The article seems to ignore the fact that people eat what grows locally. So, India grows a lot of spices, hence the food has those as ingredients. Norway doesn’t, so food is bland. That’s my theory anyway..
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Do Colder or Warmer Places Eat More Spicy or Bland Food?
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Re: Do Colder or Warmer Places Eat More Spicy or Bland Food?
#22The article seems to ignore the fact that people eat what grows locally. So, India grows a lot of spices, hence the food has those as ingredients. Norway doesn’t, so food is bland. That’s my theory anyway..
It also ignores things like shifts in culture, such as some European aristocracies deciding that food with lots of “spices” (herbs and such) was a “vulgar” thing commoners did, as a method of signaling their class, which gradually effected commoner behavior.
Re: Do Colder or Warmer Places Eat More Spicy or Bland Food?
#23>North USA
>South USA
This isn't a thing, and reminds me how 'steamed hams' is also a regional food. They're making up stuff and going along with whatever just to get clicks.
Original paper: There is little evidence that spicy food in hot countries is an adaptation to reducing infection risk
Original paper's conclusion: ...not explained by temperature and that spice use cannot be accounted for by diversity of cultures, plants, crops or naturally occurring spices. Patterns of spice use are not consistent with an infection-mitigation mechanism, but are part of a broader association between spice, health, and poverty.
Re: Do Colder or Warmer Places Eat More Spicy or Bland Food?
#24The explanation that I was working with was that in hotter climates food spoils faster so spiciness can slow or mask the process. The article says:
> The researchers suggest other explanations for why people in hot countries tend to eat spicier food. One possibility is that it’s because spices help preserve food in hot climates. Another is that people in hot countries have developed a taste for spicy food because it helps them cool down.
Re: Do Colder or Warmer Places Eat More Spicy or Bland Food?
#25Countries that had better preservation methods and safer ways of consuming meat didn't rely on spices.
Northern Asia, Europe
Re: Do Colder or Warmer Places Eat More Spicy or Bland Food?
#26This article seems to conflate "spice ingredients" with spicy ingredients. I would have a hard time considering how food from cuisines that use (e.g.) aniseed, caraway, cardamom or poppy seed could be considered "spicy food".
I had this distinction between “spicy” and “spiced” pointed out to me by a former colleague. In my experience, “spicy” is used when there is heat/capsaicin involved and “spice” is used when there is only flavor. I think it is a cause for confusion for many people. What is it like in other languages?
> What is it like in other languages?
Spiced / Spicy (pungent)
Spanish: Especiado / Picante
French: Épicé / Piquant
Swedish: Kryddad / Pikant
Re: Do Colder or Warmer Places Eat More Spicy or Bland Food?
#27The article seems to ignore the fact that people eat what grows locally. So, India grows a lot of spices, hence the food has those as ingredients. Norway doesn’t, so food is bland. That’s my theory anyway..
North of Europe used horseradish as the closer substitute.
Some notes:
1) The results depend on how we define spice. Many European countries use cheese to add interesting flavors to the food. Other parts of the world are more lactose intolerant and probably use spices where the west would simply use some type of cheese. A lot of berries dried or fresh could also play that role. Black currants could be easily included among spices for this purpose.
3) As a general rule, the poorest the diet, the more spices will include. If you basically eat rice each day, you will crave for something able to add a different taste each day
4) Places with more biodiversity have more choices. Small forests in Tropical areas have twenty times more tree species that entire countries in Europe so the number of possible sources of flavor is much higher.
Re: Do Colder or Warmer Places Eat More Spicy or Bland Food?
#28The article seems to ignore the fact that people eat what grows locally. So, India grows a lot of spices, hence the food has those as ingredients. Norway doesn’t, so food is bland. That’s my theory anyway..
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Re: Do Colder or Warmer Places Eat More Spicy or Bland Food?
#29This analysis is crap.
My family origin is Pahari farmers. In winters, my ancestral town's temperatures fall below freezing, yet Chili Powder from our region is a staple in most North Indian cooking (Kashmiri Mirch grown in JK and Himachal).
That Punjab and Mughlai trendline can be attributed to that reason - Kashmiri Mirch is a staple in both styles of cooking now, but if you look at "pind style" cooking, it's way less spicy. A traditional Kadhi, Saag, or Choley isn't going to be spicy but might have 1 Kashmiri Mirch added as a garnish.
Peppers only came to our portion of the Himalayas in the 18th and 19th century (hence why Bell Peppers are called "Shimla Mirch" - it was brought by the Brits), but became a popular commodity to sell due to high margins and easy to grow in small plots, which is important in JK and Himachal as land reform laws capped agricultural plots to 3 acres at most.
Also treating "South Indian" as a single cuisine group is a travesty.
Re: Do Colder or Warmer Places Eat More Spicy or Bland Food?
#30The article seems to ignore the fact that people eat what grows locally. So, India grows a lot of spices, hence the food has those as ingredients. Norway doesn’t, so food is bland. That’s my theory anyway..
North of Europe used horseradish as the closer substitute. Some notes: 1) The results depend on how we define spice. Many European countries use cheese to add interesting flavors to the food. Other parts of the world are more lactose intolerant and probably use spices where the west would simply use some type of cheese. A lot of berries dried or fresh could also play that role. Black currants could be easily included…
> The results depend on how we define spice.
I thought this was well-defined. Herbs & spices come from plants. An herb is the leaf of the plant, and a spice is any non-leaf part of the plant.
Am I mistaken?