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powder-flake How hot is powder vs fresh pepper pods?

EliteMcScruffin

EliteMcScruffin

I got my order of powder samplers in the mail today courtesy of Jeff/Spicy Chicken. Many thanks!

As I've said before, I've never tried a super hot before so I ordered a pretty decent variety of super hots and some other ones that looked interesting I'd never had before.

I'll spare you most the details but I tried a bit of paper lantern hab sprinkled on a spoon, followed by 7 Pot primo a few minutes later when my palate was cleared. Nice flavor and heat from just a few sprinkles.

Once I was all reset, I went for the big daddy and a sprinkle of Carolina Reaper powder. Man it had great flavor and brought some heat to the party. Good stuff, but I had so little I was wondering if I hadn't given it a good enough go. I then decided to try a teaspoon of the powder. Once again, great flavor. While I tried to get some of the powder that stuck to the roof of my mouth cleared off, the heat kicked in. Took a couple of minutes to hit what I would consider the peak, but when it did it basically felt like I chewed up some shattered glass and swished with rubbing alcohol.

I likey

So now that I'm feeling lightheaded 20-30 minutes after initial ingestion and the heat has subsided, I wondered how the heat from powder compares to heat from fresh pods? What would 1 teaspoon equate to?

Sorry if there are a bunch of other threads like this. I searched and couldn't find any that answered my question.
 
1 tsp of powder? Hmm, prolly equivalent to 1/2 pod would be my best guess. Maybe more.

Good way to go for a person new to Superhots, get a nice variety and see what you like. Then you can identify how to cook with each flavor. Good job my man.
 
I dry most of my pods and ultimately make many into powder, but I leave them in halves until I'm ready to use them. That way I can rehydrate and cut them up into my cooking, too. I've never taken the time to do a measurement comparison between fresh and powdered pods, so I can't answer that. However, I can tell you that one dried pod has the same heat as one fresh pod. (One caveat - pods from even the same plant can have differing heat levels, so this is in general.) A pod does not lose capsaicin in the process of being dried, so you're not losing heat. However, how it hits you in the mouth may differ. 
 
Consider: Take a fresh pod, cut it in half, and put it into a bottle filled with your favorite beverage. Take two halves of a dried pod and put them into a separate bottle filled with the same beverage. The beverage will become infused with the heat from the dried pod much faster than it will from the fresh pod. For two equal-sized bottles of tequila, the one with fresh pods in it will take a minimum of 2 weeks to get very hot. The one with dried pods in it will only take a couple days. Now think about this in light of the moisture content of your mouth. 
 
Scoville DeVille said:
Good way to go for a person new to Superhots, get a nice variety and see what you like. Then you can identify how to cook with each flavor. Good job my man.
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For the record, here's my list of what I got:

Chocolate hab
Fatalii
Paper Lantern hab
Caribbean Red hab
T.S. Moruga Blend
Carolina Reaper
7 Pot Primo
7 Pot Jonah
7 Pot Brain Strain
Peruvian Red hab
Orange Devil hab
Pumpkin hab
Red Belize hab
Tasmanian hab
 
Nice selection Scruftonater.

I love love LOVE Jonah 7's!
But I can't live without (and I always am in possesion of) Red Savina powder.
It's the life blood of my kitchen!

Getchu somadat sometime.
 
Love me some red savina! I was gonna get some on this order but it wasn't available :(

I am growing a couple though, so I'll be makin' some powder from that I'm sure.
 
Buzz said:
Here's what I think you should do..... eat a spoonful of the powwder on video, then eat a fresh reaper pod on video and post it for all to see.... then we'll tell ya which one we think is hotter :D
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... I'm pretty sure I'd have an even larger variety of nicknames if I did that. I remember some video on YouTube of 2 guys from the Bronx eating reaper pods. The guy on the right was running around the house screaming for like 10 minutes... hilarious, but that is exactly why there will be no video (at least at first) as I just might end up acting like him!
 
JoynersHotPeppers said:
One pound fresh = one ounce powdered mainly. If you search for and watch some of my powder challenges you will see the power :) I did a 1 gram challenge and only 50% finished. 
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That sounds about right.  I kept one of 4 small pouches of 'powder' from a recent seed train, thinking it would last a few months.  Make that a few years!!   A dab that will pile on your pinky fingernail (somewhere arund 1/8 teaspoon?) seems roughly as hot as a tablespoon or so of cayenne powder ( a healthy dash of Cayenne being something I've grown rather fond of!)  I don't know what peppers went into this Devil's Snuff, but the stuff is Fukushima Hot!
 
Try 1/8 tsp in espresso.
Wake yer @$$ right up!
 
But seriously.
 
An 1/8 tsp is what I sprinkle on a sammich or burger.
Got to let it rest for a minute or so before eating.
 
I agree... the fresh Fataliis I had last year had a more intense and longer lasting burn than the powder I made from them. The taste is still there, but the burn seems somewhat different. Same with the Primos, Reapers, and Brain Strain. More testing to be done this year.
 
 
Datil said:
To me a fresh pod FEELS hotter than a dried pod, may be related to water content.
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Gotrox said:
 
An 1/8 tsp is what I sprinkle on a sammich or burger.
Got to let it rest for a minute or so before eating.
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That sounds about right. I mainly use Red ghost powder because it isn't quite as hot as some powders can be and therefore not as easy to overdose. 1/4 tsp in a bowl of Ramen is usually how I gauge it.
 
JoynersHotPeppers said:
Think about all the record holders, fresh pods are not tested but the powder/dried product is....
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Very true.
 
I usually sprinkle it on my mayo, mustard, or some such, spread it around, and let it rest for a bit to reconstitute.
Powders--around a minute or so, flakes----depends on the size.
 
Can't beat fresh, but for many, fresh year round isn't an option.
 
I have sprinkled some of the different super hots on some meals and that's right on... a little goes a long way and adds great flavor along with the heat.  Gotta get in shape for wedding, so I'm forcing myself to have some Healthy Choice Steamer dinners along with some Lean Cuisine and other similar stuff.  These pepper powders are awesome at turning those into meals I'll eat happily... only problem is I want more as soon as I'm done.  :confused:
 
I brought some of the powders with me to the office for a couple of pepper loving coworkers to try.  It should go without saying, but when you open the vial to smell the powder before using it, you should keep that vacuum creating nose a safe distance away.  I had no problems with this until about an hour ago when one tiny particle of Reaper powder managed to free itself from the vial and proceed to rape my sinus cavity.   :shocked:   That's a strange sting and will have you sneezing uncontrollably.  And I thought I was being safer/smarter than that!
 
By the way, to continue on that comment earlier about this being a good way to sample, I agree even more now.  The different... "effects" that you get in the mouth and throat from the different varieties of peppers is crazy intriguing.  I've still only sampled a handful but it's neat to see, smell, and feel the differences and only makes me more excited to know that there are so, so many varieties out there I have yet to try.
 
To me, a fresh pod feels MUCH hotter. Even if they contain the same amount of capsaicin, they don't feel the same for some reason. I tried regular 7pot, red brainstrain + douglah and you can't blame it on the powder because it is Judy's! Doesn't matter how much I eat from it, just by itself or generously sprinkled on food, I never get hiccups or close to freaking out moments. Worst case scenario I get some cramps. I also had morugas and red jay's ghost scorps from Jim Duffy and experienced the same. I really want some fresh superhot burn!
 
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