chillies

the red hot chillies which are so synonymous with Indian cuisine has a foreign origin, some four hundred years ago Indians were not aware of chillies , it was the portuguese who brought chillies along with them to India..........though it is hard to believe but our Indian food is not imaginable without chillies.......

as every food has its own nutritional value , chillies , the hot ingredient , is kind of a superfood........it is rich in Vit A and C and hence serves as a good vitamin supplement too

the pungency factor of the chillies stimulates salivation.....and it is quite understandable that our starchy staple food is laced with the enzyme amylase, which ensures proper breaking down of the complex carbohydrates.............see how conveniently we can stimulate our digestive process by including chillies in our food.

there are many more reasons to include these hot hot chillies in our food.......it helps in the detoxification process of the colon.....the capsaicin ( hot compound of chilly) is a blood circulation enhancer , actually it has a strong haemostatic action , so it can be used in acute cases to arrest bleeding.

not only this , chillies are found to be preventing many types of cancers.........see the link.....
http://www.whale.to/a/chilli.html

there are two major types of the hot chillies in India, the white flowered capsicum annuum , and the greenish white flowered capsicum frutescens which is more pungent........the pungency depends on its capsaicin content................there are many varieties of chillies , the hottest tezpur chillies and the almost sweet bell peppers.........but one thing is clear that they have become integral to Indian cuisine and is being used in ayurvedic remedies too.......

the chilly oil is applied topically to relieve muscular pain and capsaicin is an ingredient of pain relieving sprays and lotions.....

chillies are good for kapha type people and is not so good for pitta types.

next time take pleasure in using chillies an dtake care if you are a pitta type person.........in that case less amount of chilly will be better............should we thank the portuguese invaders........think about the goan cuisine.......:D:D.