I am glad you are enjoying the taste of the words here!

Re–hot foods–some people are not able to eat spicy foods. In my case, I have always enjoyed highly flavored foods–I teethed on scallions, for example–but intense chile flavors I have worked up to over time. I should probably write a blog entry about how that happened–because it is a really funny story.

What I am saying is this–the taste for chiles is not inborn–everyone works up to it gradually. There is no sense in leaping into a dish that is up to my heat tolerance if you haven’t done the same program of desensitization to chiles. For you, if I was cooking the dish I posted, I would use 1/2 to 1 Thai chili for the entire recipe. Just enough to give you a little tingle–not a jolt of the flavor and heat.

I think my experience of being a personal chef and cooking for people from other countries, all of whom loved highly flavored foods, but who had different chile heat tolerances (and developing Zak’s tolerance gradually) has helped me to understand how to present chiles to people of varying ability to eat them.

I really like your writing a lot–it’s so immediate. I’m right there, eating and tasting things!! It’s fun, and very satisfying. Although, irl, hot things distress my stomach here I can be a virtual foodie without fear.

Thanks, Judith

If there is anything I can send you from out this way, just let me know!

BTW, the photocopy is on its way. Enjoy!