Playing with fire in the kitchen is definitely dangerous. But it can also be delicious – if you learn to play with a few culinary heat makers.

It involves working with a variety of spicy, pungent or tart foods – from arugula and chilies to garlic, ginger, wasabi and Worcestershire sauce – that can spark a reaction in your mouth, throat and nose that may smolder, flame or tingle pleasantly.

Shrimp are marinated in piri piri sauce, then quickly sauteed before being served in lettuce leaves with more of the spicy sauce.

Combining such foods in a dish and doing it well can be a challenge, though, for it goes beyond degrees Fahrenheit, Scoville scores and chest-thumping boasts.

“Here in America, we tend to want degrees of heat. It’s more of a macho I-can-eat-hotter-than-you, and it tends to overwhelm a lot of the other flavors in a dish,” says chef William Phillips at the Culinary Institute of America in Hyde Park, N.Y. “You don’t want to dominate the main item with heat or spices. You want to be able to taste all of the ingredients.”

Chef and cookbook author Marcus Samuelsson might agree. “When people say they’re going to make spicy food, what they don’t understand is that it’s a song and dance,” he says. “It’s a balance.”

Phillips calls it “the rhythm of flavor.” And both chefs say it involves knowing how piquant foods affect your senses, complement other ingredients and can be layered to let all the elements shine.

Paul Wise knows exactly what those tart, spicy and pungent foods will do when you sniff them or they land in your mouth. Wise, an associate member at the Monell Chemical Senses Center in Philadelphia, says compounds in them will stimulate the nerve endings (receptors) in your mouth and throat, on your tongue and in your nose. Scientists call this sensation chemethesis. We like his term: “an electric prickle.”

Three of the most common players in food and beverages are: a cool receptor (think mint), a hot chili receptor and “a kind of general irritant receptor” that can be sensitive to hot mustard, wasabi, horseradish and cinnamon, usually depending on the concentration.

So how do you build a well-balanced fire?

Consider all elements in a dish. Chili pepper’s capsaicin and fresh ginger’s gingerol will both amp up the pungent power of a dish. Growing regions and seasons can produce variations in pungency.

And don’t ignore ingredients in condiments; Sriracha’s sugar and garlic, for example, and the vinegar in many hot pepper sauces.

“Vinegar and lime will always help if a dish is muddy,” says Samuelsson.

Cooking can also tame some fire. “Chilies will go from sharp to nutty to buttery,” says Samuelsson, who has restaurants across the U.S. and in Sweden. “That doesn’t happen when you just use it straight. That’s why I rarely use raw garlic or raw chili. That’s why you transform them.”

“Salt is incredible for increasing chilies’ heat, and white and black pepper,” says Phillips.

“Fat can generally coat things and smooth things out when it comes to that heat,” says Phillips, from dairy (such as yogurt or butter) to oil.

Should fire erupt in your mouth, Wise advises: “Pop an ice cube in there. It will really tamp it down fast.”

A few foods with piquant potential:

• Chili peppers (fresh, dried), peppercorns, plus related sauces (Sriracha, Tabasco, Worcestershire)

• Ginger, turmeric, galangal

• Garlic, onions

• Horseradish, wasabi, radishes, mustard (seeds, powder or prepared), greens (arugula and mustard, again)

PIRI PIRI

Adapted from chef Marcus Samuelsson’s “The Soul of a New Cuisine” (Wiley, $40) this sauce is used at the table to season shellfish, fish and chicken. Piri piri is the Swahili term for the hot chili and the national dish of Mozambique. Let the mixture mellow slightly before tasting; the flavors will meld.

Makes 1 cup

8 red bird’s-eye chilies (aka Thai chilies), seeds and ribs removed, chopped

1/2 cup fresh lemon juice

1 tablespoon each: chopped cilantro, chopped parsley

2 garlic cloves

1/2 cup olive oil

Combine chilies, lemon juice, cilantro, parsley and garlic in a blender; puree until smooth. With the blender running, add the oil in a slow, steady stream. Blend until well combined. Store in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 2 weeks.

SHRIMP PIRI PIRI

Adapted from “The Soul of a New Cuisine.” The dish typically would be served with rice, but in this recipe each shrimp is wrapped in a lettuce leaf and served as an appetizer.

Makes 4 appetizer servings

12 jumbo shrimp, peeled, deveined

1/2 cup plus 2 tablespoons piri piri, divided

2 tablespoons olive oil

1/2 teaspoon salt

1 lime, quartered

12 Bibb lettuce leaves

Toss shrimp with 1/2 cup piri piri in a large bowl. Refrigerate, 20 minutes. Heat olive oil in a large skillet over medium heat.

Add shrimp; cook, turning once, until opaque throughout, 2 minutes per side. Transfer to a plate; sprinkle with salt. Squeeze lime quarters over shrimp. Spread 1/2 teaspoon of remaining piri piri on each lettuce leaf. Place a shrimp on each leaf; fold over bottom and sides to form a wrap. Serve immediately.