I have
always been interested in chillies, since I tasted one that was more than just
hot.
So what
does one do nowadays, ones goes on the internet to search for info.
Doing that
I found that not all info is true, what a news, but also that there is a growing
group of people that grow chillies themselves.
Most of the
time people do that in order to get the ones you can’t get in the shops.
Smart idea
I have to say, I am doing that myself too . . .
Looking
online at facebook, twitter and what have ye, I found groups that thrive on the
super-hot chillies.
Not my kind
of thing really, for I want taste in my food, and not make food that’ll strip
the paint off from any door.
Still,
intrigued by it, I started reading up on those super-hot chillies.
Now as I did
taste really wild chillies that were absolute taste bombs, I can imagine there
are super-hot chillies that have super taste also.
Now
devouring the info on the web, and reading about finger licking good chillies,
I sort of got slave to the info.
My friend
Chris Whitehouse, a great artist in painting and drawing who is helping me with
a book I am writing, told me about this facebook group, Darth Naga’s funhouseoff pain. . . .
If I wanted
to join, and I have to say I had to think about it.
For me,
chillies are about taste and bringing some heat in the food, not more.
So, the
funhouse of pain. . . .
Well I
lurked there for a bit, and joined, expecting silly stories about people in
pain for they were so daft to eat a super-hot chilli and had no milk in the house.
If I do
burn up from a certain chilli, I use less or don’t eat that chilli ever again.
Nothing of
that, or just a little, but most of all informative it is a group of chilli
sillies like me.
Once and
again you stumble over a video of someone eating a super-hot like having a
sandwich, but that is about it.
So Chris
asked me to look at a video of a super-hot chilli tester, who munches away
chillies for fun and as a challenge.
No thanks,
but after he asked me once again, I watched just one, and another.
I was not
about to, as I think that there is a certain aspect of masochism in it, that I
don’t like.
Why give
yourself pain, in order to show that you can eat something?
Is it
bravery, or just silly, intriguing question isn’t it?
So I “had”
to look at this certain hot food taster.
Ted “the firebreating idiot” Barrus, is a promising name for something I just don’t want to
see.
Still, this
guy has something about him that I like.
He is not a
madman or an idiot at all, a hardworking bloke that does reviews for ultra-hot
chillies and sauces at the side.
Looking at
a couple of his videos, I sort off started to be sort of a fan, and watch him
at times eating away on something I’d rather not cook with.
We got
friends at facebook, mailed a few times and even chatted with him.
He
explained me a few things, and he explained why and what he did, for the love
of chillies.
He now will
be will be on the History channel in the future and has been mostly on ABC and
some times on the BBC, he even has articles written about him in big newspapers and all.
He gets a
kick out of eating them chillies and sauces, which I think is harmless, and
comes from higher adrenaline and endorphin levels due to the pain.
Your body
feels real pain like burning, even if it is not really burning.
So the body
produces adrenalin and endorphin to help you with the pain, and those two give
you a rush like running up the Mount Everest.
Now sure,
it is odd to eat a chilli that is hot enough to spice up a whole cow, but then
again he is making something good out of it.
I have been
looking at other tasters as well, and Ted Barrus stands out, as he keeps it
nice and informative. I would therefore say he almost is “the ambassador for
chillies” and their growers.
No, not
almost, he is “the ambassador for chillies” for sure.
He takes
the time to explain and warn people about the effects, and he tells about their
taste.
He is the
spokesman for the super-hot chilli and chillies in general, and he informs you
about what sauces are great, and which are almost too hot to handle.
Yes, I am a
fan!
More than
fans he gets so famous now, that he is getting hate mails, he has a load of
copy cats, and people steal his videos. He even has a stalker now. People seem
to get happy leaving odd and brutal comments at his videos, and he gets sucked
in the competition for the world’s hottest chilli.
The side
effects of getting famous, he really is getting famous, as he should !
There are 2
more tasters that I want to mention.
One is
Gareth Fenwick as he makes a wonderful description of the effects it has on him
in tiny detail.
He really
lets you in to the world of natural high almost, telling how and what happens
if you eat a super-hot chilli.
He also has
a great way of telling about their taste.
He is not
over the hill, if you know what I mean.
Even the
Netherlands has a bloke that eats chillies like there is no tomorrow.
His name is Ton Maas, and he sometimes does a taste testes with his son.
I had a
chat with him just about a week ago, and as he and I both have Dutch as our
native tongue, it is easier for me to learn.
Sorry,
being Dutch and all. . . . hehe
He told me
the kick was in the challenge as well as the effects. The side effects with the
adrenalin and all, makes him feel a load better after eating something fiery.
I do have
to say, even I get that kick a bit.
After a
hard day’s work, eating a good dish that was a bit overboard with the chillies,
I feel like I can climb a mountain !
Eat more heat,
Yours truly,
Bart J. Meijer
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