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Why jalapeño peppers are less spicy (2023)

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Re: Why jalapeño peppers are less spicy (2023)

#181

Post by gweinberg »

magicalhippo wrote: post #130
yashap wrote: post #98

Earlier quoted context omitted.

> Have you noticed that you're way more into brussels sprouts now than you were when you were a kid? If you're a GenX-er or a Millenial, that's because today's (delicious) sprouts aren't the same plant as the (gross) sprouts of yore. This is an oft-quoted fact, and it’s true that modern brussels sprouts are less bitter, but that’s far from the whole story. The popular preparation used to be boiling or steaming, and m…

> The popular preparation used to be boiling or steaming, and many people still find that gross with modern varieties. What is wrong with people? They're delicious, and an absolute must along side a reindeer roast with a creamed mushroom sauce, or similar. Steamed of course. Though I did learn the hard way as a kid that they can be rather harsh on the stomach when raw...

What's "wrong with people" is they don't like eating poison. You can train yourself to like anything, but the bitter alkaloids that give brussel sprouts and such their nasty bitter taste are indeed a toxin. There isn't enough to be dangerous in modern varieties, but there was in their wild ancestors.

Re: Why jalapeño peppers are less spicy (2023)

#182

Post by silisili »

PheonixPharts wrote: post #63
jseliger wrote: post #24

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Less spicy is actually good. I prefer more flavorful chiles, with less spice. Mark Miller's conversation with Tyler Cowen is good on this subject: https://conversationswithtyler.com/episodes/mark-miller/ . Chiles are actually fruits and, combined judiciously, create a lot of complex flavors. Excess spiciness overwhelms the flavor. And people who want absurdly spicy peppers, can get them: ghost chiles, carolina reaper…

> I prefer more flavorful chiles, with less spice. As someone with a fairly high spice tolerance, I've found a strong correlation between heat and flavor . I think anyone coming from a culture that eats spicy food will agree. I had a batch of habaneros I grew last summer that were both the most spicy habaneros I've had, and by far the most flavorful. I've also had some very tasty ghost peppers (when used in moderatio…

It certainly trends that way, but I'm not sure it's a sure correlation. Hatch chiles are flavorful, but not really spicy. Scotch Bonnets are probably among the most flavorful, while I find the much hotter Ghost pepper not to taste like much.

Re: Why jalapeño peppers are less spicy (2023)

#183

Post by treme »

bastawhiz wrote: post #128
yashap wrote: post #98

Earlier quoted context omitted.

> Have you noticed that you're way more into brussels sprouts now than you were when you were a kid? If you're a GenX-er or a Millenial, that's because today's (delicious) sprouts aren't the same plant as the (gross) sprouts of yore. This is an oft-quoted fact, and it’s true that modern brussels sprouts are less bitter, but that’s far from the whole story. The popular preparation used to be boiling or steaming, and m…

I don't mind steamed sprouts today, but I remember how utterly repulsed I was by them as a kid. The preparation doesn't make a ton of difference, in my opinion.

cut them in quarters, sprinkle dash of salt, stir fried 'til brown over medium-high heat with olive oil, and sprinkle few drops of fish sauce (or oyster sauce depending on pref).

prep it makes a huge difference and it's one of best tasting/healthy vegetable imo.

Re: Why jalapeño peppers are less spicy (2023)

#184

Post by jameshart »

lmm wrote: post #108
ethbr1 wrote: post #102

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Other, and my favorite, example -- bananas Because the plants are reproduced asexually by cloning, exactly what you would expect happened, and a disease wiped out the monoculture fields (Gros Michel variety) of the early 1900s in the 50s and 60s. Which we then replanted in purportedly less flavorful Cavendish, which was resistant to the then-dominant fungus. Cue the new Panama fungal disease (Tropical Race 4) that Ca…

> It's fascinating to think that such a staple ("a banana") is completely different from the one people ate 60 years ago. The most interesting one to me is that US "bacon" and UK "bacon" are completely different things. But because of cultural crossover they get used for the same dishes, and people often don't realise the recipe they're working from was talking about something else.

The difference is in the defaults, not the product. There are two distinct cuts of pork used for bacon: belly and loin. In the US, belly is the default ‘bacon’, and to get bacon made from pork loin you need to look for ‘Canadian bacon’ (but that will have the fat all trimmed off) or ‘Irish bacon’, or you might find ‘back bacon’ in a butcher or deli counter. In the UK the default ‘bacon’ is back bacon, made from the loin. If you want belly meat you need to look for ‘streaky bacon’.

Weirdly I think this is a case where US FDA regulations are oddly strict about what can be sold as ‘bacon’ and how it has to be packaged (those weird little fat windows in the cardboard) which prevents back bacon being offered as a normal product.

Re: Why jalapeño peppers are less spicy (2023)

#185

Post by thaumasiotes »

paradox460 wrote: post #132

Being raised in New Mexico, I cannot stand jalapenos. They infect everything vaguely "mexican" themed, and have basically forced me to buy the mildest sauces and whatnot, only to have to add hatch peppers to bring them up to a suitable level of spice. And even then, with the more mild jalapenos we have now, you'll find them in reformulations of mild sauces, and so on a single taste I get that "hot screen door/cat vom…

> I miss territorial house salsa, but Pace killed them over 20 years ago, so I should probably move on

I like El Pinto salsa.

As something of a counterpoint to another comment thread here, I find that their "medium" salsa is fairly hot and also richly flavored, while their "hot" salsa is hot but not flavored.

Re: Why jalapeño peppers are less spicy (2023)

#186

Post by iopq »

magicalhippo wrote: post #130
yashap wrote: post #98

Earlier quoted context omitted.

> Have you noticed that you're way more into brussels sprouts now than you were when you were a kid? If you're a GenX-er or a Millenial, that's because today's (delicious) sprouts aren't the same plant as the (gross) sprouts of yore. This is an oft-quoted fact, and it’s true that modern brussels sprouts are less bitter, but that’s far from the whole story. The popular preparation used to be boiling or steaming, and m…

> The popular preparation used to be boiling or steaming, and many people still find that gross with modern varieties. What is wrong with people? They're delicious, and an absolute must along side a reindeer roast with a creamed mushroom sauce, or similar. Steamed of course. Though I did learn the hard way as a kid that they can be rather harsh on the stomach when raw...

They are bitter, and not in a tasty way, but in an overpowering gross way

Re: Why jalapeño peppers are less spicy (2023)

#187

Post by waldothedog »

dheera wrote: post #66
jseliger wrote: post #24

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Less spicy is actually good. I prefer more flavorful chiles, with less spice. Mark Miller's conversation with Tyler Cowen is good on this subject: https://conversationswithtyler.com/episodes/mark-miller/ . Chiles are actually fruits and, combined judiciously, create a lot of complex flavors. Excess spiciness overwhelms the flavor. And people who want absurdly spicy peppers, can get them: ghost chiles, carolina reaper…

I really wish we could have a habanero that is 1/4 as spicy. I LOVE the flavor of habaneros but their spiciness prevents me from putting too much. That said on the flavor/spiciness scale a lot of the Chinese varieties are excellent. The chili peppers used in Sichuanese cuisine are actually not that spicy compared to habaneros or Thai chilis, which allows it to be possible to dump a bag full into a dish and it gives i…

Check out the habanada, can’t say it’s perfect, but it is a habanero bred for flavor and low/no heat

Re: Why jalapeño peppers are less spicy (2023)

#189

Post by thaumasiotes »

kylecazar wrote: post #173
ricardobeat wrote: post #82

Earlier quoted context omitted.

It’s not weird, they are completely related, as the article explains. Mass production requires trade-offs for consistency.

Right. But the premise of the article is that there is unmet demand in the fresh jalapeño market for a high-heat pepper. Sure, for cooking and processed foods a consistent pepper makes sense. But why are there not peppers being produced for their heat to fit this demand, like we do with other crops. It's why we use less chemicals for human corn than we do feed corn, because it affects the taste. Can't we do the same…

> But the premise of the article is that there is unmet demand in the fresh jalapeño market for a high-heat pepper.

That wouldn't really be related to a surge in demand for heat. Jalapeños bring a distinctive flavor that other chiles do not possess; I avoid them like the plague.

But I like normal chiles! I go through large quantities of Thai peppers.

For there to be a lot of unmet demand for high-heat jalapeños, you'd need to demonstrate that the people who want heat and the people who want jalapeños have significant overlap.

Re: Why jalapeño peppers are less spicy (2023)

#190

Post by thaumasiotes »

stevage wrote: post #150
dekhn wrote: post #41

Earlier quoted context omitted.

You mean, like this? https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Luther_Burbank#Classical_plant... and https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Luther_Burbank#Intraspecific_b... ? Are you talking about specifically using "breed" (noun) to refer to a cultivar, or "breed" (verb) to refer to the process by which we obtain new cultivars/ Either way, the term is used colloquially throughout the US (and probably more) to refer to the industrial pr…

The noun. Mostly I hear variety and cultivar.

You also see "varietal".

But all of the words are synonymous with each other, so it's not clear why people strive for exotic terminology.

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