I recently completed a Hot Ones Gauntlet with a couple close friends and it was a fantastic experience. If you aren’t familiar, Hot Ones is a YouTube show in which a celebrity gets interviewed and eats 10 hot wings that progressively get hotter with each question.

My friend had a bunch of hot sauces featured on the show and I was able to pick the ones I wanted for my own progressive ten, which provided some control over the flavor profile mostly, I wanted the same spicy progression. I was challenged by my Morningstar patties being prepared in a different kitchen than my own and how they’d be perceived in comparison to others foods, using different plates and wondering what they’ve been used for before, wondering if I’d be able to swallow these “chickn” pieces with unknown flavors, etc. the list keeps going.

The big thing was that there was something objectively scary to eat, and everyone was scared. I’d never put myself in a situation where there was something truly scary to eat like this. To be scared of eating something that would actually harm me tripped me out— it was liberating just to think about food in this way and helped me put some other foods into perspective as I went through the gauntlet. With each “wing” getting hotter, my threshold was pushed and it helped to see myself choosing to do the scary thing and continue forward with something that was actually going to hurt me. I managed to complete the Hot Ones flight and felt so incredibly proud of myself. So many different facets that made it challenging yet I completed it, and everyone around me was struggling to eat too.

I’m still processing the experience but I have been able to try 2 mid-tier fearful foods since and managed to continue exposing myself to both of them, and even enjoying one so mich imma incorporate it into my menu. I really think it was because of this hot sauce experience that I’ve felt more comfortable in venturing farther.

If this sounds like a fun/interesting exposure experience, try it out! It helps if your friend already has a bunch of hot sauces, but maybe even getting a hold of 3 ridiculously hot ones might provide the same effect. Curious to know if others have had a similar experience or if y’all try it out!

P.S. Da Bomb hot sauce truly is as awful as folks say it is on the show. Absolutely horrific.