Spicy Food???

[Attica!]

My gf actually ate a full Scotch Bonnet, the mad person lol.

That is freakin' hot. Years ago I bought a chilli mix which had a Scotch Bonnet in it. I sliced a small piece off it and tasted it - and then decided not to use it for the meal because I found it simply too hot.

For those who do not know: Scotch Bonnets rank a 9 on a 10 scale in hotness - only Habaneros come on top of them (10/10). Thai chillis come in at about 3 or 4.

Cheers Stephan

Actually that's a mis conception.  A lot has happened in the world of chillis in the last 2 years. Scotch Bonnet come out at a Scorville rating of between 100,000–350,000. Until last year it was the Naga Viper (grown in Cumbria UK) which was the hottest for a month until it was overtook by the Trinidad Scorpion Butch T which has a Scorville rating of 1,463,700. The current hottest is Trinidad Moruga Scorpion which became the record holder this month. with a Scorville rating of 2,009,231.

When you compare 100,000-350,000 of a Scotch Bonnet to the current record holder at just over 2million, that is a hell of a lot hotter. The habanero chilli is also rated between 100,000–350,000, but you tend to get more of them being at the higher end as to the Scotch Bonnet which can vary.

Growing chillis and making them hotter has seem to become a sport these days. I think I'm going to have a crack at it :)

EDIT: I just thought I'd mention that the chillis mentioned are the ones that have been recorded the hottest. That doesn't necesarilly mean that your always going to be guaranteed to be that hot. Although the Trinidad Moruga Scorpion has the hottest recorded. The second recordest hottest, Trinidad Scorpion Butch T, is still technically the hottest as when you buy them, nearly all of them end up spicier than the record holder, as the the Trinidad Moruga Scorpion can be as low as around the 500,000 mark, whereas the Butch T is pretty much always around the record mark. So judging of averages for the hottest constant, its the Butch T in first place with the Naga viper averaging the second.

[Kiichi]

Very interresting, thanks for the info!
Wonder how the Butch T tastes...

[Attica!]

Very interresting, thanks for the info!
Wonder how the Butch T tastes...

Excuse the essay haha. And probably a rocket's exhaust lol

[Dmoney]

I used to be into hot food when my mates ate it too. Eating stuff like what has been mentioned these days just doesn't happen as often, so my tolerance has dropped.

I'm pretty familiar with Who Dares Burns sauce and some of Blairs sauces. Blairs is actually ok. Who Dares Burns tastes pretty violent. I'd tend to steer clear of stuff that contains a lot of stabilizers and extracts in, even if those sauces tend to not be quite as hot. Had some Naga Jolokia sauce a while ago, that was a bit of a beast.

As for curries and stuff, depends on the curry house. there is a good place by my work that does a great vindaloo but it isn't really that hot. I prefer that.

[darkbluemurder]

A lot has happened in the world of chillis in the last 2 years. Scotch Bonnet come out at a Scorville rating of between 100,000–350,000. Until last year it was the Naga Viper (grown in Cumbria UK) which was the hottest for a month until it was overtook by the Trinidad Scorpion Butch T which has a Scorville rating of 1,463,700. The current hottest is Trinidad Moruga Scorpion which became the record holder this month. with a Scorville rating of 2,009,231.

When you compare 100,000-350,000 of a Scotch Bonnet to the current record holder at just over 2million, that is a hell of a lot hotter. The habanero chilli is also rated between 100,000–350,000, but you tend to get more of them being at the higher end as to the Scotch Bonnet which can vary.

Growing chillis and making them hotter has seem to become a sport these days. I think I'm going to have a crack at it :)

EDIT: I just thought I'd mention that the chillis mentioned are the ones that have been recorded the hottest. That doesn't necesarilly mean that your always going to be guaranteed to be that hot. Although the Trinidad Moruga Scorpion has the hottest recorded. The second recordest hottest, Trinidad Scorpion Butch T, is still technically the hottest as when you buy them, nearly all of them end up spicier than the record holder, as the the Trinidad Moruga Scorpion can be as low as around the 500,000 mark, whereas the Butch T is pretty much always around the record mark. So judging of averages for the hottest constant, its the Butch T in first place with the Naga viper averaging the second.

Obviously a lot has happened, thanks very much, that was very interesting.

Only wonder what to do with hotness like that.

Cheers Stephan

[Attica!]

If Scotch Bonnets max out at 350,000, then I reckon my tolerance would be about 600,000, and that would be using 1 chilli in a meal for 6. Even that for me is just wayyy too hot. I just can't see how people can eat chillis over 1million (nevermind 2million) whole at chilli eating contests.

[PhilKing]

I like hot food and tend to have it hotter than many people (my wife is Indian and she eats spicy food too), but I found when I was in India that the food was milder than I expected.  That's where I finally realised that you need to taste the food too.  I've got the hot sauces, but I tend to prefer habanero based things, rather than the super spicy sauces (unless I'm making chilli, when the beans tend to kill a lot of the spices).

[gwEm]

i like a good curry - india or thai.. and love mexican food.. i rarely go above "medium-hot" i like the aromatic flavours, get my mouth watering and all that :)

i don't understand why you would want to eat something so hot it makes your tongue peel though - sounds like stupidity.

[MDV]

I just can't see how people can eat chillis over 1million (nevermind 2million) whole at chilli eating contests.

There are contests?

I can, and do eat naga/buht jolokias in the privacy of my own home, for my own amusement. But I could win things for that other than a burning mouth and rush of sweet, sweet endophins?

[MDV]

I like hot food and tend to have it hotter than many people (my wife is Indian and she eats spicy food too), but I found when I was in India that the food was milder than I expected.

Depends where in india. Its a very big place. Lots of the places in it favour extremely hot food.

Dads from india. Bangalore. This is where I got my taste for stupid-hot things from; been eat curries for as long as I can remember and they're pretty much the only thing I can cook well.

Heat/spice doesnt cancel out flavour. You have to take it into account when preparing your other spices, what you use and their proportions. Curries that are very hot and taste of little else are just poorly prepared.

[darkbluemurder]

Heat/spice doesnt cancel out flavour. You have to take it into account when preparing your other spices, what you use and their proportions. Curries that are very hot and taste of little else are just poorly prepared.

I agree it does not have to. The hottest foods I have tasted surprisingly retained the flavor. Still I would no longer go for over-the-top hotness.

Cheers Stephan

[nfe]

Heat/spice doesnt cancel out flavour. You have to take it into account when preparing your other spices, what you use and their proportions. Curries that are very hot and taste of little else are just poorly prepared.

Indeed not. The issue I think most people encounter is that the majority of restaurants in the UK (Indians at least, usually Thais are better) which serve extremely hot dishes know that most of the people who'll eat them do so out of macho bravado, so it's all about heat and no one cares about flavour. I only eat really hot stuff in very good restaurants (who mostly don't serve extremely hot stuff) or at home as a result.

[tomjackson]

If you can handle the heat you will taste the flavours, if it's too hot for you the flavours will be lost. All depends on your tolerance.

My main problem with most curries is they are generic slop with some meat or veg and masses of ghee.  But there are some great places that serve more traditional curries with great flavours and as much heat as you can handle.  But and decent curry should taste good with no heat.

[nfe]

If you can handle the heat you will taste the flavours...

Well, not if there aren't any. Which was the point being made, I feel. The majority of curry places in the UK (since the vast majority are pretty cheap takeaways where most people will eat that kind of food from) when they do hot curries sell what would be, without heat, intensely bland food.

We're quite lucky with a few really good curryhouses in Glasgow. But have no car and the right good ones have very limited delivery times (if they deliver at all). Ho hum.

[Philly Q]

The majority of curry places in the UK (since the vast majority are pretty cheap takeaways where most people will eat that kind of food from) when they do hot curries sell what would be, without heat, intensely bland food.

I've never been to a really "good" Indian restaurant - Chinese, Thai, Japanese, yes, but not Indian.  I don't mean the ones I've been to were bad, but they're all very much of a muchness.  The "British version" of Indian food.

I'm sure they exist - there must be some in London.  It would be nice to try a more authentic/upmarket menu.