It's true: the flour used for the corn tortillas so integral to Mexican food, masa harina, really does have ground-up stone in it -- but don't freak out about it. The limestone used in the mix is very fine, not gritty at all, and helps to hold together the thick masa tortilla dough, which is otherwise made of ground corn kernels.

Always, always wear thin plastic gloves or plastic bags on your hands when handling any kind of hot peppers while preparing your Mexican food. This makes it easy to avoid getting the oils on your hands. Even more important, don't ever touch your face or eyes while working with them; the result can be very painful.

To cut down on the heat from the hot peppers in your Mexican food, you can wait it out (it'll take at least six minutes), or take more drastic action and suck on a lime. The acid in the lime counteracts the alkali in the chili. A spoonful of sugar can also be effective in cutting the heat.