Chili pepper is the most common condiment in contemporary China, especially in Sichuan, Guizhou, Yunnan and other places in the southwest, where people eat spicy food.

But in fact, chili peppers are native to Mexico in Central America and were not introduced to China until the mid-to-late Ming Dynasty.

In other words, the Chinese people have been exposed to chili peppers for only four hundred years, but they have become one of the most spicy-eating countries in the world.

In recent years, peppers can be seen everywhere on people's dining tables and in restaurants on the streets.

Chili pepper was introduced to China by sea with the opening of new shipping routes after the Longqing Switch and the Ming Dynasty lifted the sea ban.

The earliest record of chili peppers in China comes from the "Eight Notes of Zunsheng" written by Gao Lian, a famous opera writer in the Wanli period: "Pan peppers grow in clusters with white flowers. The fruit looks like a bald pen tip, spicy in taste and red in color, very impressive." From this record

It can be concluded that when chili peppers were first introduced to China, they were not used for eating, but for viewing. Moreover, the name at that time was not called "chili pepper", but "fanjiao".

This is normal. No one understands exotic crops and no one dares to eat them. When tomatoes were first discovered by Europeans, they were called "wolf fruits" and no one dared to eat them.

In addition, Gao Lian is from Hangzhou, which also proves that pepper was first spread in Zhejiang.

So why to this day, people in Zhejiang still have a bland taste, while people in Yunnan, Guizhou, and Sichuan areas eat chili peppers?

This has to mention another flavoring agent - table salt. Salt is not only the most common flavoring agent in ancient China, but it can also maintain the electrolyte balance in the human body and ensure people's health.

However, due to factors such as underdeveloped salt production technology in ancient times, inconvenient transportation, and uneven distribution of salt wells, inland areas have long-term salt shortages. The most serious area is Guizhou. In order to solve the salt shortage problem, during the Qianlong period, Guizhou Governor Zhang Guangsi even

Chishui river channels were specially dug to transport salt.

Guizhou has been short of salt for a long time, resulting in high salt prices. The poor people cannot afford it, so they begin to look for other condiments as a substitute.

Therefore, chili peppers have become the most important substitute for salt, which is why Guizhou is the first region in the country to eat chili peppers.

It can be seen that spiciness is an important tool to replace salt and salty taste, so exotic peppers with higher spiciness and higher survival rate have been valued.

However, in addition to maintaining electrolyte balance in the body.

The spiciness of chili peppers also has a more important role, which allowed it to take root quickly in Guizhou, and that is to go with rice.

The poor work intensively but have too little wealth to afford foods high in protein. They can only eat more staple foods, so condiments with strong flavors such as chili are easy to swallow.

In addition, the stimulation of the senses by chili also whets people's appetite and makes it easier to eat.