In my last post I noted the plethora of foods, particularly salty snacks and fast food, that claim to use habaneros, or ghost peppers, or Carolina reapers, etc. but for which the heat levels are pathetic. I remember the first time I tried Blair's Death Rain habanero chips - sadly, no longer made I don't think - and they were gloriously painful. I started cultivating a taste for that capsicum-induced endorphin rush shortly thereafter.
In the years since, I've had the good fortune to travel to the Caribbean for work on a number of occasions, and most of the places I've been to have very spicy dishes and they don't compromise. I've had hot sauces that I can only describe as looking like yellow nuclear waste - and at least for me whatever taste was present was obliterated by the heat. I've since developed a better tolerance for the hotter stuff and I have some Bajan and Trinidadian hot sauces in my kitchen right now.
But Wendy's Ghost Pepper Ranch? Taco Bell's Reaper Ranch fries and burrito? Meh. The flavor's OK, but the spice level is pathetic. Recently I came across Blue Diamond Almonds Extreme varieties which come in cayenne, ghost pepper, and Carolina reaper flavors. Their website says to "Get ready for a mouth-blazing fiery flavor rush all on a superfood." Again, meh. The reaper variety has some lingering heat, but it's just not reaper level.
The only exception I've found to this pathetic misuse of these spicy peppers is the Paqui Haunted Ghost Pepper tortilla chips. Paqui knows something about spice, as the purveyors of the One Chip Challenge. But the Haunted chips have a nice "sting & linger" level of heat that actually tastes good too. If they can do it...
SO! Here's my request: What snacks do you know of that area actually hot - like keep a glass (or a gallon) of milk handy hot? The name of the pepper(s) used isn't as important as that it packs a wallop in the capsicum department - taste beyond that is good too, but sometimes I just need a fiery smack in the face! As noted above, I'm very aware of Paqui, and I keep a bunch of ghost pepper and reaper noodle packets in my pantry, and I have probably 30 bottles of hot sauce at habanero level or hotter. But I'd love to find chips, jerky, etc. stuff that actually has some heat without being a novelty like the Toe of Satan, Lil' Nitro, or the Death Nut Challenge.
Finally, I'm also always on the lookout for super-spicy ramen - I taste and blog them here. I'm pretty familiar with Paldo, Mamsee, and Samyang, and I'd love to try Culley's but not for $50+ for a single package. But if you know of one that is super spicy and that can be ordered online, let me know!
Update 8/15: I went to Trader Joe's this past weekend and saw their Ghost Pepper Potato Chips - lattice cut and kettle cooked - so thought I'd give them a try. The potato flavor and texture are great, but the heat level feels somewhere between Lays Cheddar Jalapeno and the various Flamin' Hot varieties. Another ghost pepper pretender.
ready for a mouth-blazing fiery flavor rush all on a superfood*
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