

I am not sure how else to word it.

But I have a friend that's Korean, she only eats spicy foods.

My company has a sales rep in India that every time he comes here he insists restaurants with spicy food.

I could go on. But that's two people directly in my life that seems to only enjoy food that I personally dont see the enjoyment in eating.
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Different people like different food, how weird!
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hypnox posted...

But I have a friend that's Korean, she only eats spicy foods.

Every single thing she eats is spicy?
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Maybe to them it isn't spicy but just normal, and what you like is actually bland?

(although you have a very limited sample size to draw conclusions from about a whole culture)

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I always believed it had to do with lack of refrigeration and they still do it now because it's part of their culture

right people also have bad opinions on things as well!
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I don't understand cultures

Okay

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https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VBtHXC-JOX8" data-time="
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Look at eastern art. That might throw you off like crazy since you are having trouble with the food part.
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CTLM posted...

I always believed it had to do with lack of refrigeration and they still do it now because it's part of their culture

Pretty much. The cuisines in question developed to favour strong spices to mask the taste of spoiled food (not necessarily dangerously spoiled, but spoiled enough to taste unpleasant), and that preference has stuck despite the invention and ready availability of refrigeration because it's the sort of flavour everyone's come to expect. You grow up eating something, it's generally what you're going to like eating as an adult.
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They probably have different tolerances, tastes and levels of pleasure received from the spice.
I remember something on PBS explaining that people that taste food more and have more taste buds, typically are more sensitive to spice.
My girlfriend loves the burn, I can sometimes enjoy it. When it's not too much though and within my level, I get it. It's not my thing though.

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So.... not a fan of Doctor Bombay, then?
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Idk I dated a Mexican girl and her family wouldnt eat a bag of habanero chips they bought because they were too hot. Meanwhile I liked them. Both girls from Japan Ive dated eat spicy foods. I think its really just personal preference.

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I love spicy food. Maybe it's a masochistic thing because I like the burn but spicy foods just seem to often have more flavor to me as well. I love mexican and a lot of asian cuisine for that reason

adjl posted...

Pretty much. The cuisines in question developed to favour strong spices to mask the taste of spoiled food (not necessarily dangerously spoiled, but spoiled enough to taste unpleasant), and that preference has stuck despite the invention and ready availability of refrigeration because it's the sort of flavour everyone's come to expect. You grow up eating something, it's generally what you're going to like eating as an adult.

Not exactly true and actually a bit insulting to their cuisine.

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It's what you were raised with. Many cultures have much more flavorful (and spicy) food than Western cuisines.

If you don't build up a capsaicin tolerance yeah you're not going to like it

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I keep telling my sister this and she refuses to let her daughter eat anything remotely spicy. Its ridiculous. Like shes gets irate if I offer my niece a BBQ chip. If you let them eat it when theyre younger they will get used to it.

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They sound like decent people already.
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VioletMassacre posted...

hypnox posted...

a friend that's Korean, she

You seem confused.

Did I do it right? We're just bolding random words right?
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VioletMassacre posted...

hypnox posted...

a friend that's Korean, she

You seem confused.

I dont understand. Unless you wanted him to use the whos. But thats works, too... At least to the point that we understand what hes saying...
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It's not hot to them.

/Topic
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zebatov posted...

I keep telling my sister this and she refuses to let her daughter eat anything remotely spicy. Its ridiculous. Like shes gets irate if I offer my niece a BBQ chip. If you let them eat it when theyre younger they will get used to it.

Well, people believed that giving babies and toddlers spicy food wasn't good for them a while ago. She might've heard this from an old person that hasn't received the updated facts yet.
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This is me. Anytime I go to a restaurant I head straight for the pepper icons
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I don't get really spicy food either.

It's basically masochism. Sure, it's good when you eat it, but the fucking next 12 hours you can feel it.
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Lately I've been putting cayenne pepper on near everything I eat.

I really like how the heat wakes my body up.

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Yellow posted...

I don't get really spicy food either.

It's basically masochism. Sure, it's good when you eat it, but the fucking next 12 hours you can feel it.

Once you build up a tolerance, it's pretty hard to find anything that's too spicy. There's an authentic chinese place near my work that is no joke though. If they have 4 peppers by the item, they fucking mean it. It was one of the few things I havent been able to finish due to being too spicy

I think the physical pain of it helps you experience it more. Like bdsm. And barbed capsaicin are like nipple clamps for your tongue.

There are plenty of "plain" dishes that are flavorful and interesting without having to jack it up with millions of scovilles just to feel whatever your soul is missing.

dedbus posted...

I think the physical pain of it helps you experience it more. Like bdsm. And barbed capsaicin are like nipple clamps for your tongue.

There are plenty of "plain" dishes that are flavorful and interesting without having to jack it up with millions of scovilles just to feel whatever your soul is missing.

Dont you kinkshame me

Im not big on spicy foods, either...
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Mo hotta mo betta!

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I don't understand cultures that don't eat spicy food. So depressing.

I'd lose my mind if I had to eat all milquetoast all the time.

I think BDSM is kind of a good comparison. Yeah, spicy food hurts... But it hurts so GOOD. And I genuinely like the flavor of things like chilis.
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Moonjay posted...

I don't understand cultures that don't eat spicy food. So depressing.

I'd lose my mind if I had to eat all milquetoast all the time.

I think BDSM is kind of a good comparison. Yeah, spicy food hurts... But it hurts so GOOD. And I genuinely like the flavor of things like chilis.

I dont mind BDSM, but spicy food is a bad hurt for me. Plus, I dont like the taste. If I eat something to spicy, my stomach will be in so much pain...
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Aging is actually starting to catch up with me and I'm starting to suffer a little from spicy food sometimes... But it's still too yummy to resist.
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My dad let me think a Jalapeo slice was a pickle slice when I was a kid. I move hated spicy foods ever since. Both the taste and the spiciness.
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Spicy food helps boost immune system, it also releases endorphins and sensitizes the tastebuds to enhance other flavors of the dish you are eating. The only drawback is it causes pain. But no pain no gain if you ask me! *proceeds to splash ghost pepper hotsauce on pizza slice*

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Mmm I'm in love with smoked ghost pepper powder. Mix some of that in any salsa and you have a flavor explosion.
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Moonjay posted...

Mmm I'm in love with smoked ghost pepper powder. Mix some of that in any salsa and you have a flavor explosion.

Sounds great. Can you get it online?

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bulbinking posted...

Moonjay posted...

Mmm I'm in love with smoked ghost pepper powder. Mix some of that in any salsa and you have a flavor explosion.

Sounds great. Can you get it online?

Yep, we got it from Amazon. I don't like a lot of smoked stuff because it's too heavy and tastes like ash tray, but that stuff is just right.

Thinking about it, I definitely do think heat increases other flavors. Like at Indian restaurants... The very hot curry from the menu and the wussified curry in the buffet are made with all the same spices other than the chilis... And the mild stuff is pretty bland to me. Aside from the chilis having their own flavor, the other flavors get stronger and last longer on my tongue.
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