The Hot List: Favorite Peppers From Grower Jim Campbell

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Mild to Wild Pepper Picks

Discover how the heat of peppers are measured on the Scoville scale, and see chili grower and former owner of Mild to Wild Peppers & Herb Co., Jim Campbell, top pepper picks.

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What’s a SHU?

Developed by U.S. pharmacist Wilbur Scoville in 1912, the Scoville scale determines the piquancy of a chile pepper. Scoville Heat Units measure the amount of capsaicin present in peppers based on how much sugar water must be added until the heat is no longer detectable

Pepper Grower Jim Campbell’s Hot List

  1. Gypsy – Also known as Corno Di Toro (Bull Horn) chilies, these are another very mild chili that absolutely can’t be beat for grilling and tossing into salsa or salads. To this day, Jim grows at least a few of these just for my own consumption. If you can find it, Aconcagua is another giant, mild great roasting chili. 0-100 Scoville Heat Units (SHU)
  2. New Mexican – These include the varieties Anaheim, Sandia, Big Jim and 6-4. These flavorful and fairly mild chilies also taste great roasted, grilled or diced into salsa. As with all chilies, they require little in the way of growing – just consistent water level in the soil (not too much to avoid root rot) and a tiny dash of 12-12-12 fertilizer in the early summer. You might need to stake the plants as the weight of the chilies can topple the plant! 500-1,000 SHU
  3. Chipotle – If Jim were stranded on a desert island with only one chili to choose from, the chipotle would be his chili of choice. The chipotle (pronounced chee-POAT-lay) is a smoke-dried jalapeno pepper. Maybe it’s from his career of firefighting, but Jim says he’s always been attracted to smoke. Part of the confusion with chili peppers names are because they are often called one thing when fresh (e.g. jalapenos), yet another when dried or smoked (e.g. chipotles). Chipotles have a rather fragile flavor that is best added to dishes at the table prior to eating. Using it early in the cooking process can drive off the smoky flavor. 5,000-10,000 SHU
  4. Cayenne – A favorite for making sauces, this medium-hot pepper has a great, well-rounded flavor. It is easily dried (even in Indiana’s humid summer), simple to grow in great quantities and can be found at most any greenhouse. Additionally, like all other chilies, it contains great medicinal qualities. 30,000-50,000 SHU
  5. Habanero – A sentimental favorite for Jim, this is the chili upon which his company was built, even though he doesn’t eat them himself unless there’s money on the table. He was one of the first licensed Red Savina Habanero growers in the world, back when it long occupied Guinness World Record status as the hottest chili pepper on the planet. 100,000-350,000 SHU
  6. Scorpion – Guinness currently lists the Butch T Trinidad Scorpion as the hottest chili on the planet, even exceeding the more well-known Ghost or Bhut Jolokia chili. Butch T (Taylor) is a personal friend of Jim’s, who can often be found wandering his chili fields in late fall during his annual chili pepper festival. 1,463,700 SHU

Learn more about Jim’s story here.

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