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Comment by twalla | Hacker News Reader

Minor nit: Sichuan pepper is not a chili pepper or closely related to black pepper. It's the husk of the fruit of a tree that grows in the region. It's not particularly spicy on its own - the appeal is the numbing, tingling sensation (called málà, literally numbing spiciness) which serves as a complement to the capsaicin-based spiciness that Sichuanese cuisine is known for.

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Even more minor nit: ma2la4 is actually the combination of flavors of both numbness (ma2, 麻) and spiciness (la4, 辣). The latter is commonly used outside the combined descriptor to signify normal capsaicin spice in food.

Off topic, but the "ma" in mapo tofu also uses same character from ma2la4, but also serves to give a visual description of the dish. That character is also used to refer to a pockmarked person, and the po2 is from one of the various ways to refer to grandmother. You could probably go as far to say it's something of a pun.

Any reason why your Pinyin is written in ASCII and not unicode (as OP)?

Honestly I could've just copied and pasted it but I'm used to just typing the numbers since I didn't learn the alt keybindings on my keyboard.

> spiciness (la4, 辣). The latter is commonly used outside the combined descriptor to signify normal capsaicin spice in food.

True, but it isn't restricted to that; it also describes the taste of garlic.

(Whereas in English, I would never describe garlic or onions as "hot". If I needed a descriptor, I'd call them "sharp".)

Actually it's quite normal in American English to describe garlic as hot or spicy, especially raw garlic.

Maybe somewhere, but it's not a usage I've encountered. Chilis are described as hot; garlic is usually just described as "garlic".

Have you tried chewing on a fresh raw clove of garlic? You may find yourself using different words :)

> Have you tried chewing on a fresh raw clove of garlic?

Come on. You could at least read my comments before responding to them.

https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=32111461

You really think "sharp" is a bad descriptor for raw garlic?

Sharp seems reasonable, but I've never heard someone use it to describe garlic in isolation. I've only heard people use it when describing garlic flavor as part of a dish eg. "This pasta has a sharp garlic flavor".

Fresh raw garlic really burns, and I think it's quite normal to describe it as hot or spicy in American English.

> I would never describe garlic or onions as "hot"

Eat a raw garlic clove and then get back to me on that!

I've done it many times. Is one more going to be different somehow?

It's the same in German. Hot mustard is "scharf" meaning sharp, but in the USA you would buy "spicy" brown mustard. Horseradish is sharp. Habaneros are hot/spicy. I agree that a raw garlic clove or the right raw onion can be "spicy", but they dont have a heat profile like something loaded with capsaicin.

Garlic has a different chemical in it (allicin), but it hits the same receptors as capsaicin. If you've ever tasted a chimichurri with a ton of raw garlic before it's had a chance to mellow out in the oil, you'll attest that garlic can indeed be spicy.

Here are the main chemicals that are usually described as spicy - they all use the same mechanism to create a "heat" sensation, with the exception of the Sichuan peppercorns:

- Chile Peppers: Capsaicin

- Onions/Garlic: Allicin and Pyruvic Acid

- Ginger: Gingerol

- Black Pepper: Piperine

- Mustard/Horseradish/Wasabi: Allyl Isothiocyanate

- Sichuan Peppercorn: Hydroxy-Alpha-Sanshool

[1] https://www.nbcnews.com/id/wbna8963709

That's interesting, I wouldn't describe mustard as spicy. Mustard is shorter and more intense than capsaicin.

What about wasabi or horseradish?

Thanks for explaining that. I always wondered how sichuan pepper could cause such a different reaction to regular black or chili pepper, and now it makes sense

Is the numbing sensation similar to that of cloves?

Sort of, but not exactly. Cloves contain eugenol which can act as a mild anesthetic. Sichuan peppers contain hydroxy-alpha-sanshool another organic alcohol that is pretty different chemically, I think.

"Sanshool" is the Japanese word for a related pepper ("山椒", "sanshō"), combined with the "-ol" (alcohol) suffix.

No it’s more slightly numbing with some kind of electricity or bubbly (Effervescent) feeling.

cloves are sweet right? cloves have a pleasant taste and they don't taste "spicy" at all. I occasionally chew some cloves as a mouth freshener and I don't feel any overwhelming spicy-ness like black pepper or chilli pepper

Sichuan peppers are also not spicy at all. They have an intense herbal/mineral/fruity flavor that's hard to find comparisons for but it is nothing like the "heat" you get from any other foods considered hot like chili pepper, black pepper, ginger, raw garlic, etc.

To be clear, black pepper, chilis, and szechuan peppers are all distinct and unrelated plants.

And cloves. :-)

no, it's causing your lips to buzz as if electricity is flowing through them

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