That’s a very good point, a lot of spices (and herbs) have strong flavors, even some "hot"ness, but little or no capsaicin. As a person who has a bad reaction to capsaicin (Even a moderate amount causes my hæmorrhoids to hæmorrhage for days. And yet, less applicable to Indian food, I can have all the wasabi/horseradish all day) but loves the other strong flavours of Indian food I would politely ask the waiter or chef to leave out the chilies and go easy on the ginger, but let loose on everything else they want: fenugreek, curry-leaf, asafœtida, aniseed, garlic, cardamom, coriander, black pepper and all the “secret spices” that make up their signature flavour.
And I would try to pick dishes where the base is something else and the chilies are added later, because they aren’t going to want to start from scratch, they can’t exactly un-marinate that chicken.
Mexican food is a little more challenging because chilies are the heart of it and often the first ingredient.
That’s a very good point, a lot of spices (and herbs) have strong flavors, even some "hot"ness, but little or no capsaicin. As a person who has a bad reaction to capsaicin (Even a moderate amount causes my hæmorrhoids to hæmorrhage for days. And yet, less applicable to Indian food, I can have all the wasabi/horseradish all day) but loves the other strong flavours of Indian food I would politely ask the waiter or chef to leave out the chilies and go easy on the ginger, but let loose on everything else they want: fenugreek, curry-leaf, asafœtida, aniseed, garlic, cardamom, coriander, black pepper and all the “secret spices” that make up their signature flavour.
And I would try to pick dishes where the base is something else and the chilies are added later, because they aren’t going to want to start from scratch, they can’t exactly un-marinate that chicken.
Mexican food is a little more challenging because chilies are the heart of it and often the first ingredient.