Red, the restaurant that introduced the latest styles of Indian cooking to Bangkok, is hosting a unique media night centring on Bhut Jolokias, or “ghost chilies”, which have been crowned the hottest chilies on the planet by the Guinness Book of World Records.

At an exclusive media event on Tuesday, February 5th, from 6pm to 9pm, a panel of foodies will put its taste buds to the test by judging a wide variety of new dishes, featuring Bhut Jolokias, created by Red Chef Gagan Anand.

Among the panelists will be well-known food writers, F&B experts, gourmets and gourmands, as well as some of Bangkok’s most famous faces. They include celebrity chef Bobby Chinn, of Discovery Channel’s World Café Asia fame; Saarunthorn Techaphaiboon; Doug Harrison, of Bourbon Street restaurant; Dr Valerie McKenzie, of the Morning Talk Show; Somsak Wongdechanan, of Gastro magazine; Andrew Hiransomboon, of BK magazine; Ramneek Singh Lamba, executive chef of the Sheraton Grande Sukhumvit; Luckana Champa; and Kris Kiattisak.

Tennis ace Paradorn Srichaphan is also expected to join the panel.
Their mission will be to rate Gagan’s chefs-d’oeuvre on their appearance, texture, aroma and, last but not least, flavour.

The top-scoring dishes will be chosen for a special chef’s tasting menu that will be the highlight of a “Some Like It Hot" food extravaganza at Red Restaurant in March and April.

The Bhut Jolokia was certified the hottest chili in the world by the Guinness Book of World Records in February 2007, displacing the Red Savina, which had held the world record since 1994.

The spiciness of chilies is measured using the Scoville scale. The Bhut Jolokia has been found to have a Scoville rating of 1,001,304 units, compared to 580,000 Scoville units for the Red Savina.

Red Restaurant, located in a converted residence in trendy Thong Lo, is fast carving a name for itself for its exciting style of cooking. Gone is the conservatism that has surrounded Indian food for so long; in its place is a lighter, fresher, contemporary style of cooking incorporating a variety of new ingredients more common in other cuisines.

Chef Gagan, both consultant and chef, has some impressive credentials. He spent time with the Taj Hotels group, has worked alongside Michelin-star chefs and has even cooked for the President of India and former US President Bill Clinton.