[Sca-cooks] capsicums

[Sue Clemenger]

I'm a friend to heat-intolerant and spicy-intolerant, and even
bell-pepper-but-not-other-capsicum types.  They all complain.  Me, I don't
mind it, because I like capsicums, although, being a Yankee lady of
refinement <weg>, I don't partake of acknowledged gut-bomb chilies, etc.,
and I order from the middle of the menu at Thai restaurants.
I have noticed that there is a fair amount of red bell pepper making its
presence known in various restaurant and frozen dishes, but only rarely
would I think of them as "spicy."  It adds a bit of color and crunch, but
not much more than that.  I don't know about restaurant foods or frozen
foods from other countries--when I was in the UK and in Ireland in 2002, I
don't remember anything like that.  I do remember a really weird tunafish
sandwich in London, and bizarre baked potato toppings in a lot of places,
and the best curry EVER in Dublin, and getting to eat real Wensleydale
cheese, but I don't know how ubiquitous capsicums or spicy seasonings are,
outside the USA.  I saw something, within the last year or so, about spice
"fashions," and the author was pointing out that with the aging taste buds
of the baby boomers, favorite flavors are becoming more intense.  So maybe
that's part of it.  Also, since I partake of minor to moderate amounts of
most spices, I'm wondering if what is, to most of us, just a regular amount
of flavoring might not be less, uhm, tolerable for those who do not partake.
I have to take the red chili paste quotient in my chicken peanut curry down
by several fold to be able to serve it at work, where I have a few friends
and coworkers who are on the "parsley is adventurous" side of things.  And I
don't make it super-hot (the heartburn is *evyl* if I do).
People with food issues, though, shouldn't have to guess that a dish will or
will not contain a given ingredient, so y'all got my sympathy, and I'm glad
you had good wait staff.
--Maire

----- Original Message -----
From: "Kathleen A Roberts" <karobert at unm.edu>
To: "Cooks within the SCA" <sca-cooks at lists.ansteorra.org>
Sent: Monday, March 05, 2007 1:42 PM
Subject: Re: [Sca-cooks] capsicums


> On Mon, 5 Mar 2007 14:38:42 -0600
>   "Marcha" <nigsdaughter at satx.rr.com> wrote:
> > I totally agree about American restaurant food and I
> >will include a lot of the recipes on the Food Channel.
>
> i blame it on emeril.  he will take any dish and start
> with his special seasoning.  it seems that it gets to the
> point the with the cajun underbase, it isn't italian,
> hungarian, german or french any more!
>
> cailte
> friend to many pepper intolerant people
> ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
> "Being Irish, he had an abiding sense of tragedy which
> sustained him through temporary periods of joy."
> W. B. Yeats
> ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
> Kathleen Roberts
> Coordinator of Freshman Admissions
> University of New Mexico
> Albuquerque, NM
> 505-925-9590
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