• If you can't find a "Hot" category that fits, post it here!

Taste of superhots: Which ones taste like Jalapeño, Cayenne or Bird's Eye

With my limited experiences with the hotter Chinense varieties, I have come to hate the fruity, citrusy, limey, partly soapy flavour most Chinense varieties I have tried.
Adjumas on their own taste pretty disgusting, add to that the heat and it's a quite nauseating combo.
I tried dried ret superhots like 7 Pot Barrackpore, Trinidad Scorpion Butch T and Trinidad Moruga Scorpion and they also taste quite disgusting to me along with the superhotness they have.
 
However, in tasting Annuum varieties like the Jalapeño, Cayenne and the Bird's Eye, I have some to appreciate the taste palette they have to offer and for me they are how peppers should taste, complementary to an umami taste, harmonious with what people call hearty.
 
I have asked in the chat whether there are superhots that taste like Jalapeño, Cayenne or Bird's Eye and I was answered with chocolate and brown varieties.
Are they right?
Are there any superhots that taste like any of these afore mentioned Annuum varieties and what are they?
 
IMO no superhots taste like the annuum varieties you listed. However, I would recommend you keep trying chinenses, if you want, as there is a wide variety of flavors amongst them. Fatalii has a huge flavor difference from scorpions, for example. I love douglahs, but don't care for most scorpions. Just like with any other food, you have to experiment to find what is most pleasing to your palate. 
 
In my experience, primos don't taste very fruity, but they don't quite have the roasty flavor of the varieties you mentioned either, maybe somewhere in between.
 
SanPatricio said:
Try the baccatum family and the manzano / rocoto chilis.... bet ya', you'll like them.
 
Worth repeating. Manzanos are among my favorites and are hotter than annuums.
 
Also, superhots without or with minimal Chinense flavor: Scorpion Butch T (not moruga), and Ghost pepper.
Habaneros without that Chinense flavor: PaperLanterns, and with minimal chinense flavor: Caribbean red.
And the Reaper has a rather pleasant almost sweet taste until the heat creeps in and burns the F&%$ out of your mouth.
 
Worth repeating: no chinense tastes like an annuum.  No baccatum tastes like an annuum.  Even frutescens doesn't taste like an annuum although it the closest of the bunch.
 
If it's straight up heat you're after in your dishes than dry the chinense first.  Cut them open and remove the a fair portion iof the placenta with the seeds - they tend to lose a lot of that soapy taste that way.  Never ever cook with fresh chinense because it loses all the nuances and tastes like soapy plastic.  The brown chinense (Douglah in particular) don't have as many flavour compounds as the other colours - it might just be that they are so damn hot that there is no way to to taste.  So try drying some Douglah - and expose as much of it to the air as possible - that will enable the flavour compounds to volatilise (to an extent).  That should give you a superhot experience sans the taste.
 
There's a reason the Thai's use frutescens and very hot annuum - it's not about the taste of the chili but rather the heat - they don't want nuances of flavour from a chili - they want the burn!  I have worked with a few Thai cooks and that is all they want - heat - combined with salty, sour, sweet and umami.  And then textures.  It sounds as though you like the Asian-type food experience - in which case, stay away from chinense - it really doesn't do those cuisines any justice.  Stick with frutescens - hotter than annuum.
 
Get a bottle of Salsalady's pure evil. All heat no taste (I hear as I still yet to have the pleasure). Add it to your fav annum dish and BOOM.
 
Back
Top