About Chili Klaus

A strong community

Chili Klaus is today part of a strong community with 500,000 followers on social media and around a quarter of a billion views of chili tasting videos, where he tastes chili together with famous personalities in both Denmark and abroad. These videos have resulted in a Zulu Award, and Chili Klaus has also been a guest on the award-winning American show Hot Ones, which has millions of viewers worldwide. In addition to this, Chili Klaus gives lectures, performs at festivals and participates in chili festivals around the world.

The chili factory is located at the port of Aarhus, and here work 6 permanent employees and a group of students who combine their studies with a part-time job. The range has grown to several hundred products, all with chili as the main ingredient and each with a small wind force number from 1-15. Chili Klaus exports to the rest of Scandinavia, Germany, the Netherlands and the Baltic countries, among others.

How did it start?

In the summer of 2013, I was engaged at Bornholms Teater, and in connection with that I lived on the island for two months. I had brought all my chili plants with me, and one day, a few hours before I was supposed to perform, I had an idea. I wanted to make a chili tasting video and try to describe the taste, nuances and strength of some of the most trend-setting chilies, in the same way as you do at a wine or beer tasting.

The reality was a little different, though. Ten minutes later I was completely burned out and thought that if I had to do it again, it would probably be a good idea not to do it so soon before a performance at a theater. But I recorded the video on a small camera anyway, and posted it on my private Facebook page and YouTube, without thinking about it any further.

However, it would turn out to be the start of a life-changing chili adventure that I could never have imagined at the time.

Growing up, my home was filled with specialty cheeses that my father, a trained dairyman, had stored in a spare fridge in the garage. Perhaps this is where my love of food that was a little different first began to blossom. But it was one night at an Indian restaurant in London in the early 80s, when I ordered the strongest dish on the menu, that really opened my eyes. I remember it as an almost transcendental experience, and I was hooked.

When I discovered that it was impossible to find hot chilies in Denmark in the 90s, I started buying seeds from abroad and growing them myself. I was fascinated by how a small seed could grow into a large and exciting chili plant. By growing my own chilies, I gained insight into the different varieties, strengths and flavors that exist among the over 3000 conventional chilies worldwide. If you include the wild chilies, you reach almost 10,000.

Today, chili is a daily and natural part of my everyday life. In addition to its fantastic taste, chili is also known for its many health benefits. It contains, among other things, high levels of vitamin C and beta-carotene, which are important antioxidants for the body. Chili can also help increase metabolism, reduce pain and inflammation, and it can even help reduce the risk of heart disease. Of course, I am happy with the many good properties of chili and I have countless hot sauces in my fridge. Hot sauce is the little extra condiment that goes with virtually all dishes. More and more restaurants today have both hot sauce and spicy dishes on the menu.

Stay spicy folks!

Chili Klaus