Matt Bray

Founder of PepperScale and Cindermint LLC. Sucker for a good scotch bonnet. Spicy food super-fan. Current fiery fascination: Datil hot sauces.
Santa Fe Grande Pepper

Santa Fe Grande Pepper: Southwest Sweet

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Sweet, slightly smoky, and mild… Scoville heat units (SHU): 500 – 700 Jalapeño reference point: 3 to 16 times milder Origin: United States Seeds: Santa Fe Grande pepper on Amazon With their sweet flavor, mild heat, and vibrant color, the Santa Fe Grande pepper (a.k.a. the guero …

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habanero nutrition

Habanero Nutrition: How Healthy Are They?

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Habaneros are small Mexican chilies that are best known for their extra-hot spiciness. They are most often used in salsas and as a source of heat for hot sauces. Along with their heat, the flavor profile of these peppers includes fruitiness and mild floral notes. …

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Honey Chipotle BBQ Sauce

Honey Chipotle BBQ Sauce

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Smoky and sweet… If you like your barbecue on the sweeter side, yet still with plenty of smoky flavor and spiciness, honey chipotle BBQ sauce is right up your alley. Chipotle peppers have a very eatable medium heat to go along with their natural smokiness. We pair these …

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tapatio ingredients

Tapatio Ingredients: What Makes This Hot Sauce Tick?

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A staple of Mexican restaurants in the US, Tapatio Hot Sauce has been around since 1971. Tapatio’s reputation has grown over the years to the point where it is now considered one of the great American hot sauces alongside Tabasco Original Red Sauce and Frank’s RedHot Original Cayenne Pepper Sauce. Its relatively mild heat along with its piquant flavor makes it a tasty addition to food, both for chile pepper novices and for long-time lovers of spicy food.

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Trinidad 7 pot pepper

Trinidad 7 Pot Pepper: Caribbean Fire

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A rare super-hot, wicked habanero-like flavor… Scoville heat units (SHU): 1,000,000 – 1,200,000Jalapeño reference point: 125 to 480 times hotterOrigin: TrinidadProducts and seeds: Trinidad 7 Pot on Amazon With its rounded shape, the Trinidad 7 Pot pepper (a.k.a. the 7 Pod pepper) may often look …

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spicy food for cold

Spicy Food For Colds: Fact Or Fiction?

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Many people believe that spicy foods such as those containing hot peppers are effective treatments for colds and flu. The thought behind this is that the compounds in chili peppers, black pepper, and other spicy foods can help your body overcome cold and flu symptoms thus easing your pain and discomfort. But do they really work? Let’s break down this common home remedy. 

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aji amarillo aioli

Aji Amarillo Aioli

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Delicious with fried food…

We love the aji amarillo for its sunny, bright flavor and its unexpected heat. It’s a flavor that goes far. In fact, adding just a touch of aji amarillo paste (or aji amarillo powder if you prefer) to a little mayonnaise creates a delicious dipping sauce that’s perfect as an alternative to tomato-based cocktail sauces for fried foods. Try it with fried shrimp or simply with fries – really anything in-between. Looking for an aji amarillo sauce that’s a little less full-on “mayo’y”? Take a look at this recipe.

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siling labuyo

Siling Labuyo: The Filipino Bird’s Eye

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Small, but fiery….

Scoville heat units (SHU): 80,000 – 100,000
Jalapeño reference point: 10 to 40 times hotter
Origin: Phillipines
Products and seeds: Siling Labuyo on Amazon

The “wild chili” of the Philippines may be tiny, but – like the Thai chilies they are often mistaken for – they pack a punch well beyond their size. Their heat borders that of habanero peppers, but without the complexity of flavor. Siling Labuyo are popular in Filipino cuisine to bring a big spiciness to a meal, though they are becoming increasingly harder to source – they have been marked as an endangered heritage food by the Slow Food Ark of Taste.

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