Spiced with hot peppers or sharp seasonings; prepared with a spicy sauce or coating (as in deviled eggs).
From 'devil,' which in cooking came to mean 'seasoned fiercely' or 'inflamed with spices.' The culinary use emerged in the 1700s, where 'devil' metaphorically described the intense heat of spices.
The term 'deviled' became popular during the British colonial era when spices from India and the East Indies were exotic and expensive—calling a dish 'deviled' was showing off that you could afford these hot, imported ingredients.
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