How spicy is the ghost pepper really? A full breakdown of its origin and uses

The ghost pepper is incredibly spicy. In February 2007, this chili was confirmed by Guinness World Records as the world's hottest chili. So, just how spicy is it? Where does it come from? What is it used for?

1. How spicy is the ghost pepper really?

The ghost pepper became famous for its heat, with a pungency of more than 1 million “Scoville” units, and was confirmed by Guinness as the world's hottest chili. “Scoville” is the unit of chili pungency; the Mexican red chili, generally considered the hottest, has a pungency of only 10,000 “Scoville” units. This chili is an everyday food for locals, but outsiders are still “wary of it”. A reporter bought a jin of dried “ghost peppers” at a vegetable market, tasted a little at mealtime, and tears and snot immediately streamed out, so they never dared eat it again.

2. Where does the ghost pepper come from?

The ghost pepper is abundantly produced in the mountainous areas of northeastern India and is a common delicacy on local residents' dining tables. Locals believe that this chili's extremely intense heat is enough to scare away devils, so they call it the “ghost pepper”.

3. What is the ghost pepper used for?

Besides being eaten, the “ghost pepper” is also often used locally to treat stomach ailments and to cool the body in summer.

It is generally believed that people with stomach ailments should most avoid spicy foods, but a chili produced in India is an effective medicine for stomach ailments. This red chili, grown in the mountainous areas of Assam in northeastern India, is thumb-sized and incredibly spicy, and is called the “ghost pepper”. Locals cannot go without this chili at every meal; just like people from Shandong eat scallions rolled in flatbread, they eat red chilies raw, rolled in flatbread.

The most unusual use of the “ghost pepper” is to treat stomach ailments. According to traditional Chinese medicine theory, pungent food harms the stomach, but locals say that they eat this chili every day, yet few of them get stomach ailments. If someone gets a stomach ailment while away from home, they have the patient chew raw red chilies, and before long the stomach ailment disappears without a trace. Locals joke: “The ghost pepper can even scare away devils, so how could it fail to subdue a little stomach ailment?”