A white crock of French onion soup under bubbling, browned Gruyère and toasted baguette, with extra toast, cayenne and thyme on a butcher-block counter

Spicy French Onion Soup

Sweet onions cooked low and slow until deep brown, simmered with red wine and stock and a little cayenne, then topped with toasted baguette and broiled Gruyère.

Maple Chipotle Sauce

Maple Chipotle Sauce

Whether as a barbecue sauce marinade or as an on-the-side dipper, maple chipotle sauce delivers a perfect mix of sweet and spice. Chipotle peppers in adobo sauce add the heat, along with a smoky and earthy flair that’s a perfect flavor foil to sweet maple syrup. It’s …

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A small bowl of reddish-orange homemade curry powder with a heaped measuring spoon and small mounds of the ground spices that go into it on an oak table

Spicy Curry Powder

A homemade curry powder built on paprika, cumin, coriander, turmeric and fennel, with a full tablespoon of cayenne for real heat. Ready in five minutes.

A speckled white bowl of ground beef chili with red and green bell pepper, topped with sour cream, shredded cheddar and sliced green onions, on a butcher-block counter beside a fresh jalapeño, a terracotta napkin and a spoon.

Sweet And Spicy Chili

A slow cooker beef chili with brown sugar and smoky piquillo peppers on one side, and jalapeños, crushed red pepper and cayenne on the other.

Spicy Sweet Potato Fries

Spicy Sweet Potato Fries

It’s no secret – sweet potato fries are delicious simply plain. A little dash of salt along with that natural earthy sweetness is plenty good. But like many things sweet – they sure do pair well with fiery spices. Here we pair sweet potato fries …

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A speckled bowl of smooth, brick-orange chipotle tomato soup with a swirl of cream, next to a small dish of chipotles in adobo

Chipotle Tomato Soup

A creamy tomato soup with smoky chipotle heat, plus how hot it gets, how to blend it safely, ways to adjust it, what to serve with it, and how long it keeps.

Roasted red pepper and eggplant ajvar in a white bowl, with torn pita, seeded crackers and a small bowl of smoked paprika

Ajvar Sauce

There’s quite a delightful mix of flavors in the ajvar sauce. This Serbian recipe is sweet, tangy, spicy, and smoky all wrapped into one. And don’t let the word “sauce” fool you — this is a multi-purpose relish that can serve as well as a dipper or …

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A speckled white plate of golden chilli pakoras with their green stems on, one cut open to show the spiced potato filling, beside a small bowl of green coriander chutney on a butcher-block counter

Chilli Pakora

Chilli pakora: large green chilies stuffed with spiced potato, dipped in a chickpea flour batter and fried until golden. Choose paprika, cayenne or Thai chili powder to set the heat.

A speckled white bowl of Indian mutton curry with bone-in pieces of meat in a thick gravy flecked with black pepper, garnished with curry leaves, a bay leaf, a cinnamon stick and cilantro, on a wooden board beside a bowl of basmati rice.

Indian Mutton Curry

Mutton pressure-cooked in a smooth onion-tomato gravy with warm whole spices, curry leaves, red chili powder and a lot of black pepper.

Homemade spicy Thai seasoning, ready for a dry rub or a coconut milk marinade.

Spicy Thai Seasoning

A homemade spicy Thai seasoning with lemongrass, lime peel, ginger, garlic, mint and coconut, plus ground Thai chili for heat. Use it as a dry rub or stir it into coconut milk for a marinade.