Why You Should Never Microwave Chili Peppers

I have been roasting food since childhood, but no one taught me the Rules for cooking in the microwave. I learned not to put metal in it when I went to reheat Wendy’s foil-wrapped hamburger and learned about the dangers of overheating liquids in chemistry class. However, no one warned me about chili peppers.

It’s perfectly fine to cook or soften bell peppers or bell peppers in the microwave, but hot chili peppers should be avoided unless you enjoy pain and suffering. Capsaicin, the molecule responsible for the hotness of peppers, is a rather volatile thing, and microwaved peppers will cause them to release their capsaicin, effectively filling your microwave with homemade pepper spray.

When you open the microwave, this homemade pepper spray hits your face, eyes, and respiratory system, causing pain. How painful (and potentially dangerous) depends on how hot your chili is, but things can get extreme. Back in 2016, WHAM TV reported that a chemical defense team had to be called to an apartment building because of a single microwave-cooked pepper. No serious injuries were reported, but the occupants had to be evacuated due to irritation. (Unfortunately, they didn’t show what kind of pepper it was.)

Luckily, there’s an easy way to avoid this: don’t microwave hot peppers. Grill them, pan them, or roast them in the oven—and even then, consider turning on a fan if you’re working with peppers that are high in capsaicin. (Unless you’re grilling them; most grilling takes place outside.) And, if you have independent kids who love to cook their own meals, make sure they’re aware that microwaves aren’t allowed. Metal may be the most obvious, but the dangers of homemade pepper spray should probably be somewhere on the list.