In 1912 a chemists by the name of Wilbur Scoville, working for the Parke-Davis pharmaceutical company, developed a od to measure the heat level of chile peppers. The test is named after him, the "Scoville Organoleptic Test". It is a subjective dilution-taste procedure. In the original test, Wilbur blended pure ground Chiles with sugar-water and a panel of "testers" then sipped the solution, in increasingly diluted concentrations, until they reached the point that the liquid no longer burned their mouths. A number was then assigned to each chile pepper based on how much it needed to be diluted before they could no longer taste (feel) the heat.
The pungency (or heat factor) of chile peppers is measured in multiples of 100 units. The sweet bell peppers at zero Scoville units to the mighty Habanero at 300,000 plus Scoville units! One part of chile "heat" per 1,000,000 drops of water is rated at only 1.5 Scoville Units. The substance that makes a chile so hot is called Capsaicin. Pure Capsaicin rates between 15,000,000 and 16,000,000 Scoville Units! Today a more scientific and accurate od called liquid chromatography is used to determine capsaicin levels. In honor of Dr. Wilbur the unit of measure is still named Scoville.
Below is a list of Chile peppers and their Scoville Heat Units. Due to variations in growing conditions, soil and weather, peppers tend to vary between the lower and upper levels listed, but can go beyond them.
Scoville Units Chile Pepper Heat Range
Sweet Bell 0
Pimento 0
Cherry 00 +500++
Pepperoncini+100+ 500
El-Paso 500 +700++
Santa+Fe+Grande+500+ 750
Coronado 700 000
Espanola 1,000 2,000
Poblano 1,000 000
Ancho 1,000 2,000
Mulato 1,000 000
Pasilla 1,000 2,000
Anaheim 500 500
Sandia 500 2,500
NuMex Big Jim 500 500
Rocotillo 1,500 2,500
Pulla 700 000
Mirasol 2,500 5,000
Guajillo 2,500 000
Jalapeno 2,500 8,000
Chipolte 5,000 000
Hot Wax 5,000 10,000
Puya 5,000 000
Hidalgo 6,000 17,000
Serrano 8,000 000
Manzano 12,000 30,000
Shipkas 12,000 000
De Arbol 15,000 30,000
Jaloro 30,000 000
Aji 30,000 50,000
Tabasco 30,000 000
Cayenne 30,000 50,000
Santaka 40,000 000
Super Chile 40,000 50,000
Piquin 40,000 000
Yatsafusa 50,000 75,000
Haimen 70,000 000
Chiltecpin 60,000 85,000
Thai 50,000 000
Tabiche 85,000 115,000
Bahamian 95,000 000
Carolina Cayenne 100,000 125,000
Kumataka 125,000 000
Jamaican Hot 100,000 200,000
Birds Eye 100,000 000
Habanero 100,000 325,000
Scotch Bonnet 150,000 000
Red Savina Habanero 350,000 577,000
Pure Capsaicin 15-16,000,000
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