Ghost Peppers
All Nationalities
celebrating what makes us unique and what brings us together by Jennifer Williams Wilbur Scoville likely didn’t realize he was making a lasting contribution to spicy chicken wing pub nights. In 1912, the Connecticut-born chemist developed the eponymous Scoville Scale to measure the heat of chili peppers. His test measures how much a spicy substance needs to be diluted by sugar water before its heat intensity is no longer noticeable. His contribution to the measurement of all things spicy earned him a Google doodle commemorating his 151rst birthday back in 2015.
While an American created the universal scale that measures spiciness, which countries cultivate the world’s hottest peppers? Carolina Reaper: Hailing from South Carolina in the USA, the Carolina Reaper currently holds the Guinness World Record for world’s spiciest pepper at 1.6 million Scoville Heat Units (SHU). Bhut Jolokia or Ghost Pepper: These peppers caught fire in the Western World at the turn of the 21st century; however, they were well known for centuries in their native Northern India. In 2006, they were recorded as the world’s hottest pepper, with 1, 041, 427 SHU. Scotch Bonnet: Named after a tam o’shanter (literally a Scottish hat), these spicy peppers are commonly grown in the Caribbean and originated in Brazil. 100,000-350,000 SHU Habanero: Habaneros are often thought to originate in Mexico, but their name references the Cuban city of La Habana (Havana). Although these peppers are spicy, they reach a limit of 350,000 SHU — far from the intensity of the world’s hottest peppers. A citizen of which country holds four Guinness World Records for eating chili peppers?
Carolina Reapers in the garden
Chili peppers aren’t just used to prove who can endure the most pain in pubs and viral videos. Pure capsaicin has a rating of 16 million Scoville Heat Units and is used in tear gas and personal defence pepper sprays. -- 36 --
Non-spoiler alert – it’s a man!
Answer to our July/August question:
Which two countries don't celebrate a National Day? The United Kingdom and Denmark AWA Magazine - September/October 2021
