Sriracha

[Narrator] Named for a town in coastal Thailand,

sriracha is one of the world's most popular hot sauces

but what's inside the crimson condiment

that makes it so pungently popular?

For starters, red jalapeño chili peppers add a nice

dash of spice thanks to the mouth-burning capsaicin,

a compound that's actually an irritant to mammals

which explains why the heat is on when it makes contact

with the trigeminal nerve in charge of

conveying temperature and pain to the brain.

The garlic in sriracha also activates

a trigeminal receptor specifically TRPA1,

the same protein responsible for the sting of wasabi.

Far less irritating are the other five named taste elements

communicated directly to your brain

sweet, salty, sour, bitter and umami AKA savory.

So, for instance, when taste receptors encountered

the sugar in sriracha they instantly send your brain

a flood of messages with the hashtag sweet.

As for the salt in the sauce, it's most likely detected

by separate ion channel receptors in your taste buds

and the same goes for distilled vinegar

which not only adds a tiny note to the overall

flavor profile but also extends sriracha's shelf life

while xanthan gum helps the other ingredients

cling to your tongue the way the so-called rooster sauce

clings to your food which

definitely gives your taste buds something to crow about.

Yum.

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