Mar. 19, 2008 - Issue #648: War & Oil
Chili-Heads
Some like it hot; chili-heads like it really hot
But for some people, plain old “spicy” just doesn’t cut it. They call themselves the “chili-heads” and they like their food hot, hot, hot. These are the people who’ll travel far and wide in search of the peppers that will sear their nostrils, make their foreheads bead with sweat and push them to the brink of spicy madness. You might have meet them at a party or found them among your colleagues. Maybe you even have one in your own family. Incredibly, an informal survey I conducted this week ended with one quarter of the people in the room admitting to being a lover of all things chili.
But what is the true essence of a chili-head, and are you one? Read on to find out if you meet the qualifications.
First, a chili-head is a person who enjoys the heat and flavour of chili peppers in their food. Whether it be eggs, fish, pizza, chicken wings or even fruit, a chili-head will look for ways to spice up their dish with a dash of chili flakes or a squirt of sauce.
Greg Groves, a young software developer in Edmonton, has loved the flavourful punch of the chili pepper for as long as he can remember.
“Anything I can put hot sauce on is my favourite food,” he says emphatically. “I mean, putting chili in your Cheerios would be ridiculous, but anything else works for me.”
For Groves, and many others, being a chili-head is not about scorching tastebuds. Instead, it’s about finding that perfect balance between just making something hot and creating a unique taste sensation that adds new dimensions to a dish.
“When people see hot sauce they tend to get macho. They think, ‘I can do this’ and eat the hottest pepper they can,” chides Groves. “I’m not trying to burn my mouth off. I want a kick, but it has to be tasty.” He also admits it’s a bit of an addiction.
Some may crave booze or cigarettes, but chili-heads crave their capsaicin, which is derived from capsicum—the source of all things hot, such as jalapeños and habañeros (the world’s hottest chili peppers). The amount of capsaicin is measured in Scoville units which weigh how hot something actually is. Scoville units are a useful tool for chili-heads and help ensure that they’re buying a hot sauce that will actually measure up to their standards and not leave them with a weak imitation that could just as easily pass for ketchup.
Bill Donahue, a self-proclaimed chili-head, is well versed in the measurement of Scoville units.
“5000 scovilles would be your average jalapeño, whereas the habañero would measure 300 000,” he explains. “But, there are people out there creating hot sauces that pack eight million scovilles—one eye-dropper of that stuff would take out an army camp.”
Chili-heads feed their tongue-burning capsaicin addiction from all over the globe. Places like Mexico and India are viewed as the king pins of all things chili, and a chili-head’s trip is never complete without a saucy purchase. Luckily for other members of the condiment cult, chili-heads are also a generous bunch: sauce collections are built by swapping new finds and sharing tips on where to find the best variety of chili products—a very good thing, as the variety of hot sauces number in the thousands and each change the taste of food in a new way.
You have your chipotle sauce, which adds a smoky flavour. You have your passion fruit- or mango-based sauces, which add a new fruity dimension to any bread or plainly flavoured food. Of course, you also have your over-the-top, tongue-scorching hot sauces, which zing flavour into your blandest of dishes. There are also tomato-, mustard- and fruit-based sauces, each with a unique twist of flavour to accompany any food—and each with a name more colourful than the last.
“People like choice in flavour, but the weirder the name, the more people buy the sauce,” says Donahue. And with names like “Dr Phartpounder’s Colon Cleaner,” “Satan Sweat,” “Fire in the Hole” and “Ass in the Tube,” it’s clear that sauce manufacturers are catering to the creative senses of their chili-eating market.
Manufacturers are also using other means to feed the fiery food frenzy, with many products being aimed and advertised exclusively to chili-heads. There are chili-head t-shirts, recipe books and magazines and products highlighting various levels of capsaicin added to boost taste.
A spicy diet is also being touted as having added health benefits. Not only can hot sauce reinvigorate bland diet food with zest and spice, but studies have reportedly shown capsaicin as being good for the health of your coronary arteries, an effective appetite suppressant and, surprisingly, a treatment for ulcers. Not bad benefits for adding a little zing to your diet!
However, even with the helath benefits, you should be careful about jumping on the chili-head train and piling on the hot sauce! Like other addicts and their vices, even chili-heads have been known to “overdose” after consuming extremely hot sauce.
“You turn white and can’t breathe,” explained a friend of mine, a hardcore chili-head who carries a case of at least 15 chili sauces everywhere he goes. Fortunately, he has found a cure—and no, it’s not water. “Dairy products,” he says, “particularly in the liquid form like milk or yogurt, are the best antidote for too much chili.”
Risk of overdosing aside, spicy food is hotter than a chili pepper right now. Organizations of chili-heads have sprung up across the country, allowing new and budding fans of hot sauces to find and enjoy new friendships and acquaintances. From online discussion groups to blogs to newsletters to fiery food events you can find them anywhere and everywhere, from Canada down to Mexico and back again.
So, if you enjoy the heat of a good salsa and love the sweat caused by a good habañero pepper then you, my friend, may be a chili-head—and you are far from alone!
If not and you’re interested in spicing up your life a bit, why not pick up a bottle of hot sauce from your local grocery store and add a dash to your next meal?
“Cholula sauce (with the wooden topper) is one of my favourites. That or Yucatan,” reveals Groves.
You can also give some hot sauce a go while out on the town, but be careful what you say or you might get more than you bargained for.
“My trick for getting the level of spice I like when I dine out is to insult the chef!” laughs Donahue. “I tell the server it’s too weak and send it back with the orders to put some real heat on this thing, and viola, the dish comes back just the way I like it—packed to the brim with heat.”
Spoken like a true chili-head. V
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