Guess what the world’s hottest chile is called? Bhut (Ghost!) Jolokia. It is aptly called so, as the fiery spice is sure to haunt you and tease you till you literally fall on your knees and pray!
The fiery ‘Ghost Chile‘ originates in the in the Northeast of India, particularly Assam, Nagaland, Manipur and measures about 4” to 6”.
How hot is this? A scientific way of measuring the spiciness of a chili is by calculating its content of capsaicin, the chemical that gives a pepper its bite, and counting its Scoville units. The basic jalepeno measures any where between 2,500 to 8000 SU. Red Savina habanero, considered the hottest till now measures 580,000 Scovilles units and our own
Bhut Jalokia beats its nearest contender by double the points ie. 1,001,304 Scoville units.
Compare the basic and the hottest chili; Bhut jolokia is nearly 10 times hotter than the basic chile. Just enough to raise a fire in your tummy!
Hall of fame: Bhut jolokia is now officially declared as the hottest chili in the Guinness book of world records.
If AP reporter Tim Sullivan literally cried when he gave bhut jolokia a try, then Jayanta Lahan, a 17 month old toddler is addicted to it and can eat about 50 at a time!
Try the Super Hot Assam Curry Paste using bhut jolokias if you are really adventurous enough.Just be ready to expect the unexpected!
Hopefully you don’t turn a ghost when you give it a try :p!
