【英语原文】6.16

Q：Do spicy foods taste extra spicy when they are hot?

Mikka Luster：

Yes, a little. There are a number of factors playing into this.

First, warm foods taste more strongly than cold ones. Not all of the heat in hot foods is pure chemical sledgehammer, some is taste and fragrance. You can try this at home by eating a spoonful of warm and a spoonful of cold ice cream (if made with sugar, not HFCS, HFCS behaves differently when above 60° Celsius). The warm one will taste stronger.

Secondly, of course, if it's capsaicin heat you essentially do the same to your mouth as heat does. Capsaicin binds to a receptor called VR1 which also fires when there's heat and keeps it open, giving you the sensation of heat or warmth with an "abrasive" side-note. If those receptors are already firing because of actual heat the sensation is increased.

Lastly, when we're eating hot foods we tend to change our mouth and nasal passage layout. We "open up" to let the heat dissipate through the nasal passage and to limit contact with easily burned parts of our mouth. Cold food, on the other hand, we "clamp down" to allow the food to warm up some before entering the stomach. This opening, of course, also increases airflow and with that dissemination of fragrant particles that will stimulate receptors and cause a more full-bodied sensation.