See WahCalling all spice lovers! Can you handle the heat?
Yup, this is it. The list that you guys have all been waiting for: the spiciest foods around Asia! After all, when it comes to spicy food, no one quite does it like how we Asians do, so here’s a list for you to indulge in all your hot fantasies!
1. India – Vindaloo Curry
Image credit: stu_spivack
What’s one of India’s most famous dish? Curry, of course. While many curries have been touted as the ‘world’s hottest’, such as Phaal curry, these are but pale imitations created outside of India. For an authentic spicy experience, try the Vindaloo curry, often accompanied by other meats. Originating from Goa, India, the original version of this tongue-numbing curry usually contains a harmony of subtle flavours, such as cinnamon and vinegar. If your tastebuds can’t take the heat, you’ll all be tasting the red-hot Kashmiri chilli peppers that give this dish it’s (enormous) kick!
Also read: 12 Droolworthy Local Foods You Must Try in India
2. Korea – Jjambbong
Image credit: Alpha
You would think that it’d be kimchi, but it’s not. And no, it’s not that ramen from the spicy ramen challenge. Instead, jjambbong takes the cake with its four different chillis from Korea, China, Vietnam, and India! This seafood noodle dish really knows how to pack a punch, and if you ever find yourself in Korea and you’re feeling particularly adventurous (or suicidal), head on over to Shingildong Spicy Jjambbong, with a killer soup base that’s been known for making people actually faint. Not hard to believe, though, what’s with a sign that requests for customers to throw up in the bathroom instead of the streets, lest the neighbours complain.
3. Thailand – Tom Yum
Image credit: Alpha
Thais like to make their food hot, and when I say hot, I mean like really, really mouth-burning hot. From green curry to pad thai, you just can’t seem to stop chugging down water (or everyone’s favourite – Thai iced tea). The winner, though, would really be their tom yum — a soup that embodies the Thai’s tradition of incorporating many different flavours into one dish. This sweet, sour, savoury and of course, spicy soup contains plenty of crushed bird’s eye chilli peppers, so prep yourself for a face full of tears (and plenty of iced tea) as you down this bowl of no-chill!
4. China – Ma La Hotpot
Image credit: momo
China is full of tongue-searing dishes, and combined with how large this country is, it’s pretty hard to decide which one would top the list! But after combing through all these tears-inducing dishes… Ma La Hotpot would probably come up on top. Literally “numbing, spicy”, this hot pot will have you running to the nearest water point. What’s with its dried chilli peppers, chilli powder, and numbing sichuan peppercorn?
5. Japan – Mouko Tanmen Nakatomo Ramen
Image credit: Guilhem Vellut
One wouldn’t think of Japan when spicy foods in Asia is discussed. I mean, after all, their curry is more sweet than anything else! But that doesn’t mean the Land of Rising Sun doesn’t have any tricks up its sleeve — some of their ramen are known to be rather spicy, and Mouko Tanmen Nakatomo Ramen comes up on top. (Okay, so technically, it’s the name of the restaurant, but still, it is known for having the spiciest ramen around.) We don’t exactly know what goes into it, but their spiciest ramen, bright red in colour, probably involves plenty of different spices. Plenty. I mean, how else do you send grown men crying with their face as red as the colour of their soup?
Also read: 11 Ramen Restaurants in Tokyo That Leave You Craving for More
6. Indonesia – Sambal
Image credit: Irwandy Mazwir
While sambal can be found in other Southeast Asian countries as well, this condiment is an extremely common element in many Indonesian cuisines. This hot sauce has many variants around the country, with the more popular ones being sambal terasi and shrimp paste sambal. This meal staple can be made up of many different ingredients, depending on the type, such as sugar, fruits, and shallots. But of course, the main and most important ingredient would be ground or pureed chilies, from spicy-hot varieties such as cayenne or bird’s eye. Go forth but go easy, lest you end up feeling like your whole tongue’s on fire!
7. Malaysia – Curry Laksa
Image credit: Tiberiu Ana
While not exclusive to Malaysia, Laksa can be found very easily in this country. This coconut soup-based noodle dish is spiced up with plenty of dried chillis, and if that’s not spicy enough for you, laksa is usually served with a side of sambal belacan for that added kick!
8. Singapore – Spicy Buffalo Wings
Image credit: Larry Hoffman
Ahh, Singapore. How can we miss our own little red dot out? Singapore is truly a foodie haven… From otah-otah, to curry chicken, to fish head curry, we simply can’t decide! Seriously, we have almost every cuisine imaginable here — from Thai food to Mexican, how on earth are we supposed to decide?!
So instead, we found something for you and your friends to do on a chill (okay, maybe not so chill after this) nights out! At Sunset Grill & Pub, located at Jalan Kayu, this place is the place to be if you’re a daredevil. Or if you’d like to be introduced to a world of pain. With their spicy buffalo wings ranked on a spiciness scale from 1 to 35, many Singaporeans flock here to test their limits, and apparently, anything above level 10 is a killer, so be warned! Anyone here brave enough to take the heat?
Also read: FOOD WAR! Singapore vs Malaysia – Who’s Better?
Of course, this list is by no means absolute! There’s so many different types of spicy food out there, with all their different chilis, tastes, texture, and more. So it’s pretty hard to decide which food should take the place as the ultimate spicy dish for each country.
Think you know something that’s even more spicy? Let us know! 🙂
