Mr. Mattos calls for tossing the chicken pieces with pungent garlic, hot chili flakes and sweet fennel seeds.

WSJ: Ignacio Mattos's Fennel, Chili and Yogurt Roast Chicken with Parsley Salad | Slow Food Fast

While fried calamari has become a ubiquitous appetizer on restaurant menus across America, hardly anyone outside the region has tried this delicious version, which involves tossing the fried calamari with sliced hot cherry peppers and garlic butter, for a salty, crispy, spicy combination that is beyond compare.

FORBES: Rhode Island Seafood

You could find yourself dining on wild garlic with Welsh rarebit (toasted bread with a hot cheese sauce) or wild leaves with spring lamb.

BBC: The wild taste of Wales

If you want to take some samples home to taste, canned snails are sold marinated in hot sauce or in Provencal style, with garlic, white wine and butter.

BBC: Learn to prepare snails in Provence

If you grind it with a hot pepper we call rocoto, and you put garlic and a little bit of salt and water, you get a blended mixture that is very good with boiled potatoes.

NPR: Getting the Taste of the Tamarillo