Medusa pepper

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Medusa pepper
Piment fort.jpg
Genus Capsicum
Species Capsicum annuum
Heat Chilli05.svg Mild
Scoville scale 1–1,000 SHU

Medusa peppers are a type of sweet, ornamental chili pepper which grow upright, brightly colored fruit, and which are long and thin, producing a "hair of snakes" look suggestive of the gorgon Medusa in Greek mythology.

Unlike most other ornamental peppers, Medusa peppers are very mild, and typically have a heat level ranging from 1 to 1,000 Scoville heat units. Medusa peppers typically grow to approximately 2 inches (5.1 cm) long, and are often slightly curved in shape. [1] Unusually for ornamental peppers, the fruits are sweet, and transition from green through yellow and orange as they ripen, eventually becoming red when fully ripe. [2]

See also

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Fish pepper cultivar of Capsicum annuum

The fish pepper is a pepper cultivar of the species Capsicum annuum. Originating in the Caribbean, it is believed that the fish pepper was brought to the U.S. in the 19th century, where it grew in popularity in the Mid-Atlantic. In these cities, the pepper became a popular ingredient among the Black community and was commonly used in many crab and oyster houses. Due to urbanization, fish peppers declined in popularity in the early 20th century, nearly disappearing. However, it was saved in the 1940s thanks to Horace Pippin, a Black folk painter who lived in Pennsylvania, who provided seeds to H. Ralph Weaver, a beekeeper, in exchange for honey bees. The bees were sought as a folk remedy to treat arthritis. The seeds stayed within the Weaver family, until Weaver's grandson, William Woys Weaver, introduced the seeds to the public via the Seed Savers Exchange Yearbook in 1995. As a result, the fish pepper has regained some of its original popularity, with some Mid-Atlantic restaurants using it today.

References

  1. "Medusa Pepper: Monstrously Good Looks". PepperScale. 28 November 2015. Retrieved 18 July 2017.
  2. "Pepper, Medusa Ornamental Pepper, Medusa Ornamental". Direct Gardening. Archived from the original on 2013-09-06. Retrieved 2012-01-08.