The Surprising Reason We Eat Spicy Food

Check out Nourish from PBS! / pbsnourish
SUBSCRIBE to It's Okay To Be Smart! ►► bit.ly/iotbs_sub
↓↓↓ More info and sources below ↓↓↓
People who live near the equator use more spices per recipe than people who live far from the equator. But that isn't for the reason you think. Spices and other plant ingredients have special powers that make them a truly magical superfood!
REFERENCES:
Billing, J., & Sherman, P. W. (1998). Antimicrobial functions of spices: why some like it hot. The Quarterly review of biology, 73(1), 3-49.
Juneja, V. K., Dwivedi, H. P., & Yan, X. (2012). Novel natural food antimicrobials. Annual review of food science and technology, 3, 381-403.
Sherman, P. W., & Billing, J. (1999). Darwinian gastronomy: why we use spices: spices taste good because they are good for us. BioScience, 49(6), 453-463.
Li, Z., Henning, S. M., Zhang, Y., Zerlin, A., Li, L., Gao, K., ... & Heber, D. (2010). Antioxidant-rich spice added to hamburger meat during cooking results in reduced meat, plasma, and urine malondialdehyde concentrations-. The American journal of clinical nutrition, 91(5), 1180-1184.
-----------
FOLLOW US:
Twitter: @DrJoeHanson @okaytobesmart
Instagram: @DrJoeHanson
Merch: store.dftba.co...
Facebook: / itsokaytobesmart
BOOKS WE’VE FEATURED:
/ smart-books
-----------
It’s Okay To Be Smart is hosted by Joe Hanson, Ph.D.
Director: Joe Nicolosi
Writer: Sarah Keartes
Creative Director: David Schulte
Editor/animator: Derek Borsheim
Producers: Stephanie Noone and Amanda Fox
Produced by PBS Digital Studios
Music via APM
Stock images from Shutterstock www.shutterstoc...

[@besmart]

How do you spice food where you’re from? Let me know in the comments! PS- one surefire ingredient for a successful recipe is subscribing and clicking the bell to turn on notifications.

[@quinius173]

Great video, Joe!

[@vari1535]

It's Okay To Be Smart using turmeric and chili peppers from the backyard and yeah I already subbed and noti’ed :)

[@FactsInto]

nice vid bro i was wondering do you play any online game because if you have some time we can play together

[@SmartinatorPlus]

Hey spice loving smart guy

[@fingernailclipper2152]

Thanks for that food for thought ;)

[@yungstallion2201]

Chilli: Generates spice to draw away animals Human:Eat chilli anyway Chilli: Am I a joke to you?

[@BleedForTheWorld]

Yis.

[@sharlharmakhis280]

Human: Oh it hurts so good! ~propagates chilis all over the world~ Chili: Huh... sweet.

[@CharDhue]

Becouse we are M on the inside

[@anobodypassingby8700]

Yes because I’m Asian

[@ferociousmaliciousghost]

@@CharDhue Best comment I've seen.

[@Shnarfbird]

Plants: Don't eat me, I taste angry Humans: w/e sign me up fam

[@alexsmith1207]

@Struffle monst cinnamon is little bit of spicy or should I say micro spicy

[@jooot_6850]

we’re all just masochists..

[@Thatbasedcat]

Didn't really care for spicy food until I started cooking. When you are able to add your own spices, you start to appreciate the flavors more. After a while, I started to order spicy dishes when I ate out.

[@lorenrenee1]

Cali AirmanB17 I noticed the same thing.

[@Daniel-rw9um]

same

[@Rk76742]

Unfortunately for many spicy equals more chilli. It's like chemistry, to get certain flavor you have to be specific, you can't just throw bunch of spices and assume it will taste good.

[@diablo.the.cheater]

@@Rk76742 What? Tell that to me, i just add random spices and flavors to my food, in random quantities each time and which one i use is also random. That way it is more interesting, one day i have extra hot paella, the next i have sweet paella and the other i have umami paella. And yes i only eat paella, it has all the human body needs.

[@sydhenderson6753]

@@Rk76742 Nowadays I add pepper blends. Chili doesn't add anything but hotness. Peppercorns add flavor as well.

[@meetshah4432]

In India, every house has an entire cupboard dedicated to the storage of spices. There are at least 10-15 spices in every house.

[@Sciencedoneright]

In my house we have like 40

[@Sciencedoneright]

@@NehaSharma-wh1lr LMAO

[@arunramesh8133]

Species? Wow, I didn't know that each Indian house was like a mini-zoo.

[@Sciencedoneright]

@@arunramesh8133 lmao

[@Sciencedoneright]

@@arunramesh8133 he meant species of spices

[@TheDarkever]

Spicy substances are also used by plants to better spread their seeds. In addition to fighting bacteria, fungi, and insects, spicy substances like capsaicin are meant to keep away rodents and mammals, because they would be poor vehicles for seed spreading. But not birds!!! In fact, most birds are completely insensible to spicy seeds! They can freely eat the fruits and then poop the seeds kilometers away, helping the plant to colonize new areas.

[@chelelee6321]

Quite interesting. Thank you.

[@bobbiusshadow6985]

Spicy =/= hot .. Don't use the term 'spicy' when you mean 'hot'. I put a lot of spices in my spaghetti sauce (oregano, basil, etc), no hot chilli pepper of any kind. My sauce is really spicy, but has no hotness .. Get it? *Funny how some people counter-argue without even fact-checking first. "Spice (spicy)" is a very broad term, it's any part of any plant used to add flavor, including fine herbs .. and yeah, it includes chilies and peppers. Heck, cinnamon is a spice, which is a tree bark Personally, I prefer the term used in French, Spanish, Italian, etc: piquant (French), picante (Spanish), piccante (Italian), meaning "stingy", but has only one specific meaning when it's used to talk about food: This Carolina Reaper chili pepper is so -spicy-hot- STINGY.. No ambiguity Copy/pasted: spice (n.) c. 1200, "vegetable substance aromatic or pungent to the taste added to food or drink to enhance the flavor," also "a spice used as a medication or an alchemical ingredient," from Anglo-French spece, Old French espice (Modern French épice), from Late Latin species (plural) "spices, goods, wares," in classical Latin "kind, sort" (see species, which is a doublet). From c. 1300 as "an aromatic spice," also "spices as commodities;" from early 14c. as "a spice-bearing plant." Of odors or perfumes by 1560s. The figurative sense of "attractive or enjoyable variation" is from 13c.; that of "slight touch or trace of something" is recorded from 1530s. The meaning "specimen, sample" is from 1790. Early druggists recognized four "types" of spices: saffron, clove, cinnamon, nutmeg. [...]

[@AshrafAnam]

Didn't stop us humans though

[@imveryangryitsnotbutter]

@@AshrafAnam And look how far we managed to spread its seeds. Mission accomplished.

[@AshrafAnam]

@@imveryangryitsnotbutter lol

[@MacStoker]

he who controls the spice controls the universe

[@wynnschoen6701]

i came here looking for this

[@Felhek]

tacsmoker Arrakis

[@dantess2693]

All hail our oily lord

[@GS42SCHOPAWE]

tacsmoker The Fremen dwell in the caves of Arakeen

[@yixinkua936]

And also the economy of the spice trade (still salty from colonisation)

[@goddamnpiero6153]

Since he became father the amount of puns skyrocketed, but I guess it's an explainable condition. Stay curious.

[@besmart]

NO APOLOGIES NO MERCY

[@ScootrRichards]

Felace Gianpiero - it's just dadjokeitis in its early stages.

[@thomasraahauge5231]

Aquarium: The R&D phase of dad jokes . . .

[@albevanhanoy]

But... What is the spiciest food in the world? And how spicy can food get? **Vsauce music starts**

[@michaelolafitness9491]

😂

[@jangofett4547]

good old Vsauce

[@DrgonzKillYou]

hey vsauce, micheal here..

[@michaelolafitness9491]

Abnormal Potato hey what are the odds that’s my name 😂

[@footylad6468]

Albe Van Hanoy its a ghost pepper

[@premmeyyappan1117]

This channel: “How do you spice food where you’re from?” Me, an Indian: “Yes.”

[@rohitwankhede9153]

Me too

[@HussainAli-rz2gv]

Ohh yup

[@redrosereindeer]

Same lol

[@omniscientgoat]

Am from pakistan but same.

[@mrinalhi]

OHHH YEAH

[@NavaneethChowhan]

"We don't use spices in our food. We eat spices as food." - Sincerely from an Indian 😂😂😂 There's no dish in India without spices... Lol. Many countries colonized us for the spices.

[@evanorizam5388]

True

[@mehhhhh677]

Trueeee

[@sathwikreddymuthyala5192]

People of Telangana and Andhrapradhesh eat the most spiciest foods

[@NavaneethChowhan]

@@sathwikreddymuthyala5192 Well, I'm from Telangana 😊

[@sathwikreddymuthyala5192]

@@NavaneethChowhan ,I am from Rangareddy district, u?

[@SuicideBunny6]

Some theories point to spice use in hot climates to increase perspiration and cool the body by e... Ooohh okay.

[@Shadow81989]

It's not wrong though - some theories do point to that. Also spices (as in hot food that makes you sweat, not herbs in general) increase the cardiovascular activity, so you are less sleepy from the heat.

[@Hangman11]

Someone had to do the obvious joke

[@despairgaming6669]

Only a handful of ghost chillies can make me sweat...

[@Exayevie]

I just came down here to make sure this was the top comment

[@Monochromicornicopia]

I dont get it

[@almostideal1306]

I think you got a little caraway'd by those puns.

[@vari1535]

almostideal nah I love puns

[@liamvf1069]

Those puns hurt

[@sarasmr4278]

I can't believe he waited to use them that whole thyme.

[@diceman199]

yeah....he was really peppering us with them for a minute there

[@SofaKingShit]

that joke was very funny and oregano'l

[@na_xy]

SPOILER-ALERT Why do we eat spicy food? Because spicy food can't eat us

[@what8305]

or can it?

[@imveryangryitsnotbutter]

Try eating enough spice to corrode your stomach lining, and you'll see that that isn't the case.

[@imAwareOfYourAddress]

navin xy That's like saying we don't eat lava because it can't eat us.

[@pizzapowa7468]

but lava does eat us...

[@ylette]

In Soviet Russia, food eat YOU.

[@parktamaroon226]

3:38 «… in hot climates to increase perspiration …» You know what else increases perspiration? F’ing heat.

[@teemusid]

I'm not sure that I believe you. It sounds like you're using only anecdotal evidence. Is there any credible scientific studies that supports your 'heat and perspiration ' theory?

[@arrowsaurus7561]

teemusid idk if ur joking so I won’t say anything

[@legendarytat8278]

@@arrowsaurus7561 He is.

[@mksabourinable]

I can't handle spice, but garlic? I load my food with it. If a recipe calls for one clove I'm putting a bulb. I also put garlic in EVERYTHING. Fun fact: garlic actually makes tuna melts taste super good!

[@magicj5576]

Kye Talks imma try the tuna melt with garlic

[@faemynnapiajoaquin2848]

me with onion

[@brendadang]

That's not really a fact and more of an opinion

[@meowmiao36]

I will eat just garlic by itself.

[@rishavsinha3376]

Garlic makes ya hornier

[@reng935]

"Hey, smart people!" Yes! Im not a disappointment!

[@OscarHanzely]

well at 11th delivered pun ... :-D

[@SimonClark]

That's a spicy meme

[@park24926]

First reply lol

[@skellaberry]

indeed

[@Dansambroplayz]

Lol

[@dungeontnt]

Not a fan fact 10 puns sacsaspholy made

[@jagadishgospat2548]

Simon.

[@fingernailclipper2152]

A new video from Its okay to be Smart “spicing” up my day! ;)

[@leonlawson2196]

Fingernail Clipper shite

[@yas6757]

Get out!!

[@cup_check_official]

watch the video to know the surprising effect of why do you like spiced up days

[@lunarmist8330]

Fingernail Clipper lollollollollollollol

[@dutcheroonie9561]

Fingernail Clipper Things are really 'heating' up here.

[@maxng7916]

"Those who control the spice, control the........... microbes?" ~~ Joe Hansen

[@akprice8242]

Was hoping you would do a Dune reference and you did not disappoint.

[@rania9534]

Whatever you do, don’t watch till the end of the video.

[@MrLunario]

That pun and gif opening literally killed me, please preserve my bodies with spices so future generations can know the dangers of puns.

[@dylanlunsford5749]

I love the sharing of food between cultures!!! It’s such a raw natural interaction to have that isn’t hindered by language!!

[@Rosaroja4]

It's a pretty interesting video, thanks! I am Mexican and in our cuisine, it's important to include chillies. Since we are children, we eat it and we continue doing in our whole life. Chillies are this favour that makes food and drinks taste delicious! (Que sepa rico) I can't imagine my life without eating chillies.

[@SmartinatorPlus]

What is a ghost peppers favorite Leonardo Dicaprio film? Catch me if you Cayenne.

[@Schradermusic]

I'm sure ghost peppers think that cayennes are ugly.... They are way hotter.

[@SmartinatorPlus]

Schrader haha yes

[@besmart]

👏👏👏

[@SmartinatorPlus]

It's Okay To Be Smart thanks

[@ranjeethmahankali3066]

the pepper seems to have a southern accent, you sure its not a carolina reaper ?

[@azizuladnan2957]

I thought it was about 'reason for eating spicy food' I actually looking forward for like, "Why do we still want to eat spicy food when they make our mouths and tongues feel like it's burning?". I love spicy food, I know that it will amke me sweat a bit. But I still want to eat it. Why is that? But, still an informative video, Joe :D

[@lare290]

It's masochism, probably.

[@janerickallado8881]

Perunavallankumous nah i like my food with a bit of kick thats why i spice my food

[@NinjaKittkatt]

The mouth and lips burning sensation is the best part! Different spices burn different parts. For example, personally I LOVE red pepper because it tingles the mouth, where as I don't like wasabi because it burns the back of my throat, or jalapenos because it burns my stomach. I was hoping he'd explain a bit more about why some people's spice tolerance is better than others. I'm pretty sure you can build a tolerance for spicy foods as well.

[@timobachmann5934]

Azizul Adnan The pain we feel on our tongue and lips while eating spicy food tells the body to pump more blood into these, which then leads to a richer taste. I also asked myself the question why we eat spicy / hot food, because "spicy" is no taste, but a feel of pain what made me curious. After eating very, very spicy food (Thailand) and getting a bite of the sweetest apple of my life I realized it was the "better taste" caused by the the higher blood flow in my tongue. Pretty amazing, you should try it yourself.

[@frankschneider6156]

For the same reason as to why pain tolerance or the tolerance towards other people's differing opinion varies quite drastically, because humans are individuals. Especially their brains ,where sensory input is processed vary significantly. Varying levels of neuron firing and receptors are likely to do the rest.

[@GoodDreamer748]

5:26 ~Desert appears, eyes glow blue with arcane spice energy~ "Those who control the spice..."

[@rogueflare4929]

When Joe said that one of his favourite dishes was Indian curry,You bet I've never been more proud to be an Indian for having one of my favourite KZbin creators acknowledge my country's culinary dishes cuz almost everyone else say that,"It's too spicy."

[@edithbannerman4]

@Hello there, how are you doing this blessed day?

[@TheWeekday2100]

I like curry but real Indian curry would definitely be too spicy

[@lakrids-pibe]

Black Pepper is the most underrated spice. Feshly ground pepper is awesome. Pasta alla carbonara is basicly just pasta with crispy brown bacon (guanciale ), eggs, grated cheese, and a truckload of ground black pepper. Try it!

[@jobla7124]

Underated? Its the basic spice in most western cooking along with salt ("technically a seasoning not a spice." I know)

[@Zacurafire]

Probably the most basic comment I've ever read. Black Pepper? Underrated? You mean the most used pepper in the Western cooking?

[@theramendutchman]

Guys, just because black pepper is used a lot doesn't mean people value it for what it is. Also, there are different kinds of black pepper, but that aside...

[@siddykay8434]

Thats the whitest comment I've read in a while. No. Please god no.

[@khr957]

You don't know the meaning of the word underrated it seems It's the spice at one time cost more than gold.

[@mzeeti23]

Nice Dune reference !

[@robinchesterfield42]

And I love that he did the cheesy glowing blue eyes from the '80s version, too. :)

[@Hokunin]

"Spice must flow" - House Ordos

[@Evyndarahl]

I actually watched it a few days ago... Yeah, I wanted to read the books first but couldn't find them in English in my country...

[@williamedwards8140]

Fear is the mind killer

[@benegesserit9838]

indeed

[@elkiness]

Love the puns! Reminds me of my father--who always used to say, ''Pun unintentional''--so we would notice it (and groan). Oh, those were the good ol' days! Thanks for your program...I'm always for grams--of spice in food. :-)

[@pcklop]

Fun fact I discovered recently: Since all peppers (genus capsicum) are endemic to the Americas, the cultures of the old world would have had no capsaicin in their food prior to contact with the Americas. Their pantries would have been limited to spices such as black pepper (native to Kerala) and ginger (native to Southeast Asia). Feel free to correct me if I’m wrong about any of the details here!

[@dhichicpop2531]

Yes. Atleast in the Indian subcontinent black pepper was used predominantly before chillies came from the Americas

[@eeshaan1426]

but isn't the ghost pepper native to northeast india?

[@ChrisF_1982]

@@dhichicpop2531 India was likely able to acquire Szechuan peppercorns, which is significantly spicier than black pepper.

[@savioblanc]

​@@eeshaan1426sort of. The Ghost Pepper as we know it today has its origins in Northeast India but it came about from a hybrid of two chili peppers from the Americas. It's a hybrid of a habanero and another chili pepper species that had spread across East Asia. Every single chili pepper comes from the Americas. They were spread globally by the Spanish and the Portuguese through their global trade and colonies and then local varieties developed across the world. The Ghost Pepper is one of those local varieties, hence its correct to say its origins are from India but the peppers that it came from aren't native to India.

[@detroit7543]

here in Indonesia, basic ingredients that are used in cookings are garlic, shallots, curly chilly, bird’s eye chilli, galangal, pepper, lime leaves and lemongrass. You can almost find them in any foods in here

[@theramendutchman]

I know, I'm part Indonesian and they actually DO know how to cook! I learned quite some from my Indonesian grandmother (only 1/4 Indo here, sadly) but I can't cook that for my housemates because they'll freaking burn.

[@CharDhue]

@@theramendutchman let them eat spicy food for a week and they will get addicted

[@SG-pc4sv]

Here in India we use incense sticks made out of lemon grass to kill mosquitoes.

[@Unknown17]

Oh Boy! This spice sure makes the DOG we just ate--that we tortured and beat to death so its meat would be more tender--absolutely delicious! We're absolutely gourmet chefs here in Indonesia!!

[@fuadzaroralarcon1436]

Wow I loved the Dune reference * O * at the end

[@erfianugrah]

Love the Dune reference.

[@drmether9150]

How many spices does my mum have in the kitchen cabinet? Mum: “Yes” 🇱🇰😉

[@xiaoshen194]

I knew u would atleat use the word 'Indian' in ur video... how come someone is teaching about spices and not discuss India as it produces 60% of spices around the world!!

[@zeaks6425]

Sir he only said Indian curry...

[@adityamuley87]

I agree with thr chinese man

[@heheheha9094]

@@zeaks6425 that's why he said "at least"

[@abigailfaith576]

I agree with the Chinese dude Fun fact: I’m indian

[@abigailfaith576]

Get Nae Nae'd ik

[@cathrineelisabethschyttebo5960]

Hey I'm Norwegian and here's the recipe for Fårikål: In a large pot layer chuncks of lamb or mutton (with bones it's important) and cabbage. Between each layer sprinkle some whole black pepper and all purpose flour ( the flour should cover everything with a thin layer). Pour water until it covers 3/4 of the pot put on a lid and let simmer for 3-4 hours or until the meat releases from the bones. Serve with boiled potatoes and keep salt available at the table. When it's cooking it will create a delicious bone broth that will flavour the cabbage so it's healthy and delicious. If you have left overs just keep in the fridge and re-heat, it's one of those dishes that gets even better the next day 🐏💚🐑

[@alexwansss]

4:15 Wow, Joe just demystified witchery with three sentences.

[@andrewsuryali8540]

The spice must flow

[@lukeland6741]

When I saw the Title I was like: *"BECAUSE FOOD IS TASTELESS >:("*

[@shanleyshoupe7873]

yeah lmao, cause boiled cabbage and meat is gross without anything else

[@kiewass]

@Ranajit Roy SELF PROMOTION!!!

[@kiewass]

I am REPORTING YOU

[@piyaltaru]

It's good to see somebody finally making a clear distinction between spicy and hot.

[@bagustesa]

*THE SPICE MUST FLOW* why nobody add this reference?

[@ESCObeato]

You beat me to it.

[@EbonyPope]

Dune... my favorite game when I was a teen.

[@amadysseus]

I did! I'm reading Frank Herbert's masterpieces rn, almost done with the first book and I'm waiting for Messiah to arrive at the bookstore huehue

[@amadysseus]

@@EbonyPope Game? Dude, it's a book series

[@EbonyPope]

@@amadysseus Yes but I was referencing the strategy game it's based on which I played when I was a teen.

[@iancornieles8001]

It's ok to be smart:why do we put spice on our food Me: *gets an ad on Gordon Ramsay's Masterclass*

[@TheScienceBiome]

I rate this video *1.5 million Scovilles!* Spicy!

[@justinmcclure8538]

"Those who control the spice, control the microbes " 😂 "The spicy has awakened! " 🖐

[@MarkWTK]

i'll be your curry, you'll be my rice

[@vk_xx0757]

天吉Mark worst pickup line even for me an asian

[@bigsadge]

Guess you didn't Pepper a good pun

[@DS-Pakaemon]

Unholy_Warrior 2066 Don't be a bone in boneless chicken

[@Ardenmoth]

天吉Mark Nice Psy reference

[@h4ll0w33npumk1n]

The spice: Extends life. Expands consciousness. Is vital to space travel.

[@emilielovesbooks1613]

I’m from Norway and I agree with the lack of spice in Norwegian food. I personally loooove spicy food. Loove Tandoori, spicy noodles, springrolls with sweet chilly. But not all Norwegian food is bland boild food with only salt and pepper.

[@HouseholdWheel]

"The spice must flow"

[@eamartig]

My grandma is %100 Norwegian and she doesn’t have any spices in her house- except an occasional salt and pepper. And even when she does have it is in her cupboard not on the table like most people do in America (where we live)

[@khan0491]

Bucket_head Yes, Norwegians dont eat spicy food. Almost every time any Norwegian here in Oslo tries Indian/Pakistani food, they almost die by how spicy the food is 😂😂😂

[@savioblanc]

The Central and Northern Europeans, along with Polynesians and those living on the British Isles seem to be the only Old World people groups on the planet that didn't incorporate chili pepper spice that packs heat into their daily diet, following their discovery in the New World. Every other old world humans, from Africa to the Middle East, India, East Asia and Southeast Asia, all went crazy for the chili pepper. Europeans were so against the heat of the peppers that they developed Capsicums/Bell Peppers, a variety of chili with pretty much no heat, to enjoy their peppers. Its only fairly recently where chili peppers are becoming sort of the norm in daily cuisines of those living in the British Isles.

[@jose23608]

Gosh!! I love this channel & John. I wish I could meet him, and work with him. It would be amazing to have something like this in Spanish, it’s a good way to bring people out to the light without being rude about their beliefs.

[@mikes333]

Amateur Witch: Oh, now you tell me. What am I supposed to do with all these Newt, Dog, and Lion carcasses now?

[@matthewwaterhouse9925]

I always like it when videos like this effectively end on what amounts to, "we don't really know". Five minutes of a theory they think makes the most sense and then they end with, "But we don't really know." Well, your title indicates I'm going to get a definitive answer.

[@lucawits648]

Nice Dune reference

[@TheAshFrost]

"Cumin a little closer"?! Unsubscribed.

[@allanshpeley4284]

No need to announce your departure...this isn't an airport

[@troubleshooter1900]

But, I’m about to get Jalapeño brain!” Had to make you resubscribe!

[@user-ss2pj1rh7q]

I love cumin, it's my favorite spice.

[@derek9153]

Don’t let the door hit ya backside.

[@downbntout]

It's coo-mino anyway. Koomeeno.

[@mithil1711]

Just when I was eating chilli! 🌶️

[@chitraguha5524]

Indian here. When I see food videos online, I feel so thankful for our food. Can't eat boiled food with salt and pepper and add cheese to get adventurous. 😳

[@thaumatomane]

This was very interesting, but I’m a historian of magic and I have one correction: Shakespeare was not drawing on any real magic practices with his witches’ chant. He was just trying to list disturbing gross things to highlight the fearsome nature of the three weird sisters (finger of birth-strangled babe, for example). I’ve not heard of those common names for those herbs before. I’m not saying that they were not used some time somewhere, but it does not seem that that was what he was going for. Plenty of magic rituals and potions do survive in medieval and early modern manuscript, I wrote my PhD on many of them, but I’ve never come across anything remotely like his fictional literary example.

[@sean4551]

1:07 im from new zealand and its not on that map :(

[@lasagnabum]

This is the comment I’ve been looking for lol. I’m also from nz.

[@TheCanadiangirl4]

Poor NZ. If it makes you feel any better we love you way over here in Canuckland

[@gaillewis5472]

Long Island isn't either. Welcome to the netherworld.

[@Frombie_01]

Being from Australia I can tell you the reason is, that not all of 'our' islands appear on every map ...... ;)

[@aerokas4817]

@@Frombie_01 there's a difference between a smaller island and an entire country.

[@tickelberry2327]

Fåriklål is very good. You should try it. I am form Norway :)

[@besmart]

I hope to! Sorry for butchering the pronunciation

[@gamlerik1]

The Norwegians use HansEn, the Swedes use HansOn. Fårikål is nice.

[@Amphibiot]

Fårikål is delicious. And, one of the only foods i know of that taste even better when it's a day old, rather than fresh.

[@bjornmu]

Yes Fårikål is best on the third day. Oh and it should be made with *whole* pepper which you then need to pick out while eating.

[@tickelberry2327]

Bjorn P. Munch Yes! The third day is it best 🤤

[@AlejandroBelloRD]

Melange spice is the central subject of the whole Dune universe

[@Felhek]

Alejandro Bello but only 1 single planet has it. That's strange.

[@jaygryska317]

Spices are important to all people

[@KuraIthys]

Well, only one planet having it really isn't that strange unless someone managed to figure out what the spice was, how it was being produced, and then figured out how to transfer it somewhere else. That's not always easy - the British were obsessed with tea and not very nice, and got fed up with china... So they stole some plants, and tried to grow their own. Turns out that's not so easy. Sure, you can grow tea in a lot of places, but most of it will taste awful. To get tea that actually tastes nice you have to have the right kind of soil and the right kind of climate. The growing conditions matter. As a result, when they stole tea from china, they went looking for a place to grow it, and decided India was somewhere it might work... Wine, coffee and chocolate has similar considerations - you can't just take it from where it came from and grow it anywhere, you need very specific conditions, and the details have a big impact on the result. So... Do we know where the spice comes from? Well, from what I recall, it's basically worm poop. So... Well, if you feel like trying to raise 150 metre long giant worms that can swallow a truck whole and burrow deep into the ground at high speed, be my guest... XD But... I don't fancy your chances...

[@Felhek]

KuraIthys 🤣

[@jer103]

Think of eating just a boiled potato. If you add hot sauce or bbq sauce, is because of 2 things: 1. It adds more flavor to bland food. 2. It adds some kick, or pain, to your mouth. Some people enjoy spicy foods for the capsasin that burns. (Also, Capsasin may promote weight loss, reduce inflammation, and relieve pain within the body during digestion.)

A friend from Brasil (The quite german south side) told us that only "poor people" put hot sauce in a BBQ. He says that is because it is cheap calories. In the same order of ideas, another friend was in Edimburgh and one time at the begining of Fall, they were eating at his job cafeteria, and all his co-workers (All UK folks) we're deligthed with how hot the food was and they commented it heartily. Later, he found out it was as a mean to fight the cooling weather

[@MoiraMcGill]

3:45 actually, the more north you go in China the spicier the food gets since they believe it to make them warmer (or at least feel warmer) in the colder climate. The exception to this being areas which neighbour middle eastern countries since they tend to incorporate those spices into their diets as well.

[@bigsadge]

Sprite is just spicy water

[@ga1actic_muffin]

2:04 oh wow, I harvest garlic mustard all the time its extreamly versatile. And it does have nutritional value but not in the form of calories, :P and actually grows wild all over the world. The seeds can be used to make the spiciest mustard you will ever eat and can actually be used as a wasabi substitute. The leaves of the young plants can be used to make pesto, and the dried stalks in winter and fall are amazingly good fire starters ;)

[@somratkhan8688]

Joe: We don't know how or why we started to use spice? Also Joe: Stay curious. Ah yes, the cat wasn't killed by it's curiosity cause it's alive! *Happy Schrödinger noises!*

[@jetfowl]

Korean cuisine didn't use chili peppers until roughly a hundred years after the Portuguese introduced them to China. In this case, it's really likely that Koreans liked the flavor as it was different... and the pepper could be grown in Korea. Unlike the more expensive spices that had to be imported from points south.

[@vespasiancloscan7077]

It's also very likely social, cultural and economic reasons made Koreans adopt chili peppers much more than say, the Japanese did. There is never one single explanation that applies to every single case, but as you hinted, poverty could be one reason. Could look at the historically richer Japan as an explanation, or compare different regions of China. More mountainous regions where agriculture was more difficult, incorporated a lot more chilies in their regional cuisines than the cuisines in the flat, agricultural parts of China did. Perhaps because *any* vegetable is valuable when you don't have as many crop choices, even if the vegetable stings when you eat it. So it's easier to take a liking to it, because capsaicin does cause pleasure at the same time as physical pain.

[@clearercarton]

Indian curry is such a vague term ,what curry are you talking about, there are thousands

[@jared_bowden]

Pretty sure it doesn't matter, from what I've tried of Indian food it's all full of spices.

[@clearercarton]

@@jared_bowden it's like saying all American food tastes the same or all Asian food taste the same , they use common spices but taste and texture is completely different

[@jared_bowden]

@@clearercarton "It's all full of spices" ≠ "it all tastes the same", I even avoided the phrasing, "oh, all Indian food is spicy" for exactly this reason. I'm not here to argue semantics though - I find it interesting how food tastes very different depending on the food you're used to eating, which seems obvious at first, but our taste buds aren't dramatically changing and we all need the same basic nutrients, so why should that be?

[@MonoWheelCroatia]

let them fighto chemicals :D Nice Dune reference at the end

[@Kopesz]

Also loved the reference

[@slavalone4109]

I must agree

[@DipakBakrania]

There are definitely spices that increase perspiration. Hotter climates are maybe where bacteria forms faster, but also in hotter climates the perspiration helps cool down the body. It's not just the level of spice in general that increases at hotter climates, but the level of heat in the spices used in recipes that increases closer to warm temperatures. And the heat is what causes perspiration, both real heat and spicy heat.

[@Dragonnix]

It's a common knowledge in India that turmeric (a spice) has antibacterial properties. It is used in most all the dishes and even as an antiseptic

[@shivg9010]

It's Okay To Be Smart Vsauce: Or is it? **Vsauce intro plays**

[@Roobeyns]

5:28 Eminem: *Releases rap god* This dude: "I'm gonna destroy this mans whole career"

[@dookiepookie28_]

0:24 Indian Curry?? Really?? Oh then gimme yo adress I'll mail you some😂

[@akashverma5756]

Fun fact :- Spices originated from Indus valley civilization.

[@plainjane8870]

I’ve seen people overspice meat to mask over the freshness. This works on people who can’t tell the difference, but it doesn’t work on people who know what fresh meat tastes like.

[@Randomdudefromtheinternet]

But how did we even decided that jalapeños are edible? Did a caveman found a chili bush, ate it and something like: THIS THING, BURNS LIKE FIRE!!! IT HURTS!!! SO HORRIBLE!!! Maybe another one...

[@TobyFoxArt]

Miguel Angel Rangel Perhaps there was little else to eat, so making the painful food palatable was important.

[@cindytepper8878]

Probably him and his cave buddies sitting around the fire drinking cave beer, and one of them had some jalapenos and dared someone to eat one, not to be outdone at the next cave beer party someone brought some habaneros and said if you put this in your mouth and chew it 50 times I'll give you a shiny rock

[@Otokichi786]

Years ago, the family garden featured ornamental as well as "Spice" Pepper plants. I noticed that birds would eat these as readily as ripe fruits and ready-to-harvest vegetables. It did them no harm, since they were apparently quite healthy. Hunter-gatherers observed such plant and animal reactions and sampled such, to find out if it was edible. Or, to use a Darwinian reference, "monkey see, monkey do.":;)

[@MrAranton]

Just like all other cultivated food plants, Jalapenos are a result of selective breeding and didn't exist when cavemen were still a thing. I'm not familiar with cultivation history of chilies and peppers, but jalapenos were bred to pack the heat they pack. Our ancestors were a pretty daring bunch about the things they ingested; not so much about food, but about getting high. Eating a stone-age jalapeno and figuring "this is too hot to eat as is, but it would spice up other foods" is nowhere near as far-fetched as "a mouthful of that mushroom will kill me, so let me try whether a tiny bit will give me hallucinations"

[@eleethtahgra7182]

Spice n spicy food have different meaning.

[@vari1535]

Second to comment... after Joe :) *Wow, I never knew that spices reduced bacteria, also while giving taste! Thanks IOTBS! :P* Btw I’m subbed to Ted-ed as well as Physics Girl... #ScienceForLife And like my comment my joy level is low I love puns and I like your short intros I don’t know what else to say

[@vari1535]

Thx for 5 likes... yeah, my joy

[@박윤기-t3q]

In Southern side of South Korea, people use more spices when making Kimchi to preserve them longer in a hot temperature.

[@Larsern246]

Fun fact, Norwegian - Indian people have made their own way of «Fårikål» where they ad a lot of spices, it is really tasty 😋

[@ga1actic_muffin]

5:28 Ohh lol that Dune reference

[@starjoy]

as a Norwegian who love Fårikål I didn't appreciate the tone when you talked about it >:(

[@iam3gion204]

Either way it made me want to try it. Looks good

[@Squossifrage]

I would like to add that it is highly seasonal, mostly eaten around harvest time in September, and its position as “national dish” is purely symbolic. For most people, it is much like the famous monument that they only ever go to when friends from out of town are visiting. It is also famous for smelling really, really bad during preparation. And while I wouldn't call it spicy, it is definitely not as bland as Joe makes it out to be, as it is usually seasoned with caraway and / or juniper.

[@chanmarr8118]

I’m Jamaican and I felt a bit disappointed because it actually looked good lol

[@HISTORYSQUARE]

I watched it as an Indian and felt bad seeing that myself

[@hardboiled7467]

Ancient people know the good stuff.

[@SordMasta]

here in greece we mostly use onions, garlic, black pepper, dill, bay, parsley, chilly flakes, rosemary, and especially oregano. and every other spice except maybe curry. but all in moderation, since we tend to believe that if someone uses too much spice (like indian or mexican cuisine for example) it is to mask the low quality of the ingredients or cooking skill.

[@520bert420]

You might be thinking of Americanized mexican food (TexMex) if you think its low quality or cooking skill. Authentic Mexican food is all about fresh ingredients and good taste.

[@henriquealvim1083]

Plant: produces spice to keep leaf consumers away. Human: eats spicy plant. Plant: am I a joke to you?

[@Girlcatlove1524]

Who else is eating spicy food right now?

[@koizu5324]

Girlcatlove1524 All time everyday.

[@notatruck2640]

Eating some ramen that is about 40 sriracha

[@jasperdunkin292]

I spiced the hell out of my Raman.

[@sohamdutta4119]

Girlcatlove1524 me... daily Everytime everywhere....

[@uchihaavenger2068]

White ppl be like: “I’m chewing some gum which is pretty spicy”

[@samsharma8621]

All ways wanted to know it .... thanks for the video

[@PradeepPurple]

Using Herbs as Spice puns.......thatsa paddlin'!!

[@pucky8231]

Some theories point to spice use in hot climates to increase perspiration and cool your body by evaporation.

[@xxxm23able]

The golden spice, turmeric. beautiful colour and flavor.

[@anhdang7845]

Sooooo.....in conclusion, spices are healthy righttttttt?!?! **Pours Sriracha all over my plate* * Mom: Umm... what are you doing Me: **explains everything** soooo that is what I’m doing Mom: Ahhh, ok. **Also pours Sriracha all over her plate** Edit:and Yes I like my own comment cauz I am forever lonely

[@damirock98]

*FBI agent* : Ur good bro?

[@PowahSlapEntertainmint]

Nature said we couldn't do it, but nothing is impossible!

[@axellepatriadi5162]

PowahSlap Entertainmint nothing is impossible? I do nothing everyday lmao

[@MissLilyputt]

PowahSlap Entertainmint Is that a challenge? My grandma’s been dead for a number of years. She’s not even breathing and by now should’ve stopped decomposing I think she beat your challenge of doing nothing.

[@BHuang92]

We raise our middle finger at nature, nature slaps us back a century.

[@ArtisticAnanya]

Me: cries while eating spicy food. Also me: Still eats it. Anyone relatable? No? just me?

[@francissreckofabian01]

I'm from Australia. So our diet is a mixture of all the cultures of the planet. One of the best things about Australia. So much wonderful food.

[@brinlov]

Am Norwegian. I hate fårikål. And can totally confirm that traditional Norwegian food is very unspicy, though it smells a lot, so I am SO happy to live in a time after immigrants came so now I can eat sushi, kebabs, fried banana and put all the chili I want on things! But I have a question: since it seems that colder climated countries use less spices, especially stuff like chili, is it because meat products and such last longer in the cold climate? Cause up north, as far as I know, many traditional dishes has been about just digging them down into the earth, or salting them to oblivion and drying them.

[@a.e.9821]

What the hell about not having immigrants would prevent you from putting chili pepper on your food?

[@ChrisF_1982]

@@a.e.9821 Having immigrant populations creates a market for those things.

[@pneumonoultramicroscopicsilica]

It's okay to be smart:The surprising reason why we eat spicy food.. India:Am I a joke to you. It's okay to be smart:What? India:Because our half trade depends on it..