Just How Hot Are Ghost Peppers? Ask This Chef: Reminder: Ghost peppers are hot. Unfortunately, this reminder came too late for chef Arif Ali, who had to be rushed off to the hospital after tasting a hot chilli sauce at the London restaurant where he works. The restaurant was planning to use the sauce in a customer eating challenge, but manager Salim Khan made the call to shelf the sauce “in the interests of customer safety.” And don’t worry—Ali was treated and released from a local hospital.