SC - Scoville Units (Home of Pace Picante-OT)

[Korrin S DaArdain]

On Mon, 21 Dec 1998 18:35:03 EST Mordonna22 at aol.com writes:
>In a message dated 12/21/98 8:20:44 AM US Mountain Standard Time,
>Vanishwood at aol.com writes:
>> one habenero pepper (not seeded 
><gasp!!!!!!!>
>Are you insane?
>My folks won't eat it if I use seeded jalapenos.
>I on the other hand don't like it unless it makes my eyes water.
>Mordonna

Seeing as we are talking Peppers.

THE CHILE HEAT SCALE - Scoville Units

The substance in chiles that makes them spicy is called capsaicin. It is
concentrated in the veins of the fruit (not the seeds) and stimulates
the nerve endings in your mouth, fooling your brain into thinking you're
in pain. The brain responds by releasing substances called endorphins,
which are similiar in structure to morphine. A mild euphoria results,
and chiles can be mildly addictive because of this hot pepper "high".

Chile hotness is rated in Scoville units. The hottest pepper on record
is the habanero/Scotch bonnet which some claim are the same pepper and
others claim are slightly different varieties. Habaneros are rated at
100,000 to 350,000 Scoville units. By contrast, the lowly serrano comes
in at about 5,000 to 15,000 Scoville units.

Scoville Units are the measurement of capsaicin level (the oil that
makes chiles hot). Although chiles can vary from pod to pod and plant to
plant, listed below is an approximate scale for several varieties of
chiles:

            16,000,000   PURE CAPSAICIN

10   100,000 - 350,000   HABANERO; SCOTCH BONNET
 9    50,000 - 100,000   SANTAKA; CHILTEPIN; THAI
 8    30,000 - 50,000    AJI; CAYENNE; TABASCO; PIQUIN
 7    15,000 - 30,000    CHILE DE ARBOL
 6     5,000 - 15,000    YELLOW WAX; SERRANO
 5     2,500 - 5,000     JALAPENO; MIRASOL
 4     1,500 - 2,500     SANDIA; CASCABEL
 3     1,000 - 1,500     ANCHO; PASILLA; ESPANOLA
 2       500 - 1,000     NEW MEXICO; ANAHEIM; BIG JIM
 1       100 - 500       MEXI-BELLS; CHERRY
 0                       MILD BELLS; SWEET BANANA; PIMENTO

Korrin S. DaArdain
Kitchen Steward of Household Port Karr
Kingdom of An Tir in the Society for Creative Anachronism.
Korrin.DaArdain at Juno.com, (www.geocities.com/NapaValley/Vineyard/1709)

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