Naga Morich
The Naga Morich, also known as Naga Morris in Sylheti is a chili pepper grown in Northeast India and Bangladesh. It is known as the sister chili to the Bhut Jolokia, or ghost chili. The Naga Morich bears many similarities to its sister, but is genetically different. It is also one of the hottest known chilli peppers and the only naturally occurring chili pepper that measures 1 million SHU on Scoville scale.
Naga Morich | |
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Scoville scale | SR: >1,000,000[1] SHU |
Plant characteristics
Like many varieties of the Chinense species, the Naga Morich is a small-medium shrub with large leaves, small, five-petaled flowers, and blisteringly hot fruit. It differs to the Bhut Jolokia and Bih Jolokia in that it is slightly smaller with a pimply ribbed texture as opposed to the smoother flesh of the other two varieties.
Distribution
The Naga Morich is a naturally occurring species in North East India, more specifically in Nagaland, Manipur and Assam.
They are also grown in the USA, United Kingdom (as subspecies Dorset Naga) and Australia for the production of hot sauces, and in Finland, where it is mainly sold fresh in supermarkets.
Culinary usage
The Naga Morich chili is extremely hot, but has a flavor that is quite unique. Like the Bhut Jolokia (ghost pepper), it has a sweet and slightly tart flavor, followed by slight undertones of woody, smoky flavors. The chili is well suited for BBQ and grilling due to its unique flavor profile.
See also
- Scoville scale, a measurement of the pungency ("spicy heat") of a chili pepper.
- Pungency
References
- "The Scoville Scale". Pepper Information. Chilipepper.com. Retrieved 8 May 2011.