Last Updated: January 2020
Welcome to Chasing Chilli’s Official Scoville Scale!
We’re sort of famous for chasing down the hottest chilli’s and thought we’d bring you an always-updated Scoville Scale of the world’s hottest chilli’s & peppers.
What is the Scoville Scale?
The Scoville Scale is a measure, named after Wilbur L. Scoville, of the chilli pepper’s heat. Put simply, it measures the concentration of the chemical compound capsaicin. Capsaicin is the beautiful natural chemical brings the heat and makes your forehead sweat, your tongue burn and your stomach ache!
To measure the concentration of capsaicin, a solution of the chilli pepper’s extract is diluted in sugar water until the ‘heat’ is no longer detectable to a panel of tasters. A rating of 0 Scoville Heat Units (SHUs) means that there is no heat detectable.
Learn more about the Scoville Scale below!
Scoville Scale List
Watch Out: The below Scoville heat units listed are just a guide – using the higher SHU within that chilli or pepper’s range. Scoville units or SHUs for each chilli can change wildly based on climate, growing conditions and even the seed.
Everything You Need To Know About The Scoville Scale
How do you measure a Scoville heat unit?
To measure the concentration of capsaicin, a solution of the chilli pepper’s extract is diluted in sugar water until the ‘heat’ is no longer detectable to a panel of tasters. A rating of 0 Scoville Heat Units (SHUs) means that there is no heat detectable.
The Scoville scale isn’t without its detractors. A common criticism is the test’s reliance on human testers.
What is the hottest chilli in the world?
The Carolina Reaper (2,200,000 SHU) is the hottest pepper in the world – ranging from 1,500,000 Scoville Heat Units and peaking at 2,200,000 SHUs.
The Scoville Scale is dominated early by chemical compounds such as Resiniferatoxin (16,000,000,000 SHU) – a chemical likely to cause chemical burns on contact with the skin.
How hot is a ghost pepper on the Scoville scale?
TheBhut Jolokia Pepper, commonly known as a Ghost Pepper weighs in at a super hot 1,041,427 SHUs. Because it was the first chilli pepper to test at over 1 million Scoville Heat Units, it has enjoyed healthy popularity across the web.
How hot is a Carolina reaper on the Scoville scale?
As mentioned above, The Carolina Reaper (2,200,000 SHU) is the hottest pepper in the world – ranging from 1,500,000 Scoville Heat Units and peaking at 2,200,000 SHUs.
How hot is a Jalapeno pepper on the Scoville scale?
All the way from Mexico, the Jalapeno (8,000 Scoville Heat Units) is one of the most popular peppers in the world! It starts from 2,500 SHUs and peaks at 8,000 SHUs.
Have I missed something? We always try to keep this list updated to let me know and contact me here.