Every few months there is a story about a pepper that is hotter than last years hottest pepper.
Should I want to test a pepper for hotness where is the least sensitive place on my tongue to dab a bit?
Not the answer you were looking for but I have a friend who loves various hot peppers but not just for the heat. When he tests a new sauce he puts a dab on his finger and places it deep into his mouth on his tongue (imagine a move not quite as extreme as sticking your finger down your throat to gag yourself).
He says that the tip of the tongue is more sensitive to the heat and he likes to taste the “character” of the sauce before he feels the heat.
So testing the heat on the upper back of the tongue may be the way to do it. I won’t guarantee that you won’t feel the pain though.
Just cut it with something. I first tried Bhut Jolokia by sprinkling some powder on cheese sauce and scooping it up with a chip.
I just take a little bite. There’s nothing that nuclear, no matter the myths.
Yeah, I would just take a teensy-tiny bite. Of course, this year I grew Trinidad Scorpions, and for the first time a pepper actually made me vomit (about an hour and a half later). So whatever you do, don’t eat it on an empty stomach.
I once put some mystery peppers that a gardener simply called “Japanese Peppers” into chili, and used what I thought was a moderate amount, and that was the hottest chili I’d ever eaten…although it didn’t bother my innards, I actually burnt my lips off.
And I’m not kidding. Just like a sunburn would make your skin peel, my lips first went crusty and insensitive…then in a couple days the skin on my lips peeled right off. And I had brand new younger man’s lips afterwards…bootyful.
Speaking of booty, the morning after the great chili feast I felt like molten volcano lava was coming out of me while sitting on the john…that’ll wake you up faster than a triple espresso ;^)