GAUHATI, India, April 10: The "ghost chili," the world´s spiciest chili, seems to suit her palate.
A 28-year-old Indian woman smeared its seeds on her eyes before gobbling up 51 fire-hot chilies in two minutes for an entry into the Guinness World Records, organizers said Friday. [break]
Anandita Dutta Tamuly performed the feat Thursday, cheered on by celebrity British chef Gordon Ramsay who was visiting India´s northeastern Assam state for a television shoot for his new global food series.
The thumb-sized chili pepper was accepted by Guinness World Records in 2007 as the world´s spiciest chili. It is eaten in India´s northeast as a cure for stomach troubles and a way to fight the crippling summer heat.
The chili has more than 1,000,000 Scoville units, the scientific measurement of a chili´s spiciness. Classic Tabasco sauce ranges from 2,500 to 5,000 Scoville units, while jalapeno peppers measure anywhere from 2,500 to 8,000.
Ramsay tried a bite of the chili — and ended up regretting it.
"It´s too much," he shouted as he pleaded for water from a stage in Jorhat, 200 miles (300 kilometers) northeast of Gauhati, the Assam state capital.
Tamuly cried too but for a different reason.
"I felt so terrible I could eat only 51. In 2006, I had eaten 60 of them in two minutes for a local record event. But I am sure I shall make it to the Guinness World Records," the homemaker and mother of a 3-year-old told The Associated Press.
"Ramsay comforted me saying there was no reason I should feel sad. He said my feat was extraordinary," she added.
Tamuly has been eating the "ghost chili" — called "bhut jolokia" by locals — since she was 5.
"While children of my age roamed the village to look for berries, I used to look for ´bhut jolokia´ which I took with salt," she said.
Organizers said they would send a video to Guinness authorities to certify the feat.