Hardly a day goes by when I don’t have chillies in my meal, whether fresh or cooked. I just gotta have it .

Frankly once you get the hang of it, you’ll wonder how you ever lived without it in the first place.

Cooked chilli is less fiery than fresh ones so if your tongue is not seasoned yet, start with something mild, preferably cooked.

Once you get the hang of it, you can graduate onto something a little more spicy.

Take your time. Leave the fresh fiery chillies for when you turn pro. Some tongues need to go to Chilli School for years before they can take the heat, and some just never graduate.

But at least try, okay? Because chilli not only tastes heavenly, it’s seriously good for you. It contains tons of Vitamin C. If you have a cold or feel one coming on, eat something hot and spicy and next thing you know, your itchy nose is gone!

Another useful thing to know about chillies is that if your tongue is on fire, drinking cold water will NOT douse the fire. You got to fight fire with fire. The best fire extinguisher is hot water or tea. I guarantee your fire will be put out in no time and you’ll happily get your tongue back .

My neighbor presented me with this bowl of killer chillies. I have no idea what its name is but I swear it sent me right through the roof, and I’m someone who regularly chomps on fresh bird’s eye chilli which is known to be super-duper fiery. So don’t try this at home or anywhere else and always wear a safety helmet !

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