Set your mouth on fire and take pride as your friends reach for the bread, water and milk at your next barbeque. Take your cooking to the hottest level ever by investing in the hottest hot sauce you can find. Your chili can never have too much kick and the fact is that most foods are better when they're doused in a little hot sauce. Dousing them in a lot of hot sauce can also make your food more exciting, and give you a reputation for cooking the hottest foods around.

Capsaicin is simply the active ingredient in chili peppers. It's what makes the peppers hot and gives food its full flavor. It's also what makes those hot foods burn as they're on the way down.

Most people measure how hot food is by how much their mouth starts burning. But other people are more scientific than that. For the hot-and-spicy-lover, the Scoville scale provides a definable measurement system. The Scoville scale simply measures the amount of capsaicin that is in the food, allowing the perfectionists among us to scientifically measure how hot food is. Bell peppers rate the lowest on the scale, coming in at a zero since they don't add any heat and kick to the dish. The highest rating is 1,000,000. The hottest peppers in the world, bhut jolokias, fall into this category because they must be diluted one million-fold before the heat from the capsaicin can no longer be detected.

You can better appreciate the Scoville scale when you realize that traditional Tabasco sauce rates between 2,500 and 5,000 Scoville units, depending on the batch. The hottest hot sauce created thus far is Blair's 16 Million Reserve, which rates at up to 16 million Scoville units.

There are several peppers that can be blended into hot sauce to create the desired burning sensation. They are found here in order of heat.

• Jalapenos – Green, red and chipotle jalapenos are all known for being hot. Of these three the green and chipotle are milder while the red is known to be hotter.
• Cayenne/ Chile – Usually found in Louisiana-style condiments, they are hotter than jalapeno's, but still on the lower end of the scale.
• Tabasco peppers
• Habanero – Used for creating habanero hot sauce, these peppers are much higher on the scale.
• Piri piri – These peppers are also hot, but what really makes them unique is the delayed reaction to the heat.
• Capsaicin Extract – Why bother with substitutes when you can go straight to the source? Adding these extracts will take any food up the ladder of insane heat and burning. Hot pepper extract is the fastest way to take any food from bland and boring to five-alarm fire hot.

Other ingredients can also be added to alter the heat and add more spice to the food. Tomatoes, carrots, garlic, onions and other vegetables are find additions to any hot sauce, as well as seasonings. The hottest sauces take advantage of hot pepper extract to kick up the heat and set taste buds on fire. Blair's 2 AM and 3AM Reserve Pepper Extract are both high on the hot and zesty Scoville scale. The 2AM extract chimes in at 650,000 – 900,000 units while the 3AM extract blows that away with 1,500,000 to 2,000,000 units.

Bhut jolokia, otherwise known as the ghost pepper, is the hottest pepper around. It has been recognized by Guinness as the hottest pepper in the world. Added to the hottest sauces, the ghost pepper can take your chili from pleasantly hot to fire breathing dragon. Ghost pepper is added to Mad Dog 357 sauce for it's famous kick, and it can also be found as a hot pepper extract.

Another popular pepper for hot sauce is the habanero. Habanero hot sauce is hot and adds a rich flavor, Some of the most popular habanero hot sauce versions include Dave's Hurtin' and the Elvis brand.

Whether you are looking for habanero hot sauce, ghost pepper hot sauce or a simple hot pepper extract, you can find the perfect addition for your chili, burger and barbeque. Keep the meals interesting and hot, and hold on to your reputation as the hottest cook around by choosing the right hot pepper extracts and fresh peppers for your dishes.