Pepper X took the title of the hottest chili pepper in the world by measuring 269,3000 squill heat units (SHU) and took this title from the famous Carolina Reaper chili pepper with an average of 1.64 million SHU. Pepper X earned this title after being unveiled on YouTube’s Hot Ones show. In this show, while interviewing famous people, they eat some spicy chicken wings.
The world’s hottest pepper by Ed Curry, the legendary chili pepper grower and founder of the PuckerButt Pepper Company, who is also the brainchild of the Carolina Reaper. He explained how he cultivated the new chili pepper over 10 years and combined it with the hottest properties possible and then patiently waited for these combinations to stabilize with predictable traits and consistent fruit.
There have been talks about Pepper X for several years; But This title has just been officially given to this product. “A lot of people said it couldn’t be done,” Ed Cory said on Hot Ones. They called us liars and we proved to them that X pepper is actually the hottest pepper in the world according to Guinness. “All the time and effort we put into the farm to make sure this fruit is established and becomes the hottest pepper in the world is now confirmed.”
Corey, two chili enthusiasts and the hosts of the show each ate an X pepper and the result was as expected. The active compound in chili peppers that gives them color and flavor is called capsaicin. This compound, which acts as a chemical stimulant, is produced by plants that release it in an attempt to avoid being eaten by animals. However, humans have acquired the taste of this compound and experience the release of a huge amount of endorphins if they consume appropriate amounts of it.
A common misconception is that most capsaicin is found in chili pepper seeds; While the connective tissue that holds the seeds is the most spicy. In addition, the concentration of spiciness along the thin layer that covers the inside of the chili pepper is also high. Scoville scale is basically used to measure capsaicin concentration.
To test the hotness of pepper, a solution of pepper extract is diluted in sugar water and then it is tasted by a group of people. Testers are given reduced concentrations of the extract until the majority of subjects can no longer detect the pungency in the diluted solution. For example, a pepper with 1,000 SHU means that its extract must be diluted 1,000 times so that its spiciness is no longer felt.
To better understand the issue, it is not bad to know that bell peppers have zero SHU; While the SHU of jalapeno pepper is between 3 and 8 thousand. Pepper spray, which is commonly used to prevent attacks by wild animals such as bears, is 2.2 million SHU; So, technically, Pepper X is hotter than pepper spray.
Now the question is, will Pepper X ever fail? The answer is that it will take several years for any potential competitor for this pepper to become established after breeding; But everything is possible.
