We Tried Red Rooster's Range Of Hellfire Burgers And Here's What Happened

Spoiler: not all of us could handle the heat.

Red Rooster have announced the launch of their Hellfire Burgers. With the promise of some ~serious spice~, we wanted to see if they live up to the hype.

Here's the deal with the burgers.

Made with a new soft bun, succulent, buttermilk-coated chicken, fresh crispy lettuce and three fiery chilli sauces to choose from, the Hellfire Burger is pretty legit.

The levels of heat? Mild, medium, and hot, made respectively with jalapeño, habanero, and reaper chillis.

You can also opt between one or two slices of chicken – so we obviously doubled up.

So who's up for the challenge? BuzzFeeders Nat and Ryan.

As our resident Tasty producer, Ryan loves his food spicy.

"I grew up with lots of spicy food in my household as a child, so I now find that my tolerance to spice is quite strong. There’s actually no level of spice that I wouldn’t give a try."

Nat, not so much.

"I do like spicy food, but not burn-your-mouth-out spicy. I'm usually someone who likes a bit of chilli, but I also think laksa is hot, so there's that."

Because this is a ~scientific~ taste test, we started off with the control group: the Classic Mayo Hellfire Burger, which doesn't have any hot sauce.

Ryan: "Yummmm. Love myself a chicken burger, and love the fact this had two pieces in it. This was a good start to get my tastebuds reacquainted with the baseline of no spice."

Nat: "Chicken burgers have always been my go-to, and this one is pretty tasty. The chicken is succulent and juicy, and there's two patties, so that's a plus."

Now the challenge really begins. First up, the mild Hellfire Burger.

Ryan: "I got a little zing on my tongue when I bit into this burger. The jalapeño flavour stands out and mixes well with the creamy sauce. Overall I’d score this a 1/10 on my own personal spice scale."

Nat: "I wouldn't say this burger is hot; I would describe it more as flavoursome. The jalapeños cut through the mayo to give it a nice, tangy taste. In terms of spice level, I'd say maybe a 3/10. Not hot, but not not spicy."

Next: the medium Hellfire Burger.

Ryan: "This burger is what I’d call the optimum level of spice. It gives you a kick, but it doesn’t leave a lingering feeling of impending spicy doom in your mouth. Overall I’d score this a 5/10 on my own personal spice scale."

Nat: "Okay, this one has definitely turned things up a notch. You can really feel the warmth of this sauce. It's got some heat to it without being super overpowering. I'd call it a 6.5/10 in terms of spice."

And the grand finale: the hottest of the Hellfire Burgers.

Ryan: "As a chilli head I said I could handle my spice…and I think I still can. This burger gave me a moment where I had to seriously consider if I should continue. The spice level gave me momentary sweats! I was actually super happy this delivered the level of spice that it did because I was ready for a challenge. Overall I’d score this an 8/10 on my own personal spice scale."

Nat: Yeah...it was HOT. 9/10 spice, 10/10 do not try without milk."

Our favourites?

Ryan: "My favourite was definitely the the medium Hellfire Burger. The chilli level was hot enough that it felt like a hot charge was running through the buns, but the sauce didn’t overpower or mask the other ingredients. It was the perfect balance of heat and this is exactly what you want when you order chilli with your meal."

Nat: "My favourite was the mild one. It's got a well-rounded flavour to it without being all about the heat. It's definitely a good one to try if you have a low tolerance for spice, but even if you love a spicy kick, this burger doesn't disappoint. I liked the medium burger too, but I feel like my mouth might have gone numb if I'd eaten the whole thing."

All images by Natalia Krslovic and Ryan Paturzo / BuzzFeed

Try Red Rooster's range of Hellfire Burgers in store today. Be sure to add #ahellofaburger on your own Hellfire Burger challenge pics on social media!

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