[0 - 1] - I thought about making this episode all about the foods
[1 - 3] that inadvertently hurt you while you're eating them,
[3 - 5] but it doesn't matter, 'cause they're so delicious.
[5 - 7] I'm talking about Magma hot cheese pizza
[7 - 8] that burns the roof of your mouth,
[8 - 10] powdered, salt-covered sunflower seeds
[10 - 12] that leave your lips all shriveled and raw,
[12 - 14] caramels that pull out dental work,
[14 - 15] and light bulbs that...
[15 - 17] Please, please, please don't eat light bulbs.
[17 - 18] But then I remembered,
[18 - 21] there are way more interesting painful foods out there
[21 - 24] that use a host of clever chemistry to make us feel.
[24 - 26] So today, let's catch some feels.
[29 - 30] We've all been there.
[30 - 32] You go in for that first sip of tea or coffee,
[32 - 33] and you forget that it's freshly brewed
[34 - 35] and hovering just below the boiling point.
[35 - 38] It burns, it hurts, it ruins your tongue for a day or two.
[38 - 40] When you feel that pain on your tongue,
[40 - 43] it's all thanks to a special receptor called TRPV1,
[43 - 44] which is an acronym
[44 - 47] for the receptor for painful vibrations number one.
[47 - 49] One of the wildest things about the plant kingdom,
[49 - 50] in my humble opinion,
[50 - 52] is that a bunch of different plants
[52 - 54] have figured out how to trigger TRPV1
[54 - 56] in the same way as that hot cup of coffee.
[56 - 58] This magic show is called chemesthesis,
[58 - 61] the chemical stimulation of tactile nerves.
[61 - 63] As you know from watching every minute of this program
[63 - 64] over the years,
[64 - 66] we've talked about some of these special edible plants.
[66 - 68] When most of us think of spicy foods,
[68 - 69] we think about chilies.
[69 - 71] No, not that Chili's!
[71 - 73] Is that what most of you think about?
[73 - 74] The pain that we feel from chilies
[74 - 77] comes primarily from the chemical substance, capsaicin,
[77 - 78] which is one of the hottest members
[78 - 79] of the capsaicinoid family.
[80 - 84] Capsaicin fits snugly into TRPV1 and provides lots of pain.
[84 - 86] The two keys to working with chilies in the kitchen
[86 - 88] is to understand where in the fruit the capsaicin lives,
[88 - 92] and how much capsaicin is in that particular type of chili.
[92 - 93] So where does it live?
[93 - 94] Do you remember this little experiment?
[94 - 98] We separated the flesh, ribs, and seeds from 40 jalapenos
[98 - 100] and sent them to an independent lab for capsaicin analysis.
[100 - 103] On average, there were five milligrams of capsaicin
[103 - 104] per kilo of flesh,
[104 - 107] 73 milligrams per kilo in the seeds,
[107 - 110] and 512 milligrams per kilo in the ribs.
[110 - 111] That's right, the heat in chilies
[111 - 113] is found primarily in the ribs.
[113 - 114] Now, it's true that the seeds are spicy,
[115 - 116] but that's entirely by association.
[116 - 119] They sit on the white ribs, and they pick up capsaicin.
[119 - 121] If you want, say, big jalapeno flavor
[121 - 122] but with very little heat,
[122 - 124] be sure to remove both the ribs and the seeds.
[124 - 126] Alternatively, you could just eat the ribs
[126 - 127] and feel the burn.
[127 - 129] And if you want to know how spicy a particular chili is,
[129 - 132] you wanna know where it ranks on the Scoville scale.
[132 - 134] Here's a quick rundown on some common chilies.
[134 - 136] That would be bell peppers, Cubanelles,
[136 - 139] poblanos, Anaheims, cherries, jalapenos, Fresnos,
[139 - 143] Serranos, bird chilies, habaneros, and Scotch bonnets.
[143 - 145] Those numbers that were popping up on the screen
[145 - 146] are Scoville heat units,
[146 - 149] the reflection of the spiciness of the chili.
[149 - 151] and the bigger the number, the bigger the burn.
[151 - 152] And if you wanna start on a batch
[152 - 154] of Fresno chili-carrot hot sauce,
[154 - 156] which, trust me, you do,
[156 - 158] check out the link below this video.
[158 - 159] And hey, while you're there,
[159 - 162] hit the Like button, hit Subscribe, get wild.
[162 - 165] Ginger is also a proud member of the chemesthetics club,
[165 - 168] offering up a wonderful array of painful experiences,
[168 - 171] depending on whether the ginger is raw, cooked, or dried.
[171 - 173] So let's check them out.
[173 - 174] The compound in fresh ginger
[174 - 176] that triggers the TRPV1 receptor
[176 - 177] is called gingerol.
[177 - 179] It fits into the receptor,
[179 - 181] but not nearly as well as capsaicin,
[181 - 184] and for that reason, we experience it as much less spicy.
[184 - 185] But that's not the whole story.
[185 - 187] When we dry ginger to make the dry spice we use
[187 - 189] in spice cake and cookies,
[189 - 191] gingerol loses a molecule of water
[191 - 194] and turns into another compound, called shogaol.
[194 - 197] Shogaol is a closer match to capsaicin than gingerol.
[197 - 198] It fits into the receptor better,
[198 - 200] and so we experience it as spicier.
[200 - 202] We can also go in the other direction.
[202 - 204] If we cook ginger, like we do in a stir fry,
[204 - 208] we break down some of the gingerol into another compound, called zingerone.
[208 - 209] You gotta love these names.
[209 - 211] It fits poorly into the receptor,
[211 - 213] and so we experience it as less spicy
[213 - 215] than either fresh or dry ginger.
[215 - 217] Okay, so let's put all of these in order
[217 - 219] from spiciest to least spicy,
[219 - 220] along with their chemical structure.
[220 - 222] That would be capsaicin, found in chilies,
[222 - 224] shogaol, found in dry ginger,
[224 - 226] gingerol, found in fresh ginger,
[226 - 228] and finally, zingerone, found in cooked ginger.
[228 - 230] Here's the really cool bit.
[230 - 232] The closer the chemical structure is to capsaicin,
[232 - 233] that strong fit,
[233 - 236] the spicier the ginger experience.
[236 - 237] You know what, watching that reminds me
[237 - 238] that ginger is such a show-off.
[238 - 242] Three different kinds of pain? Seriously? (coughs) Overachiever!
[242 - 244] But ginger better watch its back,
[244 - 247] because there's competition coming from all over the place,
[247 - 249] in some pretty unlikely foods.
[249 - 251] Take extra virgin olive oil, for example.
[251 - 253] Yes, it's obviously rich, because it's a pure fat,
[253 - 255] and yes, it can display an incredible range
[255 - 256] of flavor and aroma,
[256 - 260] from nutty and buttery to grassy and artichokey.
[260 - 261] But at the end of the day,
[261 - 263] extra virgin olive oil is also spicy.
[263 - 264] Interestingly, for olive oil,
[264 - 267] the burn is localized completely in the back of the throat,
[267 - 270] because that's where the oleocanthal receptors are located.
[270 - 272] And it turns out, in the olive oil biz,
[272 - 273] folks talk about a one-cough, two-cough,
[273 - 277] or even a three-cough olive oil. (coughs)
[279 - 284] Sorry, it looks cool, and I wanted to try it again.
[284 - 287] If you don't regularly drink olive oil, weirdo,
[287 - 289] it's highly likely that you're still drinking the burn.
[289 - 292] And I'm not talking about a spicy Bloody Mary,
[292 - 293] though stay tuned,
[293 - 295] because I might be talking about a spicy Bloody Mary,
[295 - 299] I'm talking about bubbles, carbonation, spicy water.
[299 - 302] Carbonated beverages like beer, soda water, and champagne
[302 - 304] are packed with dissolved CO2.
[304 - 307] They contain way more CO2 than water can comfortably hold.
[307 - 310] When that CO2 comes out of solution in your mouth,
[310 - 312] something very special happens.
[312 - 313] Take a sip of soda water,
[313 - 315] and the carbon dioxide dissolved in the water
[315 - 317] seeps into the cells on our tongues,
[317 - 320] triggering another nerve receptor, called TRPA1.
[320 - 323] You feel the sharp bite of carbonation.
[323 - 326] It is both a feeling and a taste. How cool is that?
[326 - 329] Now, we all know that soda water is a perfect beverage,
[329 - 331] it needs no further adornment.
[331 - 333] But if you were to enjoy, say, a whiskey soda,
[333 - 335] you wouldn't just be getting tipsy,
[335 - 337] you would actually be doubling down on the pain.
[337 - 339] That's right, that ethyl alcohol
[339 - 340] triggers our good old friend,
[340 - 347] TRPV1 (horn sound). (horn sound)
[347 - 348] So at this point, you're probably thinking,
[348 - 350] "Is there anything that doesn't cause pain?"
[350 - 351] And the answer is no.
[351 - 351] It's lightning round.
[351 - 353] Black pepper has a compound called piperine,
[353 - 355] it's related to gingerol and capsaicin, that's pain.
[355 - 356] Raw garlic has allicin,
[356 - 359] you remember from that episode, right? That's pain.
[359 - 361] Mustard seed and wasabi, allyl isothiocyanate does the job.
[361 - 364] Cinnamon, cinnamaldehyde makes your fireballs spicy.
[364 - 368] Light bulbs, seriously, do not eat light bulbs.
[368 - 370] The fascinating bit about all of this, of course,
[370 - 372] is that this is pain that we enjoy.
[372 - 374] These foods trigger our adrenaline response,
[374 - 375] often make us sweat,
[375 - 377] and when paired with really pleasurable ingredients
[377 - 378] like sugars and fats,
[378 - 380] add loads of complexity.
[380 - 383] One of the most delicious and ingenious examples
[383 - 385] of counterbalancing chilies' fiery heat
[385 - 388] can be found in Sichuan's mala, or numbing hot flavor,
[388 - 390] which uses Sichuan peppercorns.
[390 - 392] They, too, trigger TRPV1,
[392 - 395] thanks to a compound called hydroxy alpha sanshool,
[395 - 397] which offers a tingling, numbing sensation,
[397 - 398] as well as being spicy.
[398 - 400] One of my favorite spicy ingredients
[400 - 403] that we haven't even talked about yet, is horshradish,
[403 - 407] horseradis, horseradish, horseradish,
[407 - 410] which is a word I sometimes have a hard time saying.
[410 - 412] And that is what I wanna cook with today,
[412 - 413] so let's go to the kitchen.
[415 - 417] I'm gonna make prepared horseradish that beat the pants off
[417 - 419] of anything that you can buy at the store,
[419 - 421] and it keeps in the fridge for weeks.
[421 - 423] We process peeled, chopped horseradish with warm water
[423 - 425] and a little bit of distilled vinegar, in a blender,
[425 - 427] until it's as fine as we can get it,
[427 - 428] which will take about a minute.
[428 - 430] Then we let the mixture sit in the blender for 10 minutes.
[430 - 431] Finally, we add some salt
[431 - 433] and an additional four teaspoons of vinegar,
[433 - 435] and blend until combined.
[435 - 440] What? Why this crazy process? Science, baby.
[440 - 441] When you break the cell walls of horseradish,
[441 - 443] they release an enzyme called myrosinase.
[443 - 445] Now, that reacts with another compound
[445 - 448] to create a pungent chemical, allyl isothiocyanate.
[448 - 450] More isothiocyanate will form
[450 - 452] if the mixture is slightly acidic,
[452 - 453] hence the small addition of vinegar
[453 - 454] at the beginning of the process.
[454 - 456] Like most chemical reactions,
[456 - 458] this process is hastened by heat, hence the warm water.
[458 - 461] The 10 minute rest, that allows the pungency to build.
[461 - 464] And the final addition of vinegar stabilizes the punch
[464 - 467] so it is retained over time. Yes!
[467 - 469] Once you've made the prepared horsey,
[469 - 471] you are moments away from a gorgeous Bloody Mary.
[471 - 473] It's wonderful stirred into mashed potatoes,
[473 - 475] and it really shines in deviled eggs.
[475 - 477] Please do all of those things,
[477 - 479] but also please combine it
[479 - 480] with three other painful ingredients
[480 - 482] for this incredible cream sauce.
[482 - 484] We've got minced raw garlic, Dijon mustard,
[484 - 488] heavy cream, sour cream, our prepared horseradish,
[488 - 490] a little bit of sugar, and salt and pepper.
[490 - 493] This sauce is roast beef's best friend, but you know what?
[493 - 495] Salmon has a pretty big crush on it, too.
[495 - 496] We'll take a slice of German rye,
[496 - 498] a big old shmear of our sauce,
[498 - 500] a few slices of smoked salmon,
[500 - 503] and maybe we'll go a little wild with some chives. Oh, yeah!
[503 - 506] This is definitely, without a doubt,
[506 - 511] one of one million delicious ways to eat painful foods.
[515 - 516] Well, that was fun, wasn't it?
[516 - 518] I wanna make a huge shout out
[518 - 522] to Cook's Illustrated senior science research editor, Paul Adams,
[522 - 523] for his help on this one.
[523 - 524] There's a link to his story
[524 - 526] about all things chemesthetic below.
[526 - 527] You have to check it out.
[527 - 529] If you wanna learn more about mala
[529 - 531] and the gorgeous food of Sichuan,
[531 - 533] I highly recommend Fuchsia Dunlop's update
[533 - 534] to her book, "Land of Plenty".
[534 - 536] It is called "The Food of Sichuan",
[536 - 537] and it is an indispensable book.
[537 - 538] It's really beautiful,
[538 - 539] and you're gonna learn so much.
[540 - 540] Check this out.
[540 - 542] Of course, I have links
[542 - 544] to all of the recipes from this show, below,
[544 - 546] so you can click, click, click, and cook, cook, cook.
[546 - 547] Thank you all for hanging out
[547 - 549] and catching some feels with me today.
[549 - 550] I will see you next time.