[CH] TOO Much Chili Burns out Flavor
Ken Baker (kennethbaker@earthlink.net)
Sat, 27 Apr 2002 22:12:24 -0500
Bull Pucky!!!
For the first time amateurs, maybe, but definitely not for me. When I first
became addicted to the beloved chile, I will admit that at times my poor
little tongue got so hot that I couldn't taste much else. Now that I have
become accustomed to it, however, I find that the flavor of the food is
still just as strong and tasty, and that the chile just enhances the dining
experience. I regularly order my Phad Thai (Thai national noodle dish)
"Thai Hot", which took some doing since the cooks didn't believe I could
handle it. Now that I have them trained not only to bring it to me "Thai
Hot", but to bring out the chopped chilies as well (makes the waiter blanch
when he sees it), I enjoy a screamin' hot dish of noodles - with all the
flavor it ever had. I can still taste the subtleties of the other
ingredients, and still love it.
I think that what the researchers at U of C need to do is test people who
actually EAT the stuff regularly. They might find out that the people they
were testing were like that "rough tough" congressman in Washington who
noshed down an entire 8 Jalaps in 5 minutes. Amateurs.
Pass the chili and don't spare the chile!
Ken
Too Much Chili Burns Out Flavor
Bad news for spice lovers: Chili actually reduces your ability to taste
other
flavors, according to researchers at the University of California, Davis.
In a painful series of experiments that you may not want to try at home,
graduate student Chris Simons put capsaicin -- the hot chemical from chili
peppers -- on one side of volunteers' tongues. The volunteers then rinsed
with
solutions representing the five flavors of salty, sweet, sour, bitter and
"umami," the flavor linked to monosodium glutamate, and rated the intensity
of
the flavor.
"Capsaicin always suppressed sweetness, bitterness and umami. Saltiness and
sourness weren't affected at all," Simons said.