Existing comment:
Chiles:
People have been enjoying the spicy taste of chile peppers for thousands of years -- but until 500 years ago, only in the Americas. First domesticated in the Americas at least 6,000 years ago, Capsicum peppers were carried far and wide and bred into countless varieties. People in what is now Mexico used chiles in everything from tomales to chocolate drinks to candy for children.
... chiles today
Asian... Or American?
It's hard to even imagine Chinese, Indian, Thai or other Asian foods without spicy hot peppers. But until Capsicum peppers first reached Asia from the Americas about 500 years ago, Asian foods lacked their characteristic heat -- though they had many other spices. |