Which countries eat the spiciest food? I think of India, China and Mexico. But there are a few more: Sri Lanka, Thailand, Tunisia, Malaysia, Ethiopia, Bhutan and Jamaica. Most countries with the spiciest food have a hot climate and spicy food helps to cool their bodies down through perspiration. Apart from body cooling properties, spicy food spoils less than plain food.
Chili peppers started in the Americas in 7500 BC and can be traced to northeastern Mexico 6,000 years ago. Christopher Columbus encountered the chili pepper and brought it back to Europe. Its medicinal effects were of significance then. It spread 'like wildfire across the European, Asian and African continents in less than 50 years between 1498 and 1549'.
It is interesting to me that Jamaica has significant Scotch bonnet pepper production. The Scotch bonnet is also known as Jamaican Hot. It is named for its shape - it is supposed to resemble a tam o' shanter hat. It has other names - Bahama Mama, the Bahamian, and the Martinique pepper. Scotch bonnets are compared to habanero peppers, with Scotch bonnets considered to have a sweeter flavour and stouter shape. It gives jerk dishes (pork/chicken) and other Caribbean dishes their unique flavour.
In the world production chart, Jamaica doesn't even show up. It is China with 16 million tons, then Mexica with 2 million tons of production. That's green chilies production. That's interesting that China is at the top of production. It wasn't until the 15th century with European trade that China received the chili pepper. What a testament to Chinese creativity and imagination that chili peppers were incorporated into their cuisine and food production with such enthusiasm.
Here's another image from California's Pacific coast - this looks like wild Alliums growing at the cliff's edge.
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