Okay, I saved the best for last. We are going to check out the “granddaddy” of all spicy foods. No other veggie can brag about such remarkably strong sensations as the fruit-bearing shrubs that are native to South America.
Grab a glass of milk and some tissues because it is time to dig into the…
CHILE PEPPER
There is a lot of science to be found within the chile pepper, and we are going to look at a few of these facts. Fortunately, a solid understanding of the four basic concepts of science will help us out considerably:
BRING ON THE ATOMS
In the past three weeks, we learned that onions, garlic, and mustards store different kinds of molecules (groups of ATOMS) within their cells in different areas. When we chop up these veggies, these molecules are allowed to come into contact with each other. When this happens, these molecules rearrange their ATOMS into those delicious spicy-flavored chemicals. Of course, all of this follows the LAW OF CONSERVATION as no ATOMS are created or destroyed throughout this movement. However…
NO ATOMS REARRANGE TO PROVIDE THE SPICY CHEMICALS INSIDE CHILE PEPPERS!
You don’t need to wait for any rearranging of ATOMS within chile peppers to cause that amazing sensation. Chili peppers make a special molecule known as capsaicin (“kap-say-sin”) which causes that feeling of heat in your body.
Chile peppers are mostly hollow on the inside and have a light-colored tissue which hangs below its stem. Attached to this tissue (called the placenta) you will find the seeds of the pepper. For years, people believed that the spicy capsaicin molecules were located within the seeds of a chile pepper, but this is not true!
IT IS THE PLACENTA THAT PRODUCES NEARLY ALL OF THE CAPSAICIN WITHIN CHILE PEPPERS!
Naturally, whenever you cut open a chile pepper you will cut through the placenta. This will cause the capsaicin to DIFFUSE all over the seeds and tissues of the pepper (and your fingers too!)
You REALLY want to be careful not to touch your eyes after chopping up a chile pepper!
NOT ALL CHILI’S ARE THE SAME!
There are many different kinds of chile peppers in the world and all of them contain a different DENSITY of capsaicin. The greater the DENSITY of capsaicin – the spicier the pepper.
For example, many people can eat the popular Jalapeno pepper by the handful! Is this pepper hot? Oh yeah! But fewer people would ever TRY to eat a Cayenne pepper. Cayenne peppers have THREE TO FIVE TIMES the amount of capsaicin within its placenta!
PUTTING OUT THE FIRE
Inside your mouth you have little sensors (like the ones that are in your car or computer) that can tell you if anything dangerous is going on. Whenever you bite into a chile pepper, your saliva does an excellent job at DIFFUSING the capsaicin throughout your mouth and onto these sensors.
When this connection is made, the sensor sends a message to your brain that there is a HUGE amount of heat within your mouth.
Even though capsaicin DOES increase the temperature of your mouth a tiny bit, your brain may believe your mouth is on FIRE!
Naturally, the best way to put out the “fire” that is raging in your mouth is to remove the capsaicin. But how can you do that?
DRINK MILK
There is a molecule in milk that sticks very well to capsaicin and will actually pull it away from the sensors in your mouth! Neat trick, huh? The coldness of the milk doesn’t hurt, either. If you don’t have any milk around, try some sour cream, yogurt, or ice cream. All of them have the same molecule.
Another way to cool the fire is to drink a sugar water solution (like Kool-Aid) as the sugar tends to reduce the capsaicin’s effect on your tongue. Jalapeños and Kook-Aid? I know it sounds a little strange, but it works!
We’ve spent a lot of time focusing on foods we typically find at the dinner table. I think it’s time we start looking at our sweet tooth! Next week we begin the series, “How To Teach Science With Desserts”
Learn more about chemistry concepts (and many more) in the Classic Science: Series for the Family and be certain to come back every Thursday or subscribe to The Blog of Mr.Q to learn more about how to teach science during breakfast, lunch, and dinner!
