# Ghost Peppers



## Fishndude (Feb 22, 2003)

I don't have a veggie garden, per se, but I grow a few things I use quite a bit. I grow various hot peppers, because I enjoy them, and like to share them with friends. This year I found some Ghost Peppers - AKA Bhut Jolokia. They are rumored to be twice as hot as Habaneros. I have harvested a few fruits, and WOW, these things are incredibly hot!!! I mean burn-your-tongue-until-you-want-to-cry hot. The first few I tried weren't too bad, but were definitely real zippy. But the last few I tried are just stupid-hot. Anyone else growing these? Got any reviews? 

I really am not that much into super-hot peppers, but I enjoy hot food. I cut one up, and ate it on a burrito, and it was more hot than I cared for. I usually would eat a full Jalapeno or Habanero in a burrito, so I figured this would be okay. Maybe better to put them into recipes vs just eating them minced on stuff.


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## William H Bonney (Jan 14, 2003)

That's AWESOME...:lol:

I grew habanero's one year in my garden,,, they killed everything that planted within 3 feet of 'em.


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## Ralph Smith (Apr 1, 2003)

Haven't had a garden in a few years, but always grew the habs. for salsa. Where do you get the plants, or do you grow from seeds? Thanks, plan on having a garden next year. I love canning the hot hungarian banana peppers, their awesome on sandwiches or right from the jar.


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## Fishndude (Feb 22, 2003)

Well, I tried to grow Bhut Jolokias from seed, last year, and I failed miserably. This year I found some at a nursery, and bought 2 plants. Then I read up on them, and found that 1) they typically take about 37 days to germinate (WOW), 2) they really do best in very warm weather, without cool nights (just like our summer this year), and 3) they do not like fertilizer with any nitrogen in it. 

I found plants at Block's Greenhouse and Produce stand, by Metro Airport. They were $2.99 each, for 18 inch plants, which seemed okay. I have eaten just about every kind of hot pepper, and I will say that these blow away EVERY other pepper for heat. Well, actually, I grew some tiny "decorative" peppers, last year, that seemed pretty close. I don't have any this year, so I cannot do a side-by-side comparison. The Ghost Peppers are definitely hotter than Habaneros. Every time I eat even a small piece I get the hiccups, and that only happens to me with very hot stuff. It takes several drinks to get rid of the hiccups with these, and only a single sip for other hotties. They really are best for messing with people.

"Hey, do you like hot peppers? Here, try a little piece of this." 

If you want to try one, be aware that once you chew it up, the heat will build for 2-3 minutes. Once it is maxed, it will STAY MAXED for another 10 - 15 minutes, and it is intense. I start thinking I'll be having multiple body functions occur at once, and don't even worry about that because of the flaming mouth syndrome. I would never give even a little piece of one of these to someone who wasn't properly warned, and would not give one to a child at all.


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## Ralph Smith (Apr 1, 2003)

Thanks for the info. I love hot stuff, but not the xtreme's. Tried some of the hottest wings they make up at "sporty's" in Pinconning, and won't do that ever again!:yikes: Now days compared to when I was younger, its much worse on me coming out than going in:lol:


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## YPSIFLY (Feb 13, 2001)

I've eaten two in the last week. One grown by a co-worker and the other was bought at Westborn Market down the street from where I work. I'm going to save some seeds from one of them and try growing a few next year.

Yeah, they're no joke and they do a great job of helping you sweat out all that beer from the night before. I eat them seeds and all, not by themselves but in a pasta dish.


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## Richard Cranium (Feb 27, 2008)

I've got a request in for some of these plants for next year from a local greenhouse (Michael's in Langston). I too am like Ralph where the "end" result can be worse than the initial result :yikes:. I would recommend that these be used as a food additive, that is to be added to chili, salsa etc. in small amounts.

 I bought some Ghost Pepper jerky at the Woodland Mall in GR a couple of years ago and could not finish 1 piece and it ended up feeling like a volcano sraying lava out the posterior. There was a ring of fire about 6" accross (or so it felt) :SHOCKED::help:.

Use EXTREME caution!!!!


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## Ausable Junkie (Oct 2, 2002)

I HIGHLY recommend wearing gloves to handle/cut peppers in this heat class. 
Washing your hands with soap and water does little to remove the capsaicin oils that deliver the heat. 

Last year, I harvested some Habs., cut 'em up (no gloves) and ate 'em in a small batch of chip dip I made. I continued to tip the beers back and took a nap. Woke up an hour or so later, and need to take a leak.

Within 15 seconds, I was dashing for the bathroom cupboard for a washcloth. I soaked it with cold water and applied it to the "affected area". The next 10 minutes were spent re-soaking the washcloth often and trying to use soap to cut the oils and get some of it off. 

Use my experience as a learning process! You think it burns in your mouth?? Ain't nothin' compared to the damage it does to _that_ sensory-packed area. It looked like a bad sunburn where the oil did its damage. I can laugh about it now, but when it was happening, I was in misery. The real kicker: A few weeks before, I had read testimonials like mine on the web from others that had made a similar mistake. Evidently, the beer affected my recollection of these warnings.


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## Burksee (Jan 15, 2003)

Those things are insane! My buddy added some into his venison chili and I'll tell you what it could have been rat meat and no one would have known.  

I enjoy "hot & spicey" as long you can still tell what your eating it on. I enjoy growing then drying habanero, jalapeno and hot chili's. I grind them up together and add the resulting powder into my own special rub for chicken/wings or in my chili and it adds plenty of zing without losing the "flavor" of the other spices, sauces or meat. 

And again, as Ralph and RC so elegantly described if you think it was hot going just wait until it comes out! :yikes: :lol: :lol: :lol:

I had a similar experiance as AJ while making ABT's one time, one time is it all takes! :help:


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## William H Bonney (Jan 14, 2003)

Ausable Junkie said:


> I HIGHLY recommend wearing gloves to handle/cut peppers in this heat class.
> Washing your hands with soap and water does little to remove the capsaicin oils that deliver the heat.
> 
> Last year, I harvested some Habs., cut 'em up (no gloves) and ate 'em in a small batch of chip dip I made. I continued to tip the beers back and took a nap. Woke up an hour or so later, and need to take a leak.
> ...


A quick and effective tip for that (if you forget the gloves),,,, "hot water". As hot as you can stand it, or anything that makes your hands "sweat", to get it out of your pores.


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## Sib (Jan 8, 2003)

:lol: I like some heat, but no way with the ghosts. I was at a M&G a few years back and watched a member throw down 24 blazing wings from bdubs. 1st 12 went down good for him so another were ordered. He slowed real quick with the second dozen and it looked miserable. :lol: No names will be mentioned, because it was a mod. :evil:


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## Boardman Brookies (Dec 20, 2007)

Bhut Jolokias or the Ghost Pepper are no joke. This is by far the hottest pepper I have ever tried. They are rated at 1,000,000 on the Scoville Scale. Habenero's are 200-300k and the jalapeno are only 5-10k. Prior to the Ghost I tried a red savina habeneros and thought I was going to die. The Ghost is king.


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## William H Bonney (Jan 14, 2003)

For reference purposes, I googled up the Scoville Scale to see where certain peppers lined up on the scale...

Here's the funny thing,,, ya see what kind of shape the dude in the video is in,, after only taking a small bite??? Those ghost peppers are rated at roughly 1 Million SHU...

Police grade pepper spray is rated at 5.3 Million SHU's. :SHOCKED:


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## Burksee (Jan 15, 2003)

For those who care to dare:

http://detroit.craigslist.org/mcb/grd/2535685026.html


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