<p class="ingestion featured-caption">Subway and Popeyes both released ghost-pepper sandwiches in time for Halloween.Priyanka Rajput/Business Insider</p><ul class="summary-list"><li>Viral trends and Gen Z's love of spice have inspired new menu items at fast-food chains.</li><li>Popeyes and Subway recently launched their own takes on a ghost-pepper sandwich.</li></ul><p>While October marks the start of <a target="_blank" class href="https://www.businessinsider.com/halloween-theme-parks-sober-scarier-more-fun-2024-10">spooky season in the US</a>, about 7,000 miles across the world, in Imphal, a city in Northeast India, it's the harvest season of Bhut Jolokia, or the ghost pepper as it's known in the West.</p><p>As baskets of <a target="_blank" class href="https://www.businessinsider.com/review-popular-chef-best-stuffed-pepper-recipe-photos">blazing-red peppers</a> go on sale at markets across Imphal, fast-food brands in the US start rolling out menu items inspired by the pepper's fiery flavor, using its name as a nod to Halloween.</p><p>The pepper, one of the world's hottest, has a rating of over 1 million on the <a target="_blank" class href="https://www.businessinsider.com/pepper-x-worlds-hottest-pepper-compares-to-reaper-ghost-2023-10">Scoville scale</a> — a jalapeño typically has a rating under 8,000 — and is known for amplifying any dish's heat.</p><p>Before becoming Halloween promotion material for <a target="_blank" class href="https://www.businessinsider.com/chicken-tenders-war-kfc-chilis-perdue-gearing-up-2024-10">fast-food chains</a>, the pepper was the subject of eating challenges on YouTube, such as the "<a target="_blank" class href="https://www.businessinsider.com/ghost-pepper-challenge-dangerous-hospital-esophagus-2016-10">Ghost Pepper Challenge</a>," where people ate a whole ghost pepper. While spice challenges have existed for years, YouTube competitions and series, such as "<a target="_blank" class href="https://www.businessinsider.com/hot-ones-challenge-sauces-what-its-actually-like-review-2023-11">Hot Ones</a>," have gamified the spice-eating experience.</p><p>Fast-food brands are now banking on this virality and <a target="_blank" class href="https://www.businessinsider.com/gen-z-fast-food-restaurants-spicy-change-menu-2023-5">Gen Z's love of spicy flavors</a> by adding ghost-pepper items to menus.</p><p>For the last two years, Burger King has sold a ghost-pepper Whopper and ghost-pepper chicken fries in time for Halloween. Starting in May 2023, Wendy's added its own ghost-pepper items to menus, including fries, chicken nuggets, and chicken sandwiches.</p><p>And this Halloween, Popeyes, which has already trialed <a target="_blank" class href="https://www.delish.com/food-news/a42396663/popeyes-ghost-pepper-wings/">ghost-pepper wings,</a> and Subway are joining them. Both chains launched ghost-pepper-flavored sandwiches earlier this month.</p><p>I don't have a high tolerance for spicy food, but still, like other Gen Zers, I prefer a chicken sandwich with a little kick. My go-to is Chick-fil-A's spicy deluxe sandwich, which I think gets the heat just right.</p><p>I've had ghost-pepper-infused food once before — at an Indian restaurant, where I needed a side of yogurt to cool the dish down — so I know how spicy it can be. So when I heard about the new sandwiches, I was curious to see how they'd compare. </p><p>Here's what I discovered when I tried the ghost-pepper sandwich from Popeyes and Subway.</p>