Blair Lazar: to taste his sauce is to experience ‘pure heat’
Posted on 05/07/2005 7:07:19 PM PDT by saquin
"We live in an extreme world," explains Blair Lazar, a hot sauce creator. "And I make extreme foods.' In his hands is the hottest spice in the world, an ultra-refined version of chilli powder so fiery that customers must sign a waiver absolving him of any liability if they are foolish enough to try it.
Locked in a crystal flask sealed with wax and a tiny skull, Mr Lazar's mouth-blistering concoction is pure capsaicin - the chemical that lends habanero and jalapeno peppers their thermo nuclear heat.
Blair Lazar: to taste his sauce is to experience ‘pure heat’ His "16 Million Reserve", which is released to the public this week, is the holy grail of hot sauces, the hottest that chemistry can create.
It is 30 times hotter than the spiciest pepper, the Red Savina from Mexico, and 8,000 times stronger than Tabasco sauce. To put the tiniest speck on the tip of your tongue is to experience "pure heat", Mr Lazar says.
Although capsaicin does not actually burn - it fools your brain into thinking that you are in pain by stimulating nerve endings in your mouth - some medical experts believe that it could kill an asthmatic or hospitalise a user who touched his eyes or other sensitive parts of the anatomy.
Mr Lazar has trained his palate to endure the sensation, but he remembers the moment he dared to taste his "16 Million Reserve".
"The pain was exquisite," he said. "It was like having your tongue hit with a hammer. Man, it hurt. My tongue swelled up and it hurt like hell for days."
The eye-watering qualities of peppers are measured in internationally recognised Scoville units, developed by Wilbur Scoville, an American chemist who, in 1912, asked tasters to evaluate how many parts of sugar water it took to neutralise capsaicin heat.
Today, capsaicin content is measured in parts per million, using a process known as high-performance liquid chromatography; one part being equivalent to 15 Scoville units. Benign bell peppers rate zero Scoville units and the Red Savina entered Guinness World Records at 570,000 units.
Pure capsaicin, meanwhile, has a heat score of 16 million units - inspiring the name for Mr Lazar's latest creation. Each of the 999 limited-edition bottles, priced at $199 (£105), contains just a few crystals. The powder is so strong, however, that Mr Lazar estimates that it would have to be dissolved in 250,000 gallons of water before it could no longer be tasted.
His career as a hot sauce creator began when he found that the best way to clear drunks out of his seaside bar was to give them free chicken wings dipped in an eye-watering home-made hot sauce.
Now he runs Extreme Foods in New Jersey, selling his existing range, including "Mega Death" and "Jersey Death", the latter, according to Mr Lazar, being the world's hottest usable condiment.
He keeps a fridge full of iced spring water in his office for those brave enough to try some. Most tasters sweat heavily and are unable to see for tears for up to half an hour.
It takes several tons of fresh peppers to produce 1lb of capsaicin for the 16 Million Reserve, and the work takes months. First, moisture is removed from the fresh peppers until a thick tar-like substance remains.
The means by which all further impurities are eliminated, leaving pure capsaicin powder, is a trade secret, but the work takes place in a laboratory where Mr Lazar and his team wear sealed suits with masks to avoid inhaling the dust.
Five years ago Mr Lazar created "2am Reserve" in honour of the hour at which he once closed his bar. It was hotter than any other chilli product on the market, measuring up to 900,000 Scoville units.
He then distilled even stronger chilli extracts, including the scorching "6am Reserve" at 10 million units. Most of the signed and numbered bottles of "16 Million Reserve" will be bought by aficionados known as chilli heads.
Buyers have to sign a disclaimer warning that any handling "must be under a controlled environment using protective gloves and safety eye wear".
"It shouldn't be used for flavour," says Mr Lazar. "The only function is its heat value." He prefers not to speculate on what might happen should anyone be foolish enough to down an entire bottle. Rinsing the mouth with milk is among the best remedies as the capsaicin binds to fat molecules; it will also dissolve in alcohol.
Internet sites such as the hot sauce weblog and sweatnspice.com have been abuzz with talk about this week's release, with many collectors planning to buy at least two bottles - one to display and the other to try.
But one chilli head who obtained an early sample dropped a single grain into a pan of tomato soup. After persuading his wife to try a spoonful, he reported that: "She threatened divorce once she could speak again.''
Blair Lazar: to taste his sauce is to experience ‘pure heat’
They have "Mega Death" chips in the vending machine where I work. Tried a bag. They're great, but they mean business. You wouldn't want to chow down on 'em.
Extract of vanilla works wonderful.
Yep, a hugh and series mistake.
You may be interested in this. Add good dash or two of the sauce mentioned in the article to your next Bloody Mary.
Btw, to quickly soothe a burning mouth, have a can of heavy whipped cream nearby, and use it like an extinguisher in your mouth!
LOL. Necessitity is the mother of invention. At least he didn't spike the toilet paper.
Does she still come dressed in black velvet? That's a good hot sauce. Really nice flavor.
> I don't like the Louisiana or most of the Caribbean style (like less vinegar)
Try Jamaica Jerk. Outstanding! hot hot hot! but lots of depth...
"The pain was exquisite," he said.
Paging all masochists!
I thought the ORANGE 'breed' was the hottest.
I'll just stick with DAVE'S INSANITY SAUCE. When the local Mexicans tried some on their tacos and burritos and threw them in the trash because it was too hot, I knew it was just right for me.
The 16 million unit sauce in this story should ONLY be used as a conversation piece, NOT as a condiment. But if you have a 40 gallon pot of chili you want to risk, my advice is to go very slow. An eyedropper is much too crude an implement to add this stuff. Try steel needles or very short pieces of toothpicks.
Good luck!
I often dice up part of one habanero in cole slaw. Great flavor. You need to make sure you have a large glass of water with you. I've also experimented with putting it in pasta sauces. Again, the flavor is incredible. I use that El Yucateco XXXtra hot habanero sauce on sandwiches frequently, and even on scrambled eggs (w/ avacado) wrapped in a tortilla.
Hehe. Pakistan, are you reading this?
Amazing how much the body can take, though, if #11 is true. 8,000 times stronger than Tobasco Sauce? Holy cats! Itching powder just met its match and then some.
The masochist said, "hurt me."
The sadist said, "no."
Do not make fun of Happy Fun Sauce.
Happy Fun Sauce is currently being used by our troops in Iraq.
Happy Fun Sauce contains a green, radioactive substance which is believed to be of extraterrestrial origin.
I like La Victoria's "Salsa Ranchero" for my chili.
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