Teary eyes and swear words – Visiiri visited the hottest event of the autumn

In my mind, I curse all my life decisions and the fact that my mouth has sensation. The pain makes me squirm and breathe heavily. In my mouth, a chemical compound called capsaicin is affecting the sensitive cells on the mucosal membranes, and due to a complex chemical process, I feel the stimulation by capsaicin as pain and heat on the mucosal membranes of my mouth.

In short: I have eaten chili.

I didn’t eat the chili just for fun though. I am spending a September weekend in Bommari, Hervanta as a guest in International Teekkari Guild INTO’s fiery Scoville Challenge. The participants of the event, now being held for the fourth time, get to taste chicken wings with different chili sauces prepared by the members of INTO. The challenge has ten checkpoints, and in addition to the culinary experience, the participants are rewarded with a coverall patch.

“I know I did everything right, when the people curse me. Earlier, the participants have wished me death and a horrible fate, all in a good spirit of course.” – Rupesh Majhi

The sauce I tasted is the eighth of the challenge, aptly named as Cleanse your soul. Its creator, Rupesh Majhi is clearly happy with the physical reactions his chili is causing.

“I know I did everything right, when the people curse me. Earlier, the participants have wished me death and a horrible fate, all in a good spirit of course. This time I used eight different types of chilies in my blend, including Carolina Reaper and Scorpion,” Majhi explains.

The chili types he mentioned, Smoking Ed’s Carolina Reaper and Trinidad Moruga Scorpion, are among the spiciest chilies in the world. Their values ​​on the Scoville scale, which measures the hotness of chilies, are 1,569,383 and 2,009,231 Scoville.

For comparison, the heat of habanero, which is familiar to many, is around 350,000-580,000 Scoville, and Tabasco is around 50,000 Scoville. The Scoville value of chili is obtained by mixing crushed chili with sugar water until the heat is no longer felt. For example, in order to dilute away the heat of habanero, you need 1,000 litres of sugar water.

Pain and euphoria

In addition to the sensation of heat, chilis can even cause earaches and a momentary reduction in hearing. After eating chili, you often notice that your nose is dripping and your face is red. Eating chili can also cause vomiting, chills and diarrhoea.

The Scoville values of the food served in the Scoville Challenge are unknown, but judging by the participants faces and teary eyes, it seems that they have some kick.

The first-year robotics student Jimi Miettunen shares his feelings after surviving the challenge.

“It feels good because it cleared my sinuses, and finally I got to taste some food with real flavour in it,” Miettunen tells us.

I think to myself that the food I eat should not hurt, so I wonder why anyone would do this. The participants of the challenge seem to be united by a willingness to overcome themselves. After eating chili, it’s possible to feel a sense of euphoria, as the brain excretes dopamine.

“This sounded like a fun challenge, and I wanted to challenge myself,” Miettunen says.

Elli Okanen didn’t know she was going to participate when she woke up in the morning.

“I got the ticket two hours ago, so I didn’t have time to prepare for this in any way. This is the worst challenge I’ve taken part in, and now I’m feeling amazing,” Okanen says.

The first timer Joonas Koponen says that he prepared for the challenge by eating antacids beforehand. Koponen says that he enjoyed the challenge and plans on taking part again.

“At the start, the chilis had perhaps a kind of a fruity flavour, and the ones towards the end were much hotter. Now I clearly have some endorphins going around my system. I’m feeling a bit dizzy. But luckily, this will pass quickly. Absolutely, I want to take part again in the future,” Koponen explains.

Majhi from the eighth checkpoint reveals that his chili is the hottest in the challenge, and that it’s no coincidence that he is in this position.

“If the hottest chili would be the last, the participants would immediately go get some milk, which eases the burn. Now they have to wait in line for two more sauces and the chili gets to burn properly. You need to be a bit sneaky,” Majhi explains with a smile

The heat of Majhi’s chili was also felt by the biology student Priscilia Dinu.

“Number eight was definitely the worst. I don’t like spicy food, so I came here to challenge myself,” Dinu says.

Also the materials technology student Ville Korhonen noticed the heat getting worse while queuing.

“When I was eating the wing, the heat wasn’t bad, but it was getting worse the whole time. The queue was moving so slowly that the heat had time to really set in,” Korhonen describes.

The event is growing in popularity

During the final checkpoints, the participants’ feelings become clear. Their faces are red, and they are blowing their noses. Someone is jumping in place, as the heat gets unbearable. Many are sweating as though they had done heavy exercise. Those who do not take part in the eating have been laughing at the painful faces with a hint of schadenfreude.

I have never seen so many men with tears in their eyes at the same time.

I have never seen so many men with tears in their eyes at the same time. For myself, the heat has subsided, but I notice that the roof of my mouth, part of my tongue and some of my gums have gone numb.

On the final checkpoint, Chris Allan is serving the chili named Tupsula’s bathwater. He was one of the people who founded the Scoville Challenge.

“The event was born out of a whim, as we were tasting various spices with friends. The first event was held in the autumn of 2021,” Allan explains.

Rupesh Majhi tells that the event grows more popular every time.

“This time, there were 100 tickets, and every last one was sold. We’ll have the next challenge on Wappu,” Majhi reveals.

Emil Sipinen, dressed in the coveralls of the materials engineering guild, is expecting the event to be hotter than before.

“I heard rumours that this time it would be even hotter than it was during the previous Wappu. INTO has challenged itself to make even hotter chili, and I am here to take on the challenge. I appreciate INTIO’s effort,” Sipinen says.

Sipinen makes the challenge look easy. The pineapple included in the sixth checkpoint seems to alleviate the heat. Matthew Heath, the cook who prepared the chili, says that in addition to the pineapple, he also put in some peach in the chili.

“I’m here for the first time as a chili cook,” Heath explains.

Even though Sipinen’s face doesn’t flinch at any of the checkpoints, he’s glad to get a glass of milk at the end of the challenge to alleviate the burn. Sipinen nominated the sauce at the eighth checkpoint as his favourite.

The euphoria brought by the chili is easy to see from the participants’ relieved smiles. Bommari is filled by a relaxed and open atmosphere as the worst of the heat gives way. Many may still have a few painful moments during the evening and night when the chili continues to burn in the intestines. Sometimes the chili gets its last revenge on the toilet.

My mouth finally gets its sensation back a couple hours after tasting the soul cleanser. INTO is planning to have the next challenge on Wappu, so those with a weak palate like me should already start getting used to some heat.