Rice, pasta and couscous are staple foods in various countries around the world.  Pasta is a staple food in only Italy, whereas the other two are more widespread in their use.  Rice is consumed as a staple in many parts of Asia, whereas couscous is more commonly found in  Maghrebi cuisine, consisting of countries like Tunisia, Algeria, Morocco, Mauritania and Libya;

Each country has regions where spicy foods are more commonly eaten. Calabria in Italy, for example, is known for its love of spicy food made with chillies. Similarly,  many  Spicy rice dishes using chillies are found in (amongst many others)  various parts of China,  Thailand and Vietnam.  In Maghrebi cuisine, while chillies are added to give piquancy to couscous dishes, spiciness is more commonly added through fiery chilli pastes like Harrisa.

This section explores recipes from these parts of the world and other countries how chillies are used with these staple foods.