Spicy Foods You Need To Try Before You Die

Once you develop a taste for spicy food, it's easy to become tempted by increasingly hot options. Sure you can prepare a lot of classic meals with the addition of a few chili peppers, but there are many dishes that are expressly made to pique your spice sensors. Various cultures specialize in cuisines centered around intense flavors, including an extra fiery kick. Most dishes featured rely on local chili peppers that find their way into many traditional recipes. Although most chilis originate from the Americas, the peppers were introduced across the world by Portuguese and Spanish explorers (via Nautilus).

While eating spicy food can sometimes approach a competitive sport, it is also inherent to many of the world's cuisines. If you have an appetite for spice, you'll want to read on for a list of foods you have to try before you die. Of course, if you can eat them at the source then do so, however many dishes can be approximated from the comfort of your own kitchen. You might miss out on some of the rarer deadly chili peppers, but you'll no doubt be able to enjoy some amazing flavors while pushing the boundaries of heat.

It's no secret that Indian cuisine contains endless examples of dishes perfect for spice lovers. Vindaloo is a curry from Goa that has gone through its fair share of culinary evolution. According to Saveur, a version of the dish was introduced in India by Portuguese explorers who also brought along the chili peppers. The source explains that although the dish was once more aromatic and fragrant, it became far spicier when it eventually found its way to England. Although milder styles are in fact more traditional to the original Goan dish, vindaloo can contain scotch bonnet, bird's eye chilis, or ghost peppers (known as Bhut jolokia in India) which start at around 850,000 Scoville units, as per PepperScale.

Aside from a stewed base sauce, vindaloo is usually made with pork, although fish, chicken, mutton, and beef are regularly substituted. As such, it's a great curry to try whipping up at home if you carry a variety of spices. Alternatively, as it's often considered to be one of the hottest Indian dishes, many restaurants try their hand at a fiery adaptation.

Korean food has its fair share of spicy dishes, and kimchi jjigae finds itself at the top. LAist describes it as volcanic red, the type of fiery color that evokes the certainty of spice. As per the Journal of Ethnic Foods, the type of chili pepper common to Korea is unrelated to those from America that were brought to Asia by the Portuguese. The Korean pepper is called gochu and has been fundamental to the cuisine for almost two millennia. It's the foundation of the fermented paste gochujang, and the dried pepper is used in many traditional preparations as well.

Kimchi jjigae is a stew made with ripe kimchi, the iconic Korean fermented cabbage, gochu, and an assortment of ingredients that are adjusted to taste (via Taste Atlas). Tofu, pork belly, seafood, and vegetables can all be added to the dish so it's just a matter of choosing what you like. Aromatic flavors are developed as ginger, scallions, and garlic stew in the flavorful broth (via LAist). Although the intensity of the heat can vary, one fact is certain — the stew is perfect if you're feeling under the weather or in need of a meal that will warm you up from the inside out.

Hot and spicy soups are a popular offering on the Asian continent, and laksa certainly fits the bill. The Guardian remarks that as with multiple dishes in Southeast Asia, both Malaysia and Singapore view it as their own, and renditions can be found all over. Laksa lemak aka curry laksa is probably the variation most likely to be found outside of Asia, and it's well worth a try. Coconut milk combined with a spicy paste featuring dried chilis and fermented shrimp is a common base, seasoned with garlic, lemongrass, galangal, ginger, and a blend of fragrant spices (via The Guardian). Rice, egg, or glass noodles add some starchiness to the soup and as for protein, shrimp and spongy tofu are most common. Beansprouts, snap peas, and fresh coriander are also often included to round it out.

There's no doubt about it, once you have a bowl of laksa you'll probably keep dreaming about it until the next one. For the most part, you should be able to source the ingredients required to make your own version of the dish. For extra spice, go wild with the chilis or take it back a notch by sticking with milder peppers. If you're looking for a dish that's both warm and hot to elevate your body temperature in the cooler months, laksa should be next on the menu.

The African continent might not always be associated with spice, yet various countries incorporate chilis into their regional recipes. As per MasterClass, doro wat is a staple of Ethiopian cuisine — and once you try the spicy chicken stew, you'll understand why. The heat comes from a blend of spices known as berbere, which combines fenugreek, coriander, paprika, cardamom, nutmeg, garlic, and hot chilis, among other flavors. There's definitely a warm fragrant undertone to the chicken dish, and it is usually served with injera, a flatbread made from the local grain.

According to Harry Kloman who wrote a book about the country's cuisine and runs the website Ethiopian Food, locally, doro wat is a crucial recipe in every woman's repertoire if she intends to find a husband. Whether you try your hand at various renditions of the recipe with or without a love interest in mind, you're sure to be enchanted by the aromatic flavor and spicy kick that this chicken and egg stew offers. Try it at a traditional Ethiopian restaurant where various stews are dolloped onto a large piece of injera, and rolled-up strips of the flatbread take precedence over cutlery. Or, track down a blend of berbere spice and whip it up at home.

Closer to home, shrimp Creole is a dish that is common in the south of the U.S., particularly in Louisiana. According to Taste Atlas, local shrimp from the gulf are plentiful, making them ideal to simmer up in a stew. As for the base, a tomato, bell pepper, onion, and celery sauce is flavored with spices and hot chilis for an added kick. The dish is usually served with white rice which provides some balance to the heat. Creole seasoning can be fairly varied, and cayenne pepper isn't always a requirement (via PepperScale). What is however constant is the warm rich flavor provided from the complex layers of spices, including paprika, garlic, thyme, oregano, and black or white pepper.

Chili Pepper Madness points out that the preparation is super versatile and many modifications can be made depending on your spice tolerance and whatever seafood you have on hand. Choose your favorite white fish or some fresh crab and allow them to simmer in the savory sauce. You don't have to stick with white rice either — the sauce is great over your choice of pasta, or even simply with a few slices of crusty French bread to sop it up.

Still in the Caribbean, the island of Haiti enjoys its fair share of spice forward dishes, heavily seasoned with the local chilis. Griot consists of cubed pork cooked in a marinade and then fried, Taste Atlas describes. The marinade showcases chilis, onions, and a citrus component to help tenderize the meat. The combination of sweet, sour, and spicy flavors makes this dish multilayered and helps balance out some of the heat.

According to Whetstone Magazine, the dish is often served with red beans and a local pickled relish called pikliz. The relish isn't by any means subtle and it consists of grated cabbage, carrot, onion, scallions, and garlic seasoned with vinegar, lime juice, peppercorns, and scotch bonnet peppers (via NYT Cooking). Talk about a flavor bomb! The condiment goes hand in hand with countless local dishes, but you'll love the zesty kick it provides to what might otherwise be a simple pork dish. Get your hands on pikliz at a specialty food store or try your hand at making your own. Remember — when it comes to cooking with scotch bonnets, caution is key.

Whether you spell it piri-piri or peri-peri, the bird's eye chili-based sauce is still delicious and spicy. In fact, the name means pepper-pepper in Swahili, according to Thrillist, hinting at the level of heat you should expect. Bird's eyes are no joke, and the source places them at 150,000 Scoville units, although in the sauce they are accompanied by slightly milder peppers as well. To round out the texture, flavor, and temper some of the heat, lemon, vinegar, oil, garlic, and bay leaves are usually added in. Although the sauce is often used as a marinade for a grilled chicken dish in a quintessentially Portuguese dish, it can accompany a number of proteins, notably shrimp as seen in Mozambique.

If you happen to live anywhere with a Nando's Peri-Peri location, you'll definitely want to make a beeline to try out their chicken or simply to purchase a bottle of their sauce. Meanwhile, you can try your hand at a home-cooked version as long as you can source the iconic bird's eyes chilis. Or, simply buy a premade sauce and use it as a condiment when you're looking for extra heat. If you're going for the classic grilled chicken dish, you'll want to serve it with potato wedges or fries to tame the fire.

Wasabi is a well-known condiment thanks to its prime role served with sushi, and although the purest versions come from a different root altogether, most commercial wasabi is made from horseradish (via Fine Dining Lovers). While wasabi is more likely to show up in your takeout, horseradish is often relegated to shrimp cocktails and Bloody Mary's. Nonetheless, there are many great ways to enjoy the spicy root. Grate it over salmon, use it in a dip or dressing, or sprinkle it over a fresh dozen oysters. The flavor pairs especially well with roast beef or earthy beets.

If you're looking to get your hands on some horseradish, The Spruce Eats notes that it can be found in powder form, mixed into a sauce, or freshly grated in vinegar. You could of course buy the root itself and grate it but be forewarned that the smell is intense. A different set of compounds causes the spice in horseradish compared with chilis. PepperScale explains that the grated root contains volatile enzymes which means that if you leave it open to the air, the heat level will dissipate. Therefore, it is often stored in vinegar since water also dulls the spice.