Who knew 1/2 tablespoon would make such a huge difference?

I am a huge fan of spicy edibles. The spicier, the better. If it can make me sweat bullets, all the better. But, I do have limits, as I discovered last night, when half a tablespoon more nearly did me in.

My turkey chili recipe calls for 1-2 Tbsp of chili powder. But what the hey, why not 2-1/2 Tbsp? Can handle!

After all was said an done, the result was flaming fireballs emitting from my mouth and beads of sweat pouring down my face. It was so good, I took seconds. Hubby’s entire head was soaked by the time he was done with his bowl of chili. But a few minutes later, I felt simply awful — like I had eaten a handful of habaneros. Fiery embers burned in the pit of my stomach, my face was flushed and I was still sweating 15 minutes later. Surely, I thought, that second helping did me in and I was going to suffer a sleepless night of heartburn and agony.

After I emerged from the bathroom, Hubby looked at me and asked with genuine concern, “do you need to go to the emergency room?”

“No,” I muttered, feeling absolutely miserable as I flopped myself on a chair. Can you imagine? Showing up at the ER and telling them my reason for being there? “I ate a batch of chili that was too spicy. Now I think I’m dying.”

After dousing the flames in my tummy with generous amounts of water, I felt substantially better. I even managed to make it through the rest of the night without so much of a tummy ache or slight heartburn. Can handle!

The question being, will I ever make that recipe with a half a teaspoon more? Probably not. 2 Tbsp is good enough for me.

Here’s the recipe for my healthy turkey chili recipe, if you want to try it out. Will you make it with half a teaspoon more?

Easy & Tasty Turkey Chili (Champuru style)

Ingredients:
2 T. shortening
1 medium onion, chopped
2 cloves garlic, minced
1 lb. ground turkey
1-2 T. chili powder
1/4 t. cayenne pepper
1/2 t. salt
1/8 t. pepper
2 cans tomato soup
1/2 cup shelled edamame (soybeans)*
1 can corn
1 chopped green bell pepper

Melt shortening. Add onions, garlic, and turkey; brown slightly. Add remaining ingredients. Cover, cook on low heat for 30 minutes. Stir occasionally.

*NOTE: I hate kidney beans, so I use edamame instead. If you prefer kidney beans, substitute with 1 can of kidney beans.

[tags]food, recipe, spicy, chili[/tags]