Barbaro Mojo’s five Cuban hot sauces were lab-tested at 1,992, 2,370, 4,470, 5,170, and 6,500 Scoville heat units. On the Barbaro Mojo Cuban heat scale (1 to 10) that is Jalabáo 3, Piñazo 6, Best Day Ever 8, El Havanero 9, Matanza 10. Here is what each number feels like and what to put it on.
Scoville heat units measure capsaicin, the compound that burns. A jalapeño runs 2,500 to 8,000 SHU, a habanero 100,000 to 350,000, a Carolina Reaper past 1,500,000. A finished sauce is much lower than its peppers because the pepper is only part of the bottle; the rest is the mojo criollo base, tomato, fruit, and vinegar. That is why a sauce built on habanero and Reaper can land at 6,500 SHU and still be eaten with dinner. The independent lab results for all five are on the Scoville results page; for the science, see the chili-head’s guide to Reaper and extreme sauces.
Nobody at the table knows whether 4,470 SHU is a lot. A number from 1 to 10 is instantly useful, so Barbaro Mojo prints it on every sauce. It is a tasting scale calibrated to this line: 3 is a mild kick, 6 is medium, 8 and 9 are hot, 10 is the one people ask for by name. The two systems agree on the order.
Mild, Jalabáo™ (3, 1,992 SHU): eggs, black beans, tostones, arroz con pollo, a Cuban sandwich. The table sauce when guests are heat-shy. Medium, Piñazo™ (6, 2,370 SHU): pork chops, fish, grilled pineapple, chicken. Hot, Best Day Ever™ (8, 4,470 SHU): wings, chicken thighs, shrimp, rice bowls. Hot, El Havanero™ (9, 5,170 SHU): lechón asado, palomilla steak, pan con bistec, anything slow-cooked. Extreme, Matanza™ (10, 6,500 SHU): a few drops on simple food so the pepper shows, or the wings on the recipes page. The pairing guide covers every dish.
The 4-pack has the four everyday sauces (3, 6, 8, 9) and ships free. Use code CUBANHEAT10 for 10% off, one use per customer. The full award list is here.
Hotter than Tabasco (about 2,500 to 5,000 SHU) and Cholula (about 1,000), far milder than a raw habanero (100,000 and up) or any extract sauce. On food, 6,500 SHU from real habanero and Carolina Reaper is a serious but edible burn, which is the point of Matanza.
Because the amount of Reaper is small and it sits in a pineapple-juice mojo base. The Reaper is there for its fruity, floral heat, not for volume. The lab number is what ends up in the bottle, not the pepper’s own rating.
Matanza, 10 of 10 and 6,500 SHU, habanero plus Carolina Reaper in limited runs. Of the everyday line, El Havanero at 9 (5,170 SHU) is the hottest.