Hot Peppers

Posted on August 2, 2007
Filed Under Diet | Leave a Comment

A boost to the Indian economy is in the works with the popularity a chili pepper called the bhut jolokia aka the ghost chili, grown in the indian state Assam it is apparently the hottest pepper on record. The hotness of a pepper is measured in Scoville units (named after the American chemist who devised the method in 1912 Wilbur Scoville) which entails the calculation of the amount of capscaicin-a chemical compound that stimulates nerve endings and heats chili. Many peppers are sold indicating the amount of capscaicin (or hotness). To get an idea of how hot this pepper is in Scoville units we compare it to some of the hottest peppers out on the market.

Red Savina habanero 350,000-580,000
Jamaican Hot pepper 100,000-200,000
Thai Hot 60,000
Jalapeno 2,500-79000
Tabasco sauce 2,500-5,000

the bhut jolokia pepper has 1,001,304 Scoville units in comparison. By the way pepper spray used for protection has a Scoville count of 2,000,000-5,300,000.

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