Reacting to Netizen's Comment

Question: Let's settle this question once and for all.  Are Chilli or Chilli peppers really hot or as the word says they are here to chill?

Response:

Chili peppers have varying degrees of capsaicin. This substance is an irritant. Some people love the irritation, while others hate it. I’m somewhere in the middle.

As a child, I was never served any food with that ingredient. As an adult, when I tried it, I liked it in small quantities once in a while. Later, I began to enjoy the flavor in greater quantities and with greater concentrations of the irritant, capsaicin. However, I still cannot tolerate as much chili in my food as my Indian friends can.

I’ve met Indians who were raised with chili and are so accustomed to the irritation that any food without it is too bland for them. Their taste buds are so conditioned to respond to capsaicin that they think some of the most expensive, fine foods from other countries are tasteless!

When I discuss the flavor of chili with my friends, I say that it burns my mouth. To help them imagine what I experience when I eat food with a lot of capsaicin, I ask them to imagine a soothing, luxurious skin lotion, but whenever the skin lotion is applied, someone pierces their skin with a needle several times. The surrounding flavors may be quite pleasant, but the burning sensation in my mouth can be anything but pleasant!