Last Updated on February 15, 2023 by Shari Mason
Spicy foods are widely enjoyed by many people in different parts of the world, but for some, they can be pretty overpowering.
For those who are new, it can be difficult to get used to the sensation, but with a little bit of practice, you can eventually build your tolerance for eating spicy food.
We will discuss ten proven ways how to get used to spicy food without overwhelming your mouth and taste buds.
10 Proven Ways To Get Used to Spicy Food
1. Begin With Mildly Spicy Food
Eating mildly spicy foods or foods with hot sauces is a great start to building your tolerance without completely stepping out of your comfort zone.
You can add a few dashes of black pepper, slices of chili pepper, or pinches of red pepper flakes to your favorite meal and get your taste buds accustomed to the heat until it is no longer kicking.
2. Increase the Heat Eventually
You can gradually increase the heat level of your already-hot food and challenge yourself to get used to the stronger pain signals.
You can either add a few slices of hot peppers like the Poblano, Anaheim, or Jalapeno pepper or pour Tabasco sauces all over your ketchup. As you intensify your hot foods, this will help increase your spicy food tolerance effectively.
3. Eat Spicy Food Slowly
If you think the added chili peppers and spices are too much to handle, you must eat slowly. It allows your mouth and taste buds to rest and cool down—slowing down the burning sensation.
This is not a race! Speeding things up when eating hot food will only spell discomfort, which can be unbearable for an extended period due to the chemical compounds called capsaicin.
4. Try to Eat Something Spicy Every Week
If you eat spicy foods or foods that go with hot sauce weekly, the more your mouth and taste buds become accustomed to the heat until you start to enjoy them regularly.
You may not even notice since it’ll be likely in your system, but you may start seeking spicier foods since what was once moderately spicy has now become milder.
5. Savor the Flavor
The secret for you to enjoy spicy foods is focusing your taste buds on the ingredients of the used fresh spices instead of the burning feeling.
“My favorite time of day is to get up and eat leftovers from dinner, especially spicy food.”
David Byrne, Singer/Songwriter
You can take Indian and Chinese food as an example. They are known for their spicy dishes, however, their meal is bursting with dynamic flavors of different spices which you can enjoy.
Thus you should always look forward to the taste of the dish rather than the sensation.
6. Prepare Coolants on Hand
Since not everyone can handle the capsaicin compounds on their tongue very well, keeping a natural coolant for your body when a burning sensation arises is always best.
Drinking water will not alleviate the heat. Instead, take dairy products such as whole milk, butter, cheese, yogurt, ice cream, coconut milk, and sour cream.
These food products contain fats that can absorb and dissolve capsaicin compounds.
7. Take Antacid Ahead of Time
You shouldn’t eat spicy foods on an empty stomach since they generally use ingredients with a high acid content, which can cause an upset stomach or heartburn.
Thus it is recommended to take antacids ahead of time to prevent these kinds of discomfort from occurring.
8. Eat Snacks To Distract Your Mouth From Spice
Eating other foods can help distract your mouth from the spice due to the new flavor it was introduced to.
You should do this when eating hot food that’s beyond your spicy food tolerance. This is simply a hack that leads your taste buds to focus on the other food and ditch the heat.
9. Breathe Through Your Mouth
Breathing the heat out in between bites helps your mouth to cool down, preventing the constant painful burn from building up.
If you just clamp down and let the roof of your mouth touch your tongue, it will intensify the painful burn to a greater degree.
10. Don’t Force It
If you want to enjoy spicy food while increasing your tolerance, just take what your body can only manage.
If it’s really beyond your spicy food tolerance, don’t force it, especially when dealing with hot peppers that rank high on the Scoville Scale, like the Ghost pepper and Carolina Reaper. Doing so will only take you one step closer to danger.
FAQs
Is spice tolerance genetic?
Yes, some people are genetically born with fewer pain receptors or nerve cells, TRPV1, which the capsaicin binds to when eating hot foods.
As a result, they are less capable of tasting or feeling the spiciness the capsaicin-containing food originally has [1].
How long will it take to get used to spicy food?
There is no specific timeframe, but as you condition yourself by eating spicy foods often, you’ll get used to it in no time—perhaps after a week or within a month.
How do I increase my spice tolerance?
You can increase it by eating mildly spicy foods once every week. Once you get used to the mild heat of the spicy dish, you can gradually increase the heat level.
You can add different spices and peppers directly to the dish or your hot sauces for your pizza until you’re challenged again.
Why can’t I get used to spicy food?
The reason why you can’t get used to spicy food easily is that you have many heat receptors. The more heat receptors you have in your tongue, the more burning pain you are likely to feel in your body.
Furthermore, it can be a medical condition called Hyperalgesia in which the receptors in your tongue are too sensitive to handle the heat.
How can I eat spicy food without pain?
You can drink milk or other fat-containing dairy products. You can take them after eating or in between bites of a hot dish to flush the spiciness away.
How do you handle spicy food better?
Aside from milk, you can consume foods rich in carbs like rice, bread, or potatoes as they absorb and create a protective barrier against capsaicin to bind to your receptors.
Furthermore, you can alleviate the spice by eating or drinking acidic foods such as lemon, vinegar, tomatoes, and more [2].
In Conclusion
Not everyone has started eating spicy foods at such a young age to have become used to them, but that doesn’t mean we can no longer build our tolerance to start enjoying them now.
You can follow this guide if you want to enjoy spicy foods as you should. You just have to eat or drink dairy products, acidic foods, and foods rich in carbs to cool down the burning sensation.
References:
- https://thedishonscience.stanford.edu/articles/do-you-feel-the-burn-the-science-behind-your-spice-tolerance
- https://lifehacker.com/cool-your-mouth-from-spicy-foods-with-acid-1750003797
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