Ever wondered why some spices burn your throat while others tickle your nose? Or why some of us live for spicy foods while others sweat at the mere thought of a habanero? How do pickles stay crunchy if they’re sitting in brine for weeks on end? And why do we have such different food preferences from our friends? We’re answering your food questions with chef and author Kenji López-Alt, author of the kids book Every Night is Pizza Night and co-host of The Recipe.
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- The sense of spice we feel on our tongue and in our throat and nose is a source of pleasure to some people and pain to others. (And some people kind of like the pain!)
- There are several chemical compounds in food that can stimulate our brain to respond, “Spicy!!” Capsaicin is the compound in hot peppers. Allyl isothiocyanate is in mustard and horseradish, piperine is in black pepper, and gingerol is what makes ginger spicy.
- Some people have a higher tolerance for spiciness than others, usually depending on how often you eat spicy food. You can increase your spice tolerance over time by slowly increasing the amount and intensity of spicy food in your diet.
- Capsaicin, the chemical compound found in hot peppers, actually binds to the heat and pain receptors on our tongue, giving your brain a burning signal. And your brain tells your body to respond with increased blood flow and a boost of serotonin. Serotonin is a mood-changing chemical your body produces in response to pain. But it’s also known as the pleasure chemical, which may be partly responsible for why some people really love eating spicy foods.
- While we tend to feel the burning of capsaicin in our mouths and throat, the spice you taste in mustard or wasabi, allyl isothiocyanate, tends to be felt up in your nasal passages!
