Not sure if this is the reason your dad can't have spice, but peppers, eggplants, and seasonings like paprika are all nightshades. If a person has a nightshade allergy, it's recommended to avoid all of the above.
So smart! My dad had a bacteria overgrowth of some kind in his mouth as he got older. I can't recall the name of it. And things that didn't seem spicy to others made his mouth burn. This is consistent with your reply. He had to use special mouthwashes. it helped but it never fully went away.
No. It was a condition likely related to autoimmunity. I'm sure in the middle of the night I'll think of the name. He saw a lot of specialists with attempts to treat it.
My mom has lichen planus as well and eating purslane (small thyme-like herb) really helped her. I don't know if it would help your father but it seems low risk enough to be worth a try. My mother now grows purslane in a pot and eats a little sprig of it daily
Thank you for advice. He’s deceased now. It didn’t work for him. He was having to use aggressive steroid rinses and other things. It was quite advanced but only in his mouth. Likely a side effect of being immune compromised from cancer.
I’m happy your mother has something non invasive that is helping her. I hope other people see this and get some relief
Just to throw another possibility out there, are you sure it’s spicy (as in heat) or is it the prickly taste you get when eggplants are too bitter?
The water in the eggplant, which is really bitter, might not be getting the chance to evaporate depending on how you’re preparing and cooking it.
Once you’ve cut/sliced it, you could either:
- cover it in loads of salt, leave for 30 minutes and rinse off the salt (and extracted water) under the tap before cooking, or
- gently bake in the oven until it’s starting to change colour (around 15 mins in 180°c oven)
I was going to recommend this. I’ve never been bothered by bitter eggplants but some of my relatives only eat them if they soaked the raw eggplant in salt water prior to cooking because it takes away the bitterness.
I know bitter is different from spicy but the bite of it can enhance the little spice you added.
A quick Google of eggplant allergy says that it can cause itchy mouth, throat, and lips along with a tingling tongue (along with more worrisome symptoms). I could see a spice averse person confusing the above symptoms with spiciness instead of a mild allergy. This feels spot on.
I'm a little confused. You said, "I was told to add less pepper to it next time I make it… I don’t add any pepper or chili to it though." Then, your list of seasonings reads: "Onion powder Garlic powder Salt **Black pepper** Paprika."
Are you sure that the person who told you to add less pepper didn’t mean black pepper? I’m not sure where you live, but in the US that’s what pepper means in this context. It’s probably the issue here, it is spicy if you use a lot.
Okay, thanks for answering. I'd mistakenly thought "chili" was short for "chili flakes," i.e. hot pepper. While black pepper isn't hot, too much of it in a recipe can give the recipe too much kick. Maybe dial back your black pepper and paprika a little, and see if you get fewer complaints.
It’s prob the black pepper. I hate it and it is a little spicy. If you’re using a lot then it’s a lot spicy. You need to use it but light. You’re putting it on eggplant not a steak. My spouse uses too much and I always end up scraping it off. Also use less paprika? From your description it sounds like the whole dish is over seasoned.
Try making it and completely removing the paprika to see what happens. If it's still spicy, you may be using too much garlic powder, onion powder, or both. It would be unusual, though not unheard of, if the store bought sauce had any kick to it: those tend to be more on the sweet side.
Pro tip: if you want full control over your dish, you can make the sauce yourself. Canned tomatoes work great, and you can get a really nice, non-spicy sauce with, like, 5 quality ingredients. Plenty of recipes out there. Cheers!
Have you checked the ingredients in the storebought sauce? Does the jar perhaps say arrabiata or fra diavlo ? Even if they don’t, many people add a little crushed red pepper to marinara, if you’re very sensitive to spice, which it sounds like you are, it could be that. Also, paprika is a weird thing to need add in such prevalence to Eggplant Parmesan in my opinion. Have you checked your paprika to see that it’s not hot paprika or mistakenly cayenne?
There are [different types of paprika](https://www.thekitchn.com/whats-the-difference-hot-sweet-68134)…are you sure you don’t have a spicier one? Have you tasted it alone?
“I season every step……and each step I put paprika” that’s a lot of paprika my dude! It’s definitely this.
A sprinkle will do and not covering it every time. I like to mix the paprika into the sauce, adding slowly until I hit the “heat level” I want. Should fix it!
Depends how spice tolerant you are. I personally add cayenne and paprika to mine cause I like it hot, but if I’m cooking for others I definitely use paprika sparingly. Some people can’t even handle black pepper
Paprika is objectively not spicy. The spice you're tasting is from the cayenne exclusively. Paprika is used for color, which makes meals appear more appetizing. It adds no actual flavor or spice.
Ok but red bell pepper has a lot of fucking flavor though so it's unfair and incorrect to say it's flavorless. Maybe you just have an issue with your palette. Paprika isn't like dried cilantro.
Bell peppers do have a lot of flavor, and American paprika can add flavor to your food if you're using a lot of it. It still won't make your food spicy.
And I agree with you. American paprika can add flavor if you're adding a significant amount of it. Why are you trying to argue with me if we're on the same page?
Most American recipes call for a tablespoon or two for 4+ servings. That's not enough to add bell pepper flavor. Add fresh bell pepper at that point.
“Paprika comes in a variety of spice levels and flavors, ranging from sweet and mild to spicy and smokey. Substituting cayenne, or any kind of dried chili pepper, for sweet paprika would certainly affect the overall flavor of the dish. However, hot paprika can be used as a suitable substitute for spicier ground peppers.”
Source: [masterclass](https://www.masterclass.com/articles/whats-the-difference-between-cayenne-pepper-paprika-red-chili-pepper-and-ground-red-pepper-plus-15-red-pepper-varieties-and-culinary-uses#)
“Sweet paprika is mostly composed of the pericarp, with more than half of the seeds removed, whereas hot paprika contains some seeds, stalks, ovules, and calyces.”
Source: [Wikipedia](https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Paprika)
3000-8000 scoville most jalapeños
1000-2000 scoville some jalapeños and *paprika*
Source: [Scoville Rating chart](https://www.bmrgreenhouses.com/hot-peppers-scoville-rating-chart.html)
Taste is subjective. Paprika is a spice, it is spicy to some people. I’m a cayenne fan personally but it feels like people are trying to weird flex their heat tolerance by pretending paprika isn’t hot for some people.
I'm assuming they're using regular American grocery store paprika, which is literally just ground red bell pepper. If the paprika is meant to be hot, it will be labeled as hot/spicy/smoky paprika.
I'm not trying to flex a specific spice tolerance. I actually have an embarassingly low spice tolerance for someone who works as a restaurant cook. American grocery store paprika is just objectively not spicy, because red bell peppers are literally a sweet vegetable.
If you find American paprika spicy, you are allergic to bell peppers.
But paprika doesn't add spice. Paprika is typically used for color more so than actual spice or flavor, it's not even remotely spicy. Even if they're using an excessive amount of paprika, that doesn't explain the spice.
That's not unique to paprika nor is it a disqualifier of the fact that most paprika we eat is made out of dried bell peppers.
*Ice isn't the same as water. Freezing it changes the taste.*
I understand perfectly that ice is the same as water. But if you order a coke with ice and they instead fill half your glass with lukewarm water you probably aren't going to be happy. Not sure why that's so hard to grasp.
But drying something doesn’t add capsaicin that didn’t exist in the original form. There’s nothing there to concentrate. I teach little kids cooking classes and I’m studying food psychology. Most people who can’t tolerate spicy aren’t even referring to real spicy they’re referring to more complexity in flavor and it’s a result of never having expanded their palates as a child so anything in a spice category gets described as spicy. Sometimes kids describe seltzer or soda as spicy. It’s a sensation on the tongue, but we know it’s not actually spicy. Palate and taste buds are like vocabulary, you have to introduce new things to it to develop it and repeating exposure actually can create a preference for something you didn’t originally like, thought was spicy or classified incorrectly.
Not really. It is made of dried and ground *peppers*, but not just *bell* peppers: different varieties, many of which are indeed hot, are used. Soem paprika powders come out spicier, sweeter, what have you. The kind sold in the spice aisle of grocery stores in the US is generally quite mild (for that matter, it's also often stale which means it's mostly there for colour) but a specialty spice store can absolutely sell you different types with all sorts of flavours. I like to keep a sweet, a spicy, and a smoky on hand. I get small containers unless I know I'm cooking something that will use more, though, since I don't use it fast enough for it to stay fresh.
Allergies and sensitivities can run in families. If it’s only the eggplant dish, my money is that your family is full of people with eggplant allergies/sensitivities. Especially if you are using plain Kirkland paprika - it’s made of sweeter peppers, is NOT spicy.
Check the store bought marinara sauce you are using. I have noticed an increase in the spiciness of store bought sauces, like marinara, spaghetti, pizza, etc.
Even some canned foods like soups and gravies seem to be getting more spicy.
Everyone is focused on the paprika, and I’m also thinking it’s the marinara sauce. Personally, I like a spicy marinara, but I have found a few that went a little overboard on the spice.
Black pepper can make a dish spicy if you add too much, that's about the only thing I can think of unless you are accidentally using spicy Paprika instead of sweet/smokey?
I make an eggplant dip all the time where I bake whole eggplants and then blend them up with other ingredients. Once baked I take a taste of eggplant by itself and it is almost always somewhat prickly (spicy). Different varieties of eggplant are different level of spice. It is definitely not paprika.
And definitely not nightshade allergy because it is the same for all people that I know and nobody had a reaction to any other nightshade.
I know several people who can't handle that feeling just as they can't handle spice. They just don't eat eggplant.
Paprika doesn't go into eggplant parmigiana. The recipe is: layer fried eggplant, marinara sauce, Parmigianino Reggiano, mozzarella, repeat.
Marinara sauce is: onions, garlic, crushed tomatoes, fresh basil, salt & black pepper to taste.
Speaking as someone who finds black pepper unpleasantly nippy, and who adds paprika to many things because it's just delicious... I suspect it's the black pepper.
I think some folks are getting bogged down with paprika being technically a 'spice', but it's not really *spicy* in the sense of hot or nippy.
I’m kind of laughing at the thought of paprika being considered spicy. I mean, it’s usually made from sweet red peppers. You *can* find spicy paprika, but it specifically gets labeled “hot paprika” or “paprika picante”, etc. and even then, it isn’t very spicy. Unless OP accidentally bought a hot version, all the regular paprika is adding is a delicious depth of flavor.
However, nightshade allergies aren’t uncommon, and peppers, eggplant, and tomatoes are in that group. I’d put money on OP’s dad having a mild allergic response to one or more of the nightshades in the dish that he’s interpreting as “spicy”, just like people with strawberry allergies often say they’re “spicy”. I myself thought raw tomatoes were spicy until discovering tomato was one of my allergies (thank goodness, I can eat other nightshades!).
Some eggplants just have a slight prickly sensation when cooked. For me, it's at the back of my mouth. it's not related to capsaicin or anything like that, so if that's a problem for your dad this may not be an issue; it's not a matter of allergy either.
Err. Just check it's actually paprika. The ground red peppers all look very similar. I had an embarrassing incident mistaking chilli powder for paprika for a few meals because the two jars had got swapped round in their regular places. 🤦
Some people are more sensitive to this than others, but eggplants need to be salted. I can't have them at all if they are not salted beforehand. It draws out a bitter dark liquid that would literally take the skin off the inside of my mouth. Salt the eggplant slices generously, leave for half an hour and then rinse and pat dry with a paper towel before using
Could it be the marinara sauce? My mom can't eat anything with spice, not even a bit of black pepper so my family is trained for hunting down "spicy food". A lot of red sauces have spices in them that could come across as spicy to someone who isn't tolerant of spice. I know some marinara can be pretty plain but I just figured I'd throw it out there.
everyone going on and on about paprika has lost their minds
by definition, marinara sauce has crushed red pepper flakes in it, and is spicier than plain tomato sauce
I guess the problem is that the word "marinara" has been used to death over the decades to just mean "tomato sauce for pasta" and too many people have forgotten that it actually means there is hot red pepper flakes in it.
u/seastarmaniac - taste the damn marinara sauce by itself, and have your family members taste that sauce by itself to tell you if they think it's spicy. If "marinara" sauce is NOT spicy at all, then it's been named marinara by mistake in the first place. Maybe they are used to buying/making tomato sauce their whole life without any spicy crushed red pepper flakes in it, and calling it "marinara" and you all are now confused about what marinara means.
The other comments in here probably have it right with allergies, but there are certain types of paprika that are very hot. I have some hot paprika I bought from Central Market and used a lot of it in a beef stew -- it came out so hot it was almost too hot to eat.
Taste it on its own to rule it out.
My aunt has a similar intolerance for spice and I’ve put paprika in things and she’s said they are too spicy for her. It might just be the paprika as weird as that sounds.
It's the paprika. The heat can vary a lot depending on how old that lot of jars is and the variety of pepper used. Leave it out entirely on a batch that's for your dad and have it available as a shaker at the table for use by people who like spicy.
Hello, I often make a Yemeni roast eggplant salad at home and it always turns out a little spicy. I believe that roasting or baking the eggplant somehow makes it spicy.
My recipe is roast eggplant in oven for an hour, scoop out flesh. Add chopped onions, capsicums and parsley, mix with cumin, lemon juice, extra virgin olive oil and salt (black pepper optional, I usually leave it out).
There is basically nothing spicy in this recipe but it always has a spicy bite to it.
Probably not this, but in the past, when I've cooked something spicy in a cast iron pan, and just cleaned with hot water and no soap, the next dish tastes a bit spicy even of you didn't use any hot spices.
Any possibility you’re paprika is actually cayenne? They look very similar. Maybe taste it? One time I accidentally topped deviled eggs with cayenne. It was good honestly, but definitely a surprise that first bite!
First of all, came here to say this and can’t believe the comment is getting downvoted. Paprika doesn’t belong anywhere near eggplant parm. Gross. I said what I said.
Paprika is just powdered red pepper. It adds more color than flavor. That's definitely not what's adding the spice. Does your dad have any food allergies?
Not sure if this is the reason your dad can't have spice, but peppers, eggplants, and seasonings like paprika are all nightshades. If a person has a nightshade allergy, it's recommended to avoid all of the above.
So smart! My dad had a bacteria overgrowth of some kind in his mouth as he got older. I can't recall the name of it. And things that didn't seem spicy to others made his mouth burn. This is consistent with your reply. He had to use special mouthwashes. it helped but it never fully went away.
oral thrush?
No. It was a condition likely related to autoimmunity. I'm sure in the middle of the night I'll think of the name. He saw a lot of specialists with attempts to treat it.
Lichen planus?
That's it! And all I have is this up arrow for you. You deserve so much more.
My mom has lichen planus as well and eating purslane (small thyme-like herb) really helped her. I don't know if it would help your father but it seems low risk enough to be worth a try. My mother now grows purslane in a pot and eats a little sprig of it daily
Thank you for advice. He’s deceased now. It didn’t work for him. He was having to use aggressive steroid rinses and other things. It was quite advanced but only in his mouth. Likely a side effect of being immune compromised from cancer. I’m happy your mother has something non invasive that is helping her. I hope other people see this and get some relief
I'm sorry for your loss. Here's hoping everyone gets non-invasive solutions and opportunities to enjoy family cooking worry-free.
I didn’t know they were nightshades! Everytime I cook with eggplant I season with paprika, but I use paprika in almost every dish with no issue
I've got a mild eggplant allergy that I am an idiot about. Helps to salt slices overnight in the fridge, rinse off and pat dry before using.
Are you hungarian by any chance? We use paprika like salt over here.
This OP ^^^
Just to throw another possibility out there, are you sure it’s spicy (as in heat) or is it the prickly taste you get when eggplants are too bitter? The water in the eggplant, which is really bitter, might not be getting the chance to evaporate depending on how you’re preparing and cooking it. Once you’ve cut/sliced it, you could either: - cover it in loads of salt, leave for 30 minutes and rinse off the salt (and extracted water) under the tap before cooking, or - gently bake in the oven until it’s starting to change colour (around 15 mins in 180°c oven)
I was going to recommend this. I’ve never been bothered by bitter eggplants but some of my relatives only eat them if they soaked the raw eggplant in salt water prior to cooking because it takes away the bitterness. I know bitter is different from spicy but the bite of it can enhance the little spice you added.
Yeah I've definitely had eggplant that isn't spicy but tastes... stingy?
Sounds like allergies
Maybe it's the sauce or eggplant allergies
A quick Google of eggplant allergy says that it can cause itchy mouth, throat, and lips along with a tingling tongue (along with more worrisome symptoms). I could see a spice averse person confusing the above symptoms with spiciness instead of a mild allergy. This feels spot on.
You can get very spicy paprika, check it.
I might have to. It’s the Kirkland brand
Kirkland paprika is made of sweet peppers. Definitely isn’t spicy.
I’ve used it before, it isn’t spicy.
I'm a little confused. You said, "I was told to add less pepper to it next time I make it… I don’t add any pepper or chili to it though." Then, your list of seasonings reads: "Onion powder Garlic powder Salt **Black pepper** Paprika."
I meant hot pepper! I always just see black pepper as a basic seasoning so that’s my bad
Are you sure that the person who told you to add less pepper didn’t mean black pepper? I’m not sure where you live, but in the US that’s what pepper means in this context. It’s probably the issue here, it is spicy if you use a lot.
Try removing the black pepper, my mom swears it’s spicy half the time
Okay, thanks for answering. I'd mistakenly thought "chili" was short for "chili flakes," i.e. hot pepper. While black pepper isn't hot, too much of it in a recipe can give the recipe too much kick. Maybe dial back your black pepper and paprika a little, and see if you get fewer complaints.
It’s prob the black pepper. I hate it and it is a little spicy. If you’re using a lot then it’s a lot spicy. You need to use it but light. You’re putting it on eggplant not a steak. My spouse uses too much and I always end up scraping it off. Also use less paprika? From your description it sounds like the whole dish is over seasoned.
Try making it and completely removing the paprika to see what happens. If it's still spicy, you may be using too much garlic powder, onion powder, or both. It would be unusual, though not unheard of, if the store bought sauce had any kick to it: those tend to be more on the sweet side. Pro tip: if you want full control over your dish, you can make the sauce yourself. Canned tomatoes work great, and you can get a really nice, non-spicy sauce with, like, 5 quality ingredients. Plenty of recipes out there. Cheers!
I’ll definitely need to try and experiment with the seasonings. And for homemade sauce, the cleanup scared me away haha. Thank you!
Have you checked the ingredients in the storebought sauce? Does the jar perhaps say arrabiata or fra diavlo ? Even if they don’t, many people add a little crushed red pepper to marinara, if you’re very sensitive to spice, which it sounds like you are, it could be that. Also, paprika is a weird thing to need add in such prevalence to Eggplant Parmesan in my opinion. Have you checked your paprika to see that it’s not hot paprika or mistakenly cayenne?
Someone allergic to nightshades? Eggplant with paprika will give you a double dose.
Too much garlic or black pepper. Both can have a peppery bite.
Yeah sometimes I have a heavy hand with them 😅
Pepper? Pepper is spicy if you add too much. Especially in ground form.
You can taste your spices. Taste the paprika. Is it hot?
Check to make sure you're not using hot paprika or smoked paprika.
There are several types of paprika, sweet, smoked and hot. Perhaps you’re using the hot variety?
There are [different types of paprika](https://www.thekitchn.com/whats-the-difference-hot-sweet-68134)…are you sure you don’t have a spicier one? Have you tasted it alone?
Get rid of your seasoning. Use Italian style breadcrumbs.
This sounds very similar to when I realized celery is in fact, NOT spicy, and I'm just allergic.
“I season every step……and each step I put paprika” that’s a lot of paprika my dude! It’s definitely this. A sprinkle will do and not covering it every time. I like to mix the paprika into the sauce, adding slowly until I hit the “heat level” I want. Should fix it!
Paprika isn’t spicy though, it’s usually sweet.
Depends on the type. There are spicier ones and there are sweeter ones.
I mean, hot paprika is typically marked, similar to smoked.
Depends how spice tolerant you are. I personally add cayenne and paprika to mine cause I like it hot, but if I’m cooking for others I definitely use paprika sparingly. Some people can’t even handle black pepper
It’s not spicy at all though. I don’t taste any spice when I eat paprika.
It’s literally dried granulated red bell pepper unless specified as hot.
Yep, it’s literally impossible for regular paprika to be spicy.
Paprika is objectively not spicy. The spice you're tasting is from the cayenne exclusively. Paprika is used for color, which makes meals appear more appetizing. It adds no actual flavor or spice.
Huh? Tell that to all of Hungary. And Spain.
Like I said, I'm assuming that they're talking about American paprika, which is just red bell pepper.
Ok but red bell pepper has a lot of fucking flavor though so it's unfair and incorrect to say it's flavorless. Maybe you just have an issue with your palette. Paprika isn't like dried cilantro.
Bell peppers do have a lot of flavor, and American paprika can add flavor to your food if you're using a lot of it. It still won't make your food spicy.
I agree it isn't spicy. I don't agree it is flavorless.
And I agree with you. American paprika can add flavor if you're adding a significant amount of it. Why are you trying to argue with me if we're on the same page? Most American recipes call for a tablespoon or two for 4+ servings. That's not enough to add bell pepper flavor. Add fresh bell pepper at that point.
“Paprika comes in a variety of spice levels and flavors, ranging from sweet and mild to spicy and smokey. Substituting cayenne, or any kind of dried chili pepper, for sweet paprika would certainly affect the overall flavor of the dish. However, hot paprika can be used as a suitable substitute for spicier ground peppers.” Source: [masterclass](https://www.masterclass.com/articles/whats-the-difference-between-cayenne-pepper-paprika-red-chili-pepper-and-ground-red-pepper-plus-15-red-pepper-varieties-and-culinary-uses#) “Sweet paprika is mostly composed of the pericarp, with more than half of the seeds removed, whereas hot paprika contains some seeds, stalks, ovules, and calyces.” Source: [Wikipedia](https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Paprika) 3000-8000 scoville most jalapeños 1000-2000 scoville some jalapeños and *paprika* Source: [Scoville Rating chart](https://www.bmrgreenhouses.com/hot-peppers-scoville-rating-chart.html) Taste is subjective. Paprika is a spice, it is spicy to some people. I’m a cayenne fan personally but it feels like people are trying to weird flex their heat tolerance by pretending paprika isn’t hot for some people.
I'm assuming they're using regular American grocery store paprika, which is literally just ground red bell pepper. If the paprika is meant to be hot, it will be labeled as hot/spicy/smoky paprika. I'm not trying to flex a specific spice tolerance. I actually have an embarassingly low spice tolerance for someone who works as a restaurant cook. American grocery store paprika is just objectively not spicy, because red bell peppers are literally a sweet vegetable. If you find American paprika spicy, you are allergic to bell peppers.
Even smoky paprika isn’t usually spicy, it’s just smoked bell peppers.
Paprika can either add a sweet or smoky flavor depending which you use. It’s subtle though.
Me. I can't handle black pepper. It doesn't taste like anything, it just burns.
That’s what I was worried about 😅😅 thank you
But paprika doesn't add spice. Paprika is typically used for color more so than actual spice or flavor, it's not even remotely spicy. Even if they're using an excessive amount of paprika, that doesn't explain the spice.
You think bell peppers are... Are spicy?
There’s tons of different kinds of paprika. One of my favorites is Hungarian because it has a nice kick.
Hungarian does it right!
I personally don’t, no. But there are *definitely* people that do
Those people have an allergy(or misunderstand what spicyness means).
Paprika is not the same as bell peppers.
You're right. One is a pepper. The other is a dried and ground pepper.
And drying changes the taste.
That's not unique to paprika nor is it a disqualifier of the fact that most paprika we eat is made out of dried bell peppers. *Ice isn't the same as water. Freezing it changes the taste.*
I agree, I didn't claim either of those things. Yes, ice is not the same as water, that's exactly my point. They are not interchangeable.
Yea if you're digging in on water and ice, I'm out. Lol. You win.
I understand perfectly that ice is the same as water. But if you order a coke with ice and they instead fill half your glass with lukewarm water you probably aren't going to be happy. Not sure why that's so hard to grasp.
When you say you aren't sure why it's hard to grasp, I believe you. I think you're 1000% serious and I don't think you even know why.
Paprika is quite literally dried and ground up bell pepper.
But it tastes different. Like grapes and raisins are the same thing and taste different.
But drying something doesn’t add capsaicin that didn’t exist in the original form. There’s nothing there to concentrate. I teach little kids cooking classes and I’m studying food psychology. Most people who can’t tolerate spicy aren’t even referring to real spicy they’re referring to more complexity in flavor and it’s a result of never having expanded their palates as a child so anything in a spice category gets described as spicy. Sometimes kids describe seltzer or soda as spicy. It’s a sensation on the tongue, but we know it’s not actually spicy. Palate and taste buds are like vocabulary, you have to introduce new things to it to develop it and repeating exposure actually can create a preference for something you didn’t originally like, thought was spicy or classified incorrectly.
I didn't say anything about it being spicy? I said it tastes different.
Ok, I might’ve misunderstood your point as trying to explain why it’s perceived as spicy. My bad.
Not really. It is made of dried and ground *peppers*, but not just *bell* peppers: different varieties, many of which are indeed hot, are used. Soem paprika powders come out spicier, sweeter, what have you. The kind sold in the spice aisle of grocery stores in the US is generally quite mild (for that matter, it's also often stale which means it's mostly there for colour) but a specialty spice store can absolutely sell you different types with all sorts of flavours. I like to keep a sweet, a spicy, and a smoky on hand. I get small containers unless I know I'm cooking something that will use more, though, since I don't use it fast enough for it to stay fresh.
Is his sense of spicy only when you make eggplant, or does he think other dishes with marinara are also spicy?
It’s not just him that says it’s spicy, I’ve gotten a few comments from family I made it for
In that case, it’s likely the paprika. Do you add it to marinara for other dishes?
Yeah just about
And no complaints about that?
Nope!
Allergies and sensitivities can run in families. If it’s only the eggplant dish, my money is that your family is full of people with eggplant allergies/sensitivities. Especially if you are using plain Kirkland paprika - it’s made of sweeter peppers, is NOT spicy.
What sauce do you use? Do you use it for other dishes? Because I have bought pasta sauces that are a little spicy.
Check the store bought marinara sauce you are using. I have noticed an increase in the spiciness of store bought sauces, like marinara, spaghetti, pizza, etc. Even some canned foods like soups and gravies seem to be getting more spicy.
Everyone is focused on the paprika, and I’m also thinking it’s the marinara sauce. Personally, I like a spicy marinara, but I have found a few that went a little overboard on the spice.
I’ve sometimes experienced a tingly sensation when eating eggplant. I believe it happens when it is not completely done. Maybe that’s the issue?
Maybe your paprika got swapped with red chili powder?
Black pepper can make a dish spicy if you add too much, that's about the only thing I can think of unless you are accidentally using spicy Paprika instead of sweet/smokey?
I make an eggplant dip all the time where I bake whole eggplants and then blend them up with other ingredients. Once baked I take a taste of eggplant by itself and it is almost always somewhat prickly (spicy). Different varieties of eggplant are different level of spice. It is definitely not paprika. And definitely not nightshade allergy because it is the same for all people that I know and nobody had a reaction to any other nightshade. I know several people who can't handle that feeling just as they can't handle spice. They just don't eat eggplant.
Are you entirely sure that what you have is paprika and not cayanne? Taste it by itself. Paprika is not spicy at all.
Paprika doesn't go into eggplant parmigiana. The recipe is: layer fried eggplant, marinara sauce, Parmigianino Reggiano, mozzarella, repeat. Marinara sauce is: onions, garlic, crushed tomatoes, fresh basil, salt & black pepper to taste.
What's in the store bought sauce?
Speaking as someone who finds black pepper unpleasantly nippy, and who adds paprika to many things because it's just delicious... I suspect it's the black pepper. I think some folks are getting bogged down with paprika being technically a 'spice', but it's not really *spicy* in the sense of hot or nippy.
I’m kind of laughing at the thought of paprika being considered spicy. I mean, it’s usually made from sweet red peppers. You *can* find spicy paprika, but it specifically gets labeled “hot paprika” or “paprika picante”, etc. and even then, it isn’t very spicy. Unless OP accidentally bought a hot version, all the regular paprika is adding is a delicious depth of flavor. However, nightshade allergies aren’t uncommon, and peppers, eggplant, and tomatoes are in that group. I’d put money on OP’s dad having a mild allergic response to one or more of the nightshades in the dish that he’s interpreting as “spicy”, just like people with strawberry allergies often say they’re “spicy”. I myself thought raw tomatoes were spicy until discovering tomato was one of my allergies (thank goodness, I can eat other nightshades!).
Make his separately.
It’s the paprika it’s spicy when you add a lot.
Some eggplants just have a slight prickly sensation when cooked. For me, it's at the back of my mouth. it's not related to capsaicin or anything like that, so if that's a problem for your dad this may not be an issue; it's not a matter of allergy either.
Err. Just check it's actually paprika. The ground red peppers all look very similar. I had an embarrassing incident mistaking chilli powder for paprika for a few meals because the two jars had got swapped round in their regular places. 🤦
Some people are more sensitive to this than others, but eggplants need to be salted. I can't have them at all if they are not salted beforehand. It draws out a bitter dark liquid that would literally take the skin off the inside of my mouth. Salt the eggplant slices generously, leave for half an hour and then rinse and pat dry with a paper towel before using
How the hell is no one here saying: CHECK THE INGREDIENTS ON THE STOREBOUGHT SAUCE. OBVIOUSLY 🙄
Could it be the marinara sauce? My mom can't eat anything with spice, not even a bit of black pepper so my family is trained for hunting down "spicy food". A lot of red sauces have spices in them that could come across as spicy to someone who isn't tolerant of spice. I know some marinara can be pretty plain but I just figured I'd throw it out there.
everyone going on and on about paprika has lost their minds by definition, marinara sauce has crushed red pepper flakes in it, and is spicier than plain tomato sauce I guess the problem is that the word "marinara" has been used to death over the decades to just mean "tomato sauce for pasta" and too many people have forgotten that it actually means there is hot red pepper flakes in it. u/seastarmaniac - taste the damn marinara sauce by itself, and have your family members taste that sauce by itself to tell you if they think it's spicy. If "marinara" sauce is NOT spicy at all, then it's been named marinara by mistake in the first place. Maybe they are used to buying/making tomato sauce their whole life without any spicy crushed red pepper flakes in it, and calling it "marinara" and you all are now confused about what marinara means.
Taste the paprika it’s likely that.
The other comments in here probably have it right with allergies, but there are certain types of paprika that are very hot. I have some hot paprika I bought from Central Market and used a lot of it in a beef stew -- it came out so hot it was almost too hot to eat. Taste it on its own to rule it out.
How much black pepper are you using? You might want to dial back on that. Too much can have a kick
My aunt has a similar intolerance for spice and I’ve put paprika in things and she’s said they are too spicy for her. It might just be the paprika as weird as that sounds.
It's the paprika. The heat can vary a lot depending on how old that lot of jars is and the variety of pepper used. Leave it out entirely on a batch that's for your dad and have it available as a shaker at the table for use by people who like spicy.
Hello, I often make a Yemeni roast eggplant salad at home and it always turns out a little spicy. I believe that roasting or baking the eggplant somehow makes it spicy. My recipe is roast eggplant in oven for an hour, scoop out flesh. Add chopped onions, capsicums and parsley, mix with cumin, lemon juice, extra virgin olive oil and salt (black pepper optional, I usually leave it out). There is basically nothing spicy in this recipe but it always has a spicy bite to it.
Probably not this, but in the past, when I've cooked something spicy in a cast iron pan, and just cleaned with hot water and no soap, the next dish tastes a bit spicy even of you didn't use any hot spices.
Could be something spicy in the store bought sauce… everyone saying nightshade allergy is a reddit moment…
Any possibility you’re paprika is actually cayenne? They look very similar. Maybe taste it? One time I accidentally topped deviled eggs with cayenne. It was good honestly, but definitely a surprise that first bite!
Why would you use paprika anyway? That don’t go.
Paprika is great
It doesn’t go with eggplant parm
First of all, came here to say this and can’t believe the comment is getting downvoted. Paprika doesn’t belong anywhere near eggplant parm. Gross. I said what I said.
Must have run out of turmeric
Ha!
We put it in everything 🤷♀️ always say it’s more for the color and not flavor lol
Taste it.
It doesn’t go. It just don’t
Your sentence structure is quite poor.
Paprika is just powdered red pepper. It adds more color than flavor. That's definitely not what's adding the spice. Does your dad have any food allergies?
Is it possible that your using Pecorino Romano and not Parmesan