Capsaicin

• The chemical that makes hot peppers hot is capsaicin, which is chemically described as 8-methyl N-vanillyl 6-nonenamide.

How Hot is that Pepper?

• The hotness of a pepper is measured on the Scoville scale, which measures how much water must be mixed with extract of the pepper to make the heat undetectable. The hottest commonly grown pepper is the Red Savina habanero, which varies from 350,000 to 750,000 Scoville units, but the Naga Jokia pepper has been measured at over 1,000,000 units.

Warning

• When cooking with hot peppers, you should wear gloves. The oil gets on the skin, and is difficult to wash off. Soap and water do not fully dissolve it, and if you rub your eyes or nose, you will be in some pain.