Lágrimas de Mallorca: what it is, how hot it is and how to use it
Lágrimas de Mallorca ("Tears of Mallorca") is the most extreme product from Salsa Picante Martínez, a small brand from Sóller. It isn't a sauce: it's capsaicin oleoresin, the compound that makes chillies hot, concentrated in a 10 ml bottle. According to the maker it reaches 2,000,000 Scoville heat units (SHU). The oleoresin comes from India; the name comes from the Mallorcan brand that sells it.
How hot is Lágrimas de Mallorca?
The Scoville scale measures heat. As a guide, these are the usual values of some chillies:
- Jalapeño: 2,500–8,000 SHU
- Cayenne: 30,000–50,000 SHU
- Habanero: 100,000–350,000 SHU
- Carolina Reaper, one of the hottest chillies in the world: about 1,600,000–2,200,000 SHU
At 2,000,000 SHU, a single drop of Lágrimas de Mallorca is on a par with the hottest Carolina Reaper. The difference is that there's no fruit or vinegar here: it's almost pure heat with very little flavour of its own. That's why it's used to add heat to a recipe, not to pour on your plate.
How to use it
- Don't pour it from the bottle. Dip the tip of a toothpick and stir it into the pot. That much is already hot in a stew for four.
- Dilute it first in a spoonful of oil, stock or tomato sauce and add the mix little by little, so it spreads evenly.
- Taste before adding more. Capsaicin heat builds a few seconds after you taste.
- It works well in chilli con carne, stews, soups, marinades and homemade sauces.
Precautions
The maker warns that it is very hot and can irritate the skin. Keep this in mind:
- Wash your hands with soap and water after using it, and don't touch your eyes.
- Keep it out of the reach of children and pets.
- If you overdo it, a glass of milk or a yoghurt helps far more than water: capsaicin dissolves in fat, not in water.
Who is it for?
For people already used to heat who want to fine-tune a dish, and as a gift for the friend who always asks for "the hottest thing you've got". If you want heat with flavour, go for one of the sauces instead: our guide to Mallorcan hot sauces lists them from mildest to hottest, from the Serrano to the Carolina Reaper.
At a glance
- Product: Lágrimas de Mallorca by Salsa Picante Martínez (Sóller)
- Ingredient: capsaicin oleoresin (origin: India)
- Heat according to the maker: 2,000,000 SHU
- Size: 10 ml bottle
Bring Mallorca to your table
Products from Mallorca that go with this article, shipped across Spain and Europe.
