The most common and most likely answer to this crossword clue is the 6 letter word CHILLI
I've seen this crossword clue in Independent
C
H
I
L
L
I
More clues leading to the result CHILLI
- Sounding cold, it's hot
- Hot food: anything but, did you say?
- Reportedly cold burner?
- Cold heart of oil burner?
- . Vital energy recycling poor source of heat
- This can be hot and cold when picked up
- It’s hot and cold air essentially
- Potential burner nippy, we hear?
- Pod‘s cold — not like Norfolk, it’s said
- Hot stuff cool on radio
Buddy explains!
The straight part
We know that "This can be hot" is the straight/definition part of the clue. The straight part is often a synonym or definition, in this case this can be hot = chilli.The cryptic/wordplay part
In cryptic crossword there's often an wordplay/cryptic part as well.This part involves a more complex hint, such as an anagram, homophone, hidden word, etc.
Sadly, We don't have an explanation for this specific crossword clue yet.
What does CHILLI mean?
CHILLI noun- The pungent, spicy fresh or dried fruit of any of several cultivated varieties of capsicum peppers, used in cooking.
- Powdered chili pepper, used as a spice or flavouring in cooking.
- (Indian Chinese cuisine) a spicy stew of chicken or paneer, capsicum and onion, eaten as an appetizer.
- A dish made with chili peppers and other ingredients, such as beans and beef.
- (Cincinnati) Cincinnati chili.