How to avoid and relieve Chilli burn

Been cutting any chilli’s up recently? Can’t get rid of that awful burn? I hope this article can help!

Before I start, I realise we are a Web Development company, and this post may seem a little random, but we at Kintek love our chilli. The standard lunch time conversation can usually find its way to some sort of chilli story. Our staff grow everything from your standard bird’s eye, to your Habanero, all to way to the Naga Jolokia (the worlds hottest chilli!). We pride ourselves on our homemade chilli sauces and chutneys.

Now that that’s out of the way, we can get started. For avid Chilli eaters, this article may save you some grief. As some of you may know, chillis contain Capsaicin, which is the main ingredient in pepper spray. When this comes into contact with sensitive parts of your body, it can cause a very uncomfortable burn, or wonderful, depending when where it ends up ;).

Below are a few known treatments to help stop the burn, and ease the pain.

Remedies for Preventing Chilli burn

• The first, fool proof way of prevent chilli burn is wear gloves! If you’re cutting up a whole bunch of them, get some disposable gloves. Obviously, be careful not to rub your eye when they’re on, and throw them out when you’re done.
• If you don’t have gloves, try washing your hands with an oil based substance straight after you finish cutting / de-seeding; olive oil works well. The fat in the oil helps dissolve the chemical that causes the burn.

Remedies for Relieving Chilli burn

• Lime with Lemon Juice both work very well, especially when mixed together; The Citric Acid cuts through the chilli burn. If you don’t have either of them, try another acidic fruit like a Grapefruit. Allegedly Vinegar works well too.
• As said above, oil based substances like Olive Oil should help ease the pain.
• Oil + an acidic liquid: Try combining a mixture of the suggested remedies!
• Alcohol works well too! Beer works well, but generally the more alcoholic the beverage, the better the relief. Spirits work particularly well.
• Butter Milk is said to work very well on the skin.
• Lastly, try rubbing some salt into your skin and leave it for a few minutes before rinsing it off. I have no personally tried this, but I have heard it works for some people.

So there you have it, if you have any other success stories please post here and let others know!

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