Food & Drink

Types of Chili Pepper

Name: Types of Chili Pepper
Creator: Community curated
License: https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/

Jalapeño, Habanero, Ghost Pepper, Carolina Reaper — which chili pepper brings the best balance of heat and flavor?

Rank these by vote →

15rows

5columns

52views

0downloads

Source:Community curated

Updated:3/7/2026

#drink #food

15/15

Pepper↕	Origin↕	Scoville Heat Units (SHU)↕	Flavor Profile↕	Known For↕
Jalapeño	Xalapa, Mexico	2,500-8,000 SHU	Bright, grassy, mild heat	World's most popular chili, first pepper in space (1982 shuttle mission), smoked version is chipotle, nacho topping king
Habanero	Amazon basin / Yucatán, Mexico	100,000-350,000 SHU	Fruity, citrusy, intense heat	Held world's hottest record until 2007, Scotch Bonnet's cousin, essential in Yucatecan cuisine, lantern-shaped pods
Ghost Pepper (Bhut Jolokia)	Northeast India (Assam)	855,000-1,041,427 SHU	Smoky, sweet, then devastating heat	First pepper to exceed 1 million SHU, Guinness record 2007, Indian military weaponized it as a smoke bomb, delayed heat onset
Carolina Reaper	Fort Mill, South Carolina, USA	1,400,000-2,200,000 SHU	Sweet fruity start, then apocalyptic burn	Current Guinness World Record hottest pepper, bred by 'Smokin' Ed Currie, distinctive scorpion tail, YouTube challenge videos
Serrano	Mountains of Puebla/Hidalgo, Mexico	10,000-23,000 SHU	Crisp, bright, clean heat	Eaten raw more than any other chili, essential in pico de gallo and salsa verde, thinner walls mean less roasting, workhorse of Mexican kitchens
Cayenne	French Guiana (Cayenne city)	30,000-50,000 SHU	Neutral, pure heat, slightly earthy	Dried and ground into the red powder in every spice rack, used in traditional medicine, Tabasco sauce ingredient, the default 'hot pepper'
Scotch Bonnet	Caribbean	100,000-350,000 SHU	Sweet, fruity, tropical, very hot	Essential in jerk seasoning and Caribbean cuisine, named for resemblance to a tam o'shanter hat, slightly sweeter than its habanero cousin
Thai Bird's Eye (Prik Khi Nu)	Thailand / Southeast Asia	50,000-100,000 SHU	Sharp, peppery, immediate burn	Tiny but ferocious, backbone of Thai, Vietnamese, and Malaysian cooking, red and green varieties, grows pointing skyward on the plant
Poblano	Puebla, Mexico	1,000-2,000 SHU	Rich, earthy, mild, slightly sweet	Chile rellenos are stuffed poblanos, dried version is called ancho, dark green and wide-shouldered, mildest of the Mexican big five
Anaheim	New Mexico, USA (via Anaheim, CA)	500-2,500 SHU	Mild, slightly sweet, tangy	Hatch chile variant, New Mexico's state question is 'red or green?', roasted and peeled in bulk every fall, mild enough for stuffing
Trinidad Moruga Scorpion	Moruga, Trinidad and Tobago	1,200,000-2,009,231 SHU	Fruity sweetness before extreme heat	Briefly held the world's hottest record (2012), golf-ball sized pods, from a tiny fishing village, Scorpion tail tip at the bottom
Chipotle (dried smoked Jalapeño)	Mexico	2,500-8,000 SHU	Smoky, chocolatey, medium heat	Just a smoked and dried jalapeño, name from Nahuatl 'chilpoctli,' adobo sauce staple, gave its name to a massive restaurant chain
Tabasco Pepper	Tabasco, Mexico	30,000-50,000 SHU	Vinegary, pungent, sharp heat	McIlhenny family's Tabasco sauce since 1868, aged in bourbon barrels on Avery Island, Louisiana, in every MRE and on every diner table
Guajillo	Mexico	2,500-5,000 SHU	Berry-like, tangy, mild-medium heat	Second most used dried chili in Mexican cuisine (after ancho), essential in mole and enchilada sauce, smooth dark red skin, subtle fruity complexity
Pepper X	Fort Mill, South Carolina, USA	2,693,000 SHU (2023)	Intensely hot with no discernible flavor at peak heat	Ed Currie's follow-up to the Carolina Reaper, current world record holder as of 2023, bred over 10 years, featured on Hot Ones Last Dab sauce