Hot Sauce Nation: America's Burning Obsession

Hot Sauce Nation: America's Burning Obsession

Hot Sauce Nation  is a journey of discovery, delving into history, culture, immigration patterns, and the science of spice and pain. Through the stories of hot sauce makers and lovers, it explores the unique hold the dark prince of condiments has over the American heart.  "If you've ever wondered how such massive flavors and such paralyzing pain gets decanted into those little bottles, this is the book you've been waiting for. Denver Nicks weaves history, science, culture, and little bit of a lot else into a tidy, fun-to-read bundle. Enjoy this book by the drop or the spoonful." —Wayne Curtis, author of And a Bottle of Rum: A History of the New World in 10 Cocktails "With verve, wit, and plenty of spice, Denver Nicks has captured the true flavor of the American experience. Hot Sauce Nation reads like gumbo on a page." —Dane Huckelbridge, author of Bourbon and The United State of Beer "As wonderful a condimental accompaniment to American cuisine as hot sauce itself. It is substantive, detailed, and, best of all, fun to read." —Tom Acitelli, author of The Audacity of Hops and American Wine “Nicks has managed to sneak a road novel into a hot sauce history class.” —The Currency of Cool "A very highly recommended celebration of the most popular condiment on earth and a tribute to the people who make it and the people who love it.” —She Treads Softly “Calvin Trillin meets Hunter S. Thompson, with some John McPhee thrown in for good measure.” —Palm Beach Illustrated “Hot Sauce Nation…is an inherently fascinating journey of discovery, delving into the history, culture, immigration patterns, and the science of spice and culinarily induced pain.”  —Midwest Book Review Denver Nicks  is a regular contributor to  Time  and National Geographic Traveler and a graduate of the Columbia University Graduate School of Journalism. He is the author of  Private: Bradley Manning, WikiLeaks, and the Biggest Exposure of Official Secrets in American History ,  and his work has also appeared in  Money , Newsweek , the Nation , the Daily Beast , and elsewhere. A native of Tulsa, Oklahoma, he lives in New Orleans and Washington, DC. Hot Sauce Nation America's Burning Obsession By Denver Nicks Chicago Review Press Incorporated Copyright © 2017 Denver Nicks All rights reserved. ISBN: 978-1-61373-184-0 Contents Acknowledgments, Introduction, 1 - A Brief History of Heat, 2 - Some Like It Hot, 3 - Becoming a Hot Sauce Nation, 4 - Voodoo Chile, 5 - Harissa Explains It All, 6 - Cooking with chilies in H-Town, 7 - Cashing in on Capsaicin, 8 - Chicken Wings and Southern Things, 9 - Ça Pique, 10 - The Last Dash, Selected Bibliography, Index, CHAPTER 1 A BRIEF HISTORY OF HEAT In 1491, the world was in many of its aspects and characteristics a minimum of two worlds — the New World, of the Americas, and the Old World, consisting of Eurasia and Africa. Columbus brought them together, and almost immediately and continually ever since, we have had an exchange of native plants, animals and diseases moving back and forth across the oceans between the two worlds. A great deal of the economic, social, political history of the world is involved in the exchange of living organisms between the two worlds. — Alfred W. Crosby, JR., AUTHOR OF The Columbian Exchange In the beginning, God created a man and named him Narama and a woman whom he named Uxuu. Narama and Uxuu lived in a land of plenty where they wanted for neither food nor sustenance. In time, God cast them from this Eden. Having been evicted from his homeland, Narama began to sweat so profusely that he came to be covered in salt. The Creator was, at the time, busy giving jobs to the creatures of the earth — he's the keeper of this, she's the keeper of that, and so on. Uxuu, the first woman, was put in charge of the seeds and fruits of summer, and of rain. Narama, the first man, was given the enviable job of overseeing salt, mescal, and chili. With roles assigned, the Creator invited everyone to a big potluck fiesta around a table situated on the center of the earth, to which all the creatures of creation brought their special foods. The last to arrive, Narama, showed up naked and covered in salt — patron saint of mescal, remember. With everyone seated around the table, Narama scraped salt from his face and sprinkled it on the food. He then grabbed his testicles, which turned into chili pods, plucked them, and began sprinkling his fiery new spice onto the fare. This went over with the other guests about as well as one might expect. Around the table creatures shouted in protest and scolded Narama for defiling dinner. He asked that they give him a chance. If everyone else got to contribute their thing, shouldn't he be able to add his own specialty to the buffet? Just try it and you'll see, he pleaded, that there's nothing better for a good meal than salt and chili. Brave souls that they were, the others gave Narama's chili testes a sho