Uoo-Morok (Tree Chili) is an inter-specific hybrid of a chili variety cultivated in Manipur and other north-eastern Indian states like Assam and Nagaland. The chili, also known as bhut jolokia (ghost pepper), Naga jolokia, and king chili, belongs to the Capsicum Chinese family. Uoo-morok was awarded the distinction of “World’s Hottest of All Spices” by the Guinness World Records in 2007.
The pungency and spiciness of this king chili and other pepper varieties are measured in terms of Scoville Heat Units (SHUs). The scale is named after its creator, American pharmacist Wilbur Scoville. This method, devised in 1912, is known as the Scoville Organoleptic Test.
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This Uoo-Morok has 8,55,000-1,463,700 SHU. However, as of 2012, it was superseded by the Trinidad Moruga Scorpion with 2,000,000-2,200,000 SHU. At present, the world’s hottest chili is Pepper X, with an average of 2.693 million SHU.
In 2000, India’s Defense Research Laboratory (DRL) reported a rating of Uoo-morok as 855,000 SHUs, and in 2004 a rating again to 1,041,427 SHUs by using HPLC method. In 2005, at New Mexico State University Chile Pepper Institute in Las Cruces, regents Professor Paul Bosland found Uoo-morok grown from seed in southern New Mexico to have a Scoville rating of 1,001,304 SHUs by HPLC. The effect of climate on the pungency of these peppers is dramatic.
The most important key substances found in Uoo-morok are Capsaicin and Dihydrocapsaicin. A 2005 study comparing percentage availability of capsaicin and dihydrocapsaicin in Uoo-morok grown in Tezpur, Assam, showed the pungency of Uoo-morok decreased by over 50 per cent in Gwalior’s more arid climate. As per a report from the Manipur University, average measured Scoville rating by HPLC for Uoo-morok was at only 329,100 SHUs.
A ripe Uoo-morok measures 60 to 85 mm long and 25 to 30 mm wide with a red, yellow, orange, or chocolate colour. The unselected strain of Uoo-morok is an extremely variable plant, with a wide range in fruit sizes and fruit production per plant. Uoo-morok pods are unique among peppers, with their characteristic shape, and thin skin.
The red chili variety, however, has two different fruit types, the rough, dented fruit and the smooth fruit. The rough fruit plants are taller, with more fragile branches, and the smooth fruit plants yields more fruit, and is a more compact plant with sturdier branches. The plant grows well in most of the soil types of Manipur but the best is moist to dry but half-shaded area.
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Uoo-morok is used as a food and a spice. It is also used as a remedy for summer heat. It is used in both fresh and dried forms, to not only “heat up” curries, pickles and chutneys, but also to impart two distinct flavors to them. One kg of green Uoo-morok fetches between Rs 300-Rs 400.
After salt, chilies are the next most commonly used food in the world. Internationally, cultures take pleasure in the variety of ways that chili add a dynamic flavor to dishes and recipes. But ever better is that hot chili peppers have great health, dietary and medicinal benefits. This has been known to most of the world for hundreds of years.
The key ingredient in hot peppers, Capsaicin is associated with curing many ailments and promoting good health. Capsaicin is found concentrated in the inner parts of the chili pepper. Perhaps the greatest “hope” is to find a cure for cancer. Capsaicin is being clinically tested in cancer research that suggests that it can kill prostate cancer cells, lung cancer cells and inhibits the further growth of leukemia cells.
Capsaicin if fed into the bladder with a catheter desensitizes hyperirritable, aberrant neurons in the bladder for extended periods of time. This activity blocks the premature bladder contractions which cause an unpredictable loss of urine. It is also being studied for use in pain treatment for post-surgical pain. The consumption of Uoo-morok can increase circulation while lowering blood pressure.
It is also used for arthritis pain relief, migraine pain relief, backache relief, muscle pain relief, pain relief from strains, and sprains, nasal spray for sinus and headache relief, digestion problems, to control bleeding, flu treatment, to induce sweating thereby breaking a fever, to treat incontinence, as a herpes creme, an energy booster and more. Uoo-morok promotes endorphin production. Endorphins are a natural substance which when released into the bloodstream can heighten good feelings. Endorphins are natural opiates.
RB Srivastava, the director of the Life Sciences Department, India’s Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO), said Uoo-morok-based aerosol sprays could be used as a “safety device” and “civil variants” of chili grenades that could be used to control and disperse mobs. In rural areas of Assam, the peppers are smeared on fences or incorporated in smoke bombs as a safety precaution to keep wild elephants at a distance.
Uoo-morok can be preserved in various ways such as drying, freezing, making pickles, fermenting in oil, roasting, canning, etc. Manipur is rich in Uoo-morok production. Hence, the state must keep on enhancing its production. We must use this special chili in our daily diet. The soil of the state is suitable for Uoo-morok cultivation.
Hence, not only for health but also to solve the unemployment problems of the educated youths of the state, mass cultivation of Uoo-morok can be started in most of the available land. This plant can also be used as an indoor plant or as a decorative plant without losing much space. Therefore, let us plant Uoo-morok and start mass production of it. Let us also start taking this king chili in our daily diet for good health and for a green environment.
The author is an Environmentalist, presently working as District Forest Officer, Chandel district, Manipur. The author can be reached at nmunall@yahoo.in