World’s Hottest Pepper Is In South Carolina According To Guinness; Plus Top 4 Spiciest Chilis In Latin America

According to The Guinness Book of World Records, the world's hottest chili resides in South Carolina in the form of Ed Currie's Carolina Reaper peppers. The chili, which looks like a scorpion tale, earned the title last month after four years of intense research to conclude that it is the spiciest pepper in the world. Guinness shares: "The hottest chilli is Smokin Ed's 'Carolina Reaper', grown by The PuckerButt Pepper Company (USA), which rates at an average of 1,569,300 Scoville Heat Units (SHU), according to tests conducted by Winthrop University in South Carolina, USA, throughout 2012."

A pepper gets its spice from chemical compounds called capsaicinoids--measured in Scoville Heat Units--which make chilis spicier with a higher concentration. In the case of Currie's peppers, the Carolina Reapers that earned the Guinness title boasted an average of 1,569,300 Scoville Heat Units and one particular pepper measured 2.2 million Scoville Heat Units. For a frame of reference, 0 Scoville Heat Units is bland, a jalapeno rakes in roughly 5,000 Scoville Heat Units and pepper spray gets 2 million on the Scoville scale.

That said, there are skeptics who argue that there is no way to prove such a subjective claim. According to Paul Bosland, the director of the Chile Pepper Institute at New Mexico State University, the age-old nature vs. nurture debate applies to peppers, as the plant's genetics and where they are grown both contribute to the heat of the pepper. "You have to think of chili heat like salt. A little bit improves the flavor, but a lot ruins it," said Bosland to the Associated Press. Last year, the Chili Pepper Institute named the Trinidad Moruga Scorpion the world's hottest pepper.

Not surprisingly, Latin America is the home to many of the world's spiciest peppers. Here are the four spicy peppers found in Latin America: 1. The habañero pepper is native to the Amazon region, and quickly spread to Mexico and the rest of the North American subcontinent. The pepper garners 200,000 to 300,000 on the Scoville scale and is a former record holder in the Guinness Book of World Records. 2. The Rocoto pepper, native to Central and South America, is a deceptive chili, as it looks like a bell pepper but is significantly hotter with a Scoville ranking of 100,000 to 250,000. The pepper can be found as an ingredient in Peruvian cuisine. 3. Peru's Ají pepper earns between 30,000–50,000 on the Scoville scale and is used to prepare regional dishes, including: tamales, Cau Cau (a local seafood stew), and Papas a la Huancaína. 4. Arbol chilis (also called Chile de árbol) are common in Mexican cuisine and the long red chilis measure roughly 25,000 Scoville Heat Units.