A farmer stands in his field of "bhut jolokia," or "ghost chili," peppers at Changpool in the Indian state of Assam
I have to confess that I’ve never made it to Assam, in northeast India. But news has now spread throughout the world, along with the treasured seeds, of the bhut jolokia, rated by Scoville units and scorched tongues as by far the world’s hottest form of chili. A lot of Assamese fare is as tame as a bowl of noodles. But any place where people chomp on these burners raw, or drop them in pork curries, deserves a high rank on any list.