Dragon's Breath (chili pepper) facts for kids
Quick facts for kids Dragon's Breath |
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|---|---|
| Species | Capsicum chinense |
| Breeder | Neal Price |
| Origin | Denbighshire and Nottingham, United Kingdom |
| Heat |  Exceptionally hot |
| Scoville scale | 2,480,000 SHU |
The Dragon's Breath is a super-hot chili pepper. It was unofficially tested to be one of the hottest peppers in the world. It measured about 2.48 million Scoville units. This is a way to measure how spicy a pepper is.
How the Dragon's Breath Pepper Was Made
This special pepper was created by a chili farmer named Neal Price. He worked with NPK Technology and Nottingham Trent University in the United Kingdom. They were testing a new plant food. They also wanted to see if the pepper's natural oils could be used to numb skin. This could be helpful as a pain reliever.
Later, a plant breeder named Mike Smith from St Asaph, Wales, grew the pepper. He said he wasn't trying to make the hottest pepper ever. He just wanted to grow a nice-looking plant. Because the pepper was grown in Wales, it was named Dragon's Breath. This name comes from the famous Welsh dragon.
The Dragon's Breath pepper was shown at a big plant show in 2017 called the Chelsea Flower Show. It was one of the top plants, but it did not win the main prize.
How Hot Is It?
The Dragon's Breath chili was unofficially tested at 2.48 million Scoville units. This makes it extremely hot! For a long time, it was thought to be one of the hottest peppers on Earth. However, Guinness World Records still lists the Carolina Reaper as the official record holder. Another pepper called Pepper X was later said to be even hotter, but this is also not officially confirmed.
Scientists at Nottingham Trent University think the pepper's oil might be useful. They believe it could numb the skin. This could help patients who cannot use other pain relievers. It might also be useful in places where pain relievers are too expensive.
Experts at the university have warned that eating a whole Dragon's Breath pepper could be dangerous. It might cause choking or a very serious allergic reaction called anaphylactic shock for people with certain allergies. It's always important to be careful with extremely hot peppers.
See also
In Spanish: Dragon's Breath para niños
