A Sting in the Tail: Trinidad Scorpion

Good things come in small packages right? The Trinidad Scorpion is no exception. On average, one and a half million SHUs is packed into its tiny red body and its bumpy complexion gives the pepper a few more pockets to pack in the punch.

From Trinidad to the World

We’re talking about the second hottest chilli pepper in the world! Back in 2011, the Australian grown Butch T Trinidad Scorpion, replaced the Ghost Pepper, becoming THE hottest chilli on record. Then only a year later, the Trinidad Moruga, another variant of this chilli took the title. While today it’s titles have been replaced by the Carolina Reaper, we’re warning you, it’s potency shouldn’t be ignored.

The chilli pods themselves take 90 to 120 days to mature, ripening from green, to orange and finally red. It’s worth the wait as the Trinidad Scorpion Red reaches heats of one million on the Scoville Scale. Sometimes you’ll even find them with a little sting on the end, much like tail of a scorpion, to remind you of how deadly they can really be.

This bite sized TNT ball is a rather rare creation and originally could only be found on the Island of Trinidad, to the northeast of Venezuela. However, being such a jewel that it is, it has been taken to places around the world and transformed into record breakers. So we present to you the two main types of Trinidad Scorpion:

The Trinidad Scorpion Butch Taylor Red

You can’t beat home grown products. The Trinidad Butch Taylor Red, grown on Australian land, is Australia’s hidden explosive. Its secret weapon is found in the fertilizing process of the chilli which uses the water from a worm farm. This naturally increases the plant’s defenses and to the benefit of you chilli lovers, it makes the original Trinidad Scorpion even hotter. On the Scoville scale it can reach heats of almost 1,500,000 units and remember this was the hottest chilli on record in 2011.

The Trinidad Moruga Scorpion

But we can’t forget about the Trinidad Moruga Scorpion. This one is so hot you can’t even touch it with your bare hands, well at least that’s what all the farmers are boasting. It’s grown on the island of Trinidad and Tobago, hence it’s very original name after the south coast district, Moruga, on the island. It reaches heats of two million Scoville Units, giving it that extra kick in comparison to the Butch Taylor. In 2012, the Trinidad Moruga Scorpion has taken the claim as the hottest chilli on record.  The juice from the chilli is actually quite sweet but that’s only if you can make it through it’s thick skin and its burning membrane.

Do you dare?

As one of the hottest chillies in the world, this spice should really be left to those daredevils willing to push themselves to the limit. Even the most practiced chilli-consumer will leave the table with heavy sweat, watery eyes and nose and a spreading burn reaching to the end of their throat. Apparently if you make it through the pain, you can get a bit of a drug-like rush, but that is only if you make it through. Otherwise this chilli is best left to those you are willing to ration the pepper for a couple of weeks to add a super hot tang to their meals. Or of course those up for a spicy-hot challenge.

Checkout the Trinidad Scorpion range at ChilliBOM

To find out more about other chilli favourites

Image By Kouya (Own work) via Wikimedia Commons