CAPSICUM

I confess to not being much of a foodie but gastronomic delights do interest me as much as most Indians relish them. I also consider myself quite adventurous and am always prepared to try a new dish or even a cuisine for that matter. Not being fussy about dietary preferences has definite advantages, where we can survive under any and every situation. I am sure most of us have heard of some of our friends being so obsessed with Indian food that they prefer to lug crates full of “ready to eat” variety and survive on these and these alone. Vegetarians also are handicapped to an extent as, abroad vegetarian diet generally is a non-red meat diet, that implies chicken and fish are on the menu of the veg, eggs of course do not count at all as non-veg.

By now you must be wondering that “what has capsicum got to do with this”, a la Tina Turner’s what’s love got to do with it? Well it has a lot to do with recipes and for the continental and the Chinese cuisine in particular; this so called veg is a mandatory ingredient in almost every dish. Yes I know that some people simply relish it, but somehow my stomach is not amenable to it at all and practically short of throwing up; it puts me through a lot of discomfort. So I got about checking out as to what is so special about this veg which is referred to as “Simla Mirch” in the vernacular.

It is quite obvious that this is a misnomer with no chilly content in it and the Simla connection appears to be a colonial connection, with the veg itself associated with continental grub of the gora Saab. Simla was their favoured habitat after all. If one was to dwell deeper and check, I am sure my contention would be vindicated as I can’t think of any traditional Indian recipe with capsicum as an ingredient. We Indians have a tradition of healthy foods and every veg has not just nutritional value but is also medicinal. Just take a glimpse at the almanac of traditional veg and you would realise the wisdom of this stratagem. Methi, palak better known as spinach the favourite diet of Popeye, bottle gourd (lauki) or the widely acclaimed bitter gourd, popularly known as Karela all have tremendous benefits. Methi for arthritis, spinach for iron content, karela for diabetes, lauki for thyroid and so on. But capsicum apart from blessing you with the worst kind of burps does nothing else, then why is it still an ingredient in these dishes on the palates of the otherwise gastronomic delights? Well I am looking for answers, if you have any share it with me!

So staying with capsicum, it is indeed a herculean task to cull out the dreaded veg from my soups or continental dishes, which I relish sans this obnoxious weed, borrowing from Hayden’s description of his nemesis; our very own Bhajji. But not having much of a choice, I normally set about picking the capsicum, lest I myself end up being capsized! Yes this exercise is bothersome for me but is actually torturous for the people who choose to break bread with me as it takes inordinately long and I will admit quite irritating for them. But I can’t forego the sheer delight of the aroma of the otherwise mouth-watering dishes, so just too bad, like it or lump it, I bash on regardless. On an odd occasion when I have had to partake a few morsels, it has sorted me out, but that has not proved enough of a deterrent for me to abstain totally from these cuisines.

But I intend to spread this awareness amongst the ignorant masses so that they do not fall prey to this weed. In fact the Wikipedia has some interesting observations, to quote, “The fruit of most species of Capsicum contains capsaicin (methyl vanillyl nonenamide), a lipophilic chemical that can produce a strong burning sensation in the mouth (and, if not properly digested, in the excretory organs as well) of the unaccustomed eater. Most mammals find this unpleasant; however, birds are unaffected. The secretion of capsaicin is an adaptation to protect the fruit from consumption by mammals while the bright colours attract birds that will spread the seeds.”

So the capsicum types may do a rethink if they do not wish to be clubbed with the feathered species, while I am contemplating whether it would be worthwhile to set up a website to spread this awareness around!