Carolina Reaper
📷 Photo: Semillas.de
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The Carolina Reaper is a cultivar of C. chinense said to have been bred by Ed Currie of the PuckerButt Pepper Company in South Carolina, reportedly by crossing a fiercely hot La Soufriere habanero from Saint Vincent with a Naga (ghost) pepper. Guinness World Records certified it as the world's hottest chili from 2013 until 2023, with an average around 1.57 million Scoville Heat Units and peaks well above two million. It is instantly recognizable: a wrinkled, red, golf-ball-sized pod ending in a narrow, stinger-like tail. Tasters often note a genuinely fruity, faintly sweet and cinnamon-like flavor in the first second, followed almost immediately by a scorching, long-lasting burn. Because of that intensity it is used sparingly, mainly in extract-style hot sauces, competition eating, and chili powders rather than everyday cooking.
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The Carolina Reaper is a cultivar of C. chinense said to have been bred by Ed Currie of the PuckerButt Pepper Company in South Carolina, reportedly by crossing a fiercely hot La Soufriere habanero from Saint Vincent with a Naga (ghost) pepper. Guinness World Records certified it as the world's hottest chili from 2013 until 2023, with an average around 1.57 million Scoville Heat Units and peaks well above two million. It is instantly recognizable: a wrinkled, red, golf-ball-sized pod ending in a narrow, stinger-like tail. Tasters often note a genuinely fruity, faintly sweet and cinnamon-like flavor in the first second, followed almost immediately by a scorching, long-lasting burn. Because of that intensity it is used sparingly, mainly in extract-style hot sauces, competition eating, and chili powders rather than everyday cooking.
Last updated Oct 9, 2026
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- Photo credit: Semillas.de