Chili pepper | |
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Scientific classification | |
Kingdom: | Plantae |
Clade: | Tracheophytes |
Clade: | Angiosperms |
Clade: | Eudicots |
Clade: | Asterids |
Order: | Solanales |
Family: | Solanaceae |
Tribe: | Capsiceae L. |
Genus: | Capsicum L. |
Varieties and Groups | |
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Synonyms [2] | |
Synonymy
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Chili peppers, also spelled chile or chilli [3] (from Classical Nahuatl chīlli [ˈt͡ʃiːlːi] ⓘ ), are varieties of the berry-fruit of plants from the genus Capsicum , which are members of the nightshade family Solanaceae, cultivated for their pungency. [4] Chili peppers are widely used in many cuisines as a spice to add "heat" to dishes. Capsaicin and related compounds known as capsaicinoids are the substances that give chili peppers their intensity when ingested or applied topically. Chili peppers exhibit a range of heat and flavors. This diversity is the reason behind the availability of different types of paprika and chili powder, each offering its own taste and heat level. [5]
Chili peppers are believed to have originated in Central or South America [6] [7] [8] and were first cultivated in Mexico. [9] European explorers brought chili peppers back to the Old World in the late 16th century as part of the Columbian Exchange, which led to many cultivars spreading around the world and finding use in both food and traditional medicine. This led to a variety of cultivars, including the annuum species, with its glabriusculum variety and New Mexico cultivar group, and the species of baccatum , chinense , frutescens , and pubescens .
Cultivars grown in North America and Europe are believed to derive from Capsicum annuum and have white, yellow, red, or purple to black fruits. In 2019, the world's production of raw green chili peppers amounted to 38 million tons, with China producing half. [10]
Capsicum plants originated in modern-day Peru and Bolivia, and have been a part of human diets since about 7,500 BC. [7] [11] They are one of the oldest cultivated crops in the Americas. [11] Origins of cultivating chili peppers have been traced to east-central Mexico some 6,000 years ago, [9] [12] although, according to researchers at the University of California Berkeley in 2014, chili plants were first cultivated independently across different locations in the Americas including highland Peru and Bolivia, central Mexico, and the Amazon. [8] They were one of the first self-pollinating crops cultivated in Mexico, Central America, [13] and parts of South America. [11]
Peru has the highest variety of cultivated Capsicum diversity because it is a center of diversification where varieties of all five domesticates were introduced, grown, and consumed in pre-Columbian times. [14] The largest diversity of wild Capsicum peppers is consumed in Bolivia. Bolivian consumers distinguish two basic forms: ulupicas, species with small round fruits including C. eximium, C. cardenasii, C. eshbaughii, and C. caballeroi landraces; and arivivis with small elongated fruits including C. baccatum var. baccatum and C. chacoense varieties. [14]
When Christopher Columbus and his crew reached the Caribbean, they were the first Europeans to encounter Capsicum. They called them "peppers" because, like black pepper of the genus Piper known in Europe, they have a spicy, hot taste unlike other foods. [15] Chilis were first brought back to Europe by the Spanish, appearing in Spanish records by 1493. Unlike pepper vines of the genus Piper which grow in the tropics, chilis could be grown in temperate climates. By the mid-1500s, they had become a common garden plant in Spain and was incorporated into numerous dishes. They also appeared in Italy by 1526, Germany in 1543, and the Balkans by 1569, where it was processed into paprika. [16] [17]
The rapid introduction of chilis to Africa and Asia was likely through the Portuguese and Spanish traders in the 16th century, though the details are unrecorded. The Portuguese introduced it first to Africa and Arabia, and then to their colonies and trading posts in Asia, including Goa, Sri Lanka, and Malacca. From there, it spread to neighboring regions in South Asia and western Southeast Asia via local trade and natural dispersal. At around the same time, the Spanish also introduced chilis to the Philippines, where it spread to Melanesia, Micronesia, and other Pacific Islands via their monopoly of the Manila galleons. Their spread to East Asia in the late 16th century is less clear, but was likely also through local trade or through Portuguese and Spanish trading ports in Canton, China, and Nagasaki, Japan. [18] [16] [19] [17] [20] [21]
This section is missing information about FAO data "Chillies and peppers, dry (Capsicum spp., Pimenta spp.), raw".(October 2023) |
Region | (Millions of tons) |
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China | 16.7 |
Mexico | 2.8 |
Indonesia | 2.8 |
Turkey | 2.6 |
Spain | 1.5 |
World | 36.1 |
Source: FAOSTAT of the United Nations [22] |
In 2020, 36 million tonnes of green chilies and peppers (counted as any Capsicum or Pimenta fruits) were produced worldwide, with China producing 46% of the total. [22]
There are five domesticated species of chili peppers:
Though there are only a few commonly used species, there are many cultivars and methods of preparing chili peppers that have different names for culinary use. Green and red bell peppers, for example, are the same cultivar of C. annuum. Unripe peppers are green (although peppers that do not turn red on ripening have been bred). In the same species are the jalapeño, the poblano (which, when dried, is referred to as ancho), New Mexico, serrano, and other cultivars.[ citation needed ]
Peppers are commonly broken down into two groupings: bell peppers (UK: sweet peppers) and hot peppers. Most popular pepper varieties are seen as falling into one of these categories or a cross between them.[ citation needed ]
The substances that give chili peppers their pungency (spicy heat) when ingested or applied topically are capsaicin (8-methyl-N-vanillyl-6-nonenamide) and several related chemicals, collectively called capsaicinoids. [24] [25] The quantity of capsaicin varies by variety, and depends on growing conditions. Water-stressed peppers usually produce stronger pods. When a habanero plant is stressed, by absorbing low water for example, the concentration of capsaicin increases in some parts of the fruit. [26]
When peppers are consumed by mammals such as humans, capsaicin binds with pain receptors in the mouth and throat, potentially evoking pain via spinal relays to the brainstem and thalamus where heat and discomfort are perceived. [27] However, birds are unable to perceive the hotness and so they can eat some of the hottest peppers. The intensity of the "heat" of chili peppers is commonly reported in Scoville heat units (SHU), invented by American pharmacist Wilbur Scoville in 1912. Historically, it was a measure of the dilution of an amount of chili extract added to sugar syrup before its heat becomes undetectable to a panel of tasters; the more it has to be diluted to be undetectable, the more powerful the variety, and therefore the higher the rating. [28] The modern method is a quantitative analysis of SHU using high-performance liquid chromatography (HPLC) to directly measure the capsaicinoid content of a chili pepper variety. Pure capsaicin is a hydrophobic, colorless, odorless, and crystalline-to-waxy solid at room temperature, and measures 16,000,000 SHU.
Capsaicin is produced by the plant as a defense against mammalian predators and microbes, in particular a fusarium fungus carried by hemipteran insects that attack certain species of chili peppers, according to one study. [29] Peppers increased the quantity of capsaicin in proportion to the damage caused by fungal predation on the plant's seeds. [29]
A wide range of intensity is found in commonly used peppers:
Bell pepper | 0 SHU |
Fresno, jalapeño | 3,500–10,000 SHU |
Cayenne | 30,000–50,000 SHU |
Piri piri, bird's eye | 50,000–100,000 SHU |
Habanero, Scotch bonnet | 100,000–350,000 SHU [30] |
The top 8 world's hottest chili peppers (by country) are:
Country | Type | Hotness |
---|---|---|
United States | Pepper X | 2.69M SHU [31] |
Wales | Dragon's Breath | 2.48M SHU* [32] |
United States | Carolina Reaper | 2.2M SHU [33] |
Trinidad and Tobago | Trinidad moruga scorpion | 2.0M SHU* [34] |
India | Ghost pepper (Bhut jolokia) | 1.58M SHU [35] |
Trinidad and Tobago | Trinidad Scorpion Butch T | 1.46M SHU [36] |
England | Naga Viper | 1.38M SHU [37] |
England | Infinity chili | 1.07M SHU [38] |
NOTE: SHU claims marked with an asterisk (*) have not been confirmed by Guinness World Records. [39]
This section needs additional citations for verification .(April 2020) |
Due to their unique pungency, chili peppers constitute a crucial part of many cuisines around the world, particularly in Chinese (especially in Sichuanese food), Mexican, Thai, Indian, New Mexican cuisine and many other South American, Caribbean and East Asian cuisines. In 21st-century Asian cuisine, chili peppers are commonly used across many regions. [40] [41]
Chili pepper pods are botanically berries. When used fresh, they are most often prepared and eaten like a vegetable. Whole pods can be dried and then crushed or ground into chili powder that is used as a spice or seasoning. Chilies can be dried to prolong their shelf life. Chili peppers can also be preserved by brining, immersing the pods in oil, or by pickling.
Many fresh chilies such as poblano have a tough outer skin that does not break down on cooking. Chilies are sometimes used whole or in large slices, by roasting, or other means of blistering or charring the skin, so as not to entirely cook the flesh beneath. When cooled, the skins will usually slip off easily.
The leaves of every species of Capsicum are edible. Though almost all other Solanaceous crops have toxins in their leaves, chili peppers do not.[ citation needed ] The leaves, which are mildly bitter and nowhere near as hot as the fruit, are cooked as greens in Filipino cuisine, where they are called dahon ng sili (literally "chili leaves"). They are used in the chicken soup tinola . [42] In Korean cuisine, the leaves may be used in kimchi. [43] In Japanese cuisine, the leaves are cooked as greens, and also cooked in tsukudani style for preservation.
Many Mexican dishes, including variations on chiles rellenos, use the entire chili. Dried whole chilies may be reconstituted before grinding to a paste. The chipotle is the smoked, dried, ripe jalapeño. In the northern Mexican states of Sinaloa and Sonora, chiltepin peppers (a wild pepper) are used in cheeses and soups to add spiciness to dishes. In southern Mexico, mole sauce is made with dried chiles, such as ancho and chipotle peppers. Chiles are used in salsas. Mexican households usually grow chile plants to use in cooking.
In India, most households always keep a stock of fresh hot green chilies at hand, and use them to flavor most curries and dry dishes.
Chili is a staple fruit in Bhutan. Bhutanese call this crop ema (in Dzongkha) or solo (in Sharchop). The ema datshi recipe is entirely made of chili mixed with local cheese.
Chilies are present in many cuisines. Some notable chili dishes include arrabbiata sauce, paprikash, chiles en nogada, jerk chicken, mole poblano, nam phrik, 'nduja, sambal , and som tam.
Fresh or dried chilies are often used to make hot sauce, a liquid condiment—usually bottled when commercially available—that adds spice to other dishes. Hot sauces are found in many cuisines including harissa from North Africa, chili oil from China (known as rāyu in Japan), and sriracha from Thailand. Dried chilies are also used to infuse cooking oil.
The contrast in color and appearance makes chili plants interesting to some as a purely decorative garden plant.
Psychologist Paul Rozin suggests that eating chilies is an example of a "constrained risk" like riding a roller coaster, in which extreme sensations like pain and fear can be enjoyed because individuals know that these sensations are not actually harmful. This method lets people experience extreme feelings without any significant risk of bodily harm. [46]
Capsaicin, the pungent chemical in chili peppers, is used as an analgesic in topical ointments, nasal sprays, and dermal patches to relieve pain. [47] A 2022 review of preliminary research indicated that regular consumption of chili peppers was associated with weak evidence for a lower risk of death from cardiovascular diseases and cancer. [48]
Capsaicin extracted from chilies is used in pepper sprays and some tear gas formulations as a chemical irritant, for use as less-lethal weapons for control of unruly individuals or crowds. [49] Such products have considerable potential for misuse, and may cause injury or death. [49]
Conflicts between farmers and elephants have long been widespread in African and Asian countries, where elephants nightly destroy crops, raid grain houses, and sometimes kill people. Farmers have found the use of chilies effective in crop defense against elephants. Elephants do not like capsaicin. Because the elephants have a large and sensitive olfactory and nasal system, the smell of the chili causes them discomfort and deters them from feeding on the crops. By planting a few rows of the fruit around valuable crops, farmers create a buffer zone through which the elephants are reluctant to pass. Chili dung bombs are also used for this purpose. They are bricks made of mixing dung and chili, and are burned, creating a noxious smoke that keeps hungry elephants out of farmers' fields. This can lessen dangerous physical confrontation between people and elephants. [50]
Birds do not have the same sensitivity to capsaicin, because it targets a specific pain receptor in mammals. Chili peppers are eaten by birds living in the chili peppers' natural range, possibly contributing to seed dispersal and evolution of the protective capsaicin in chili peppers, as a bird in flight can spread the seeds further away from the parent plant after they pass through its digestive system than any land or tree dwelling mammal could do so under the same circumstances, thus reducing competition for resources. [51]
Nutritional value per 100 g (3.5 oz) | |
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Energy | 166 kJ (40 kcal) |
8.8 g | |
Sugars | 5.3 g |
Dietary fiber | 1.5 g |
0.4 g | |
1.9 g | |
Vitamins | Quantity %DV† |
Vitamin A equiv. | 5% 48 μg5% 534 μg |
Vitamin B6 | 30% 0.51 mg |
Vitamin C | 160% 144 mg |
Minerals | Quantity %DV† |
Iron | 6% 1 mg |
Magnesium | 5% 23 mg |
Potassium | 11% 322 mg |
Other constituents | Quantity |
Water | 88 g |
Capsaicin | 0.01g – 6 g |
†Percentages estimated using US recommendations for adults, [52] except for potassium, which is estimated based on expert recommendation from the National Academies. [53] |
Red hot chili peppers are 88% water, 9% carbohydrates, 2% protein, and 0.4% fat (table). In a 100 gram reference amount, chili peppers supply 40 calories, and are a rich source of vitamin C and vitamin B6 (table).
The three primary spellings are chili, chile and chilli, all of which are recognized by dictionaries.
The name of the plant is unrelated to that of Chile, [58] the country, which has an uncertain etymology perhaps relating to local place names. Certain Spanish-speaking countries in South America and the Caribbean, including Chile, Colombia, Ecuador, Panama, Peru, Dominican Republic, Venezuela and Puerto Rico, call the peppers ají, a word of Taíno origin.
Though pepper originally referred to the genus Piper , not Capsicum, the latter usage is included in English dictionaries, including the Oxford English Dictionary [61] and Merriam-Webster. [62] The word pepper is also commonly used in the botanical and culinary fields in the names of different types of pungent plants and their fruits. [61]
The volatile oil in spicy peppers may cause skin irritation, requiring handwashing and care when touching the eyes or any sensitive body parts. [63] Consuming hot peppers may cause stomach pain, hyperventilation, sweating, vomiting, and symptoms possibly requiring hospitalization.[ citation needed ]
The Scoville scale is a measurement of pungency of chili peppers and other substances, recorded in Scoville heat units (SHU). It is based on the concentration of capsaicinoids, among which capsaicin is the predominant component.
The bell pepper is the fruit of plants in the Grossum Group of the species Capsicum annuum. Cultivars of the plant produce fruits in different colors, including red, yellow, orange, green, white, chocolate, candy cane striped, and purple. Bell peppers are sometimes grouped with less pungent chili varieties as "sweet peppers". While they are botanically fruits—classified as berries—they are commonly used as a vegetable ingredient or side dish. Other varieties of the genus Capsicum are categorized as chili peppers when they are cultivated for their pungency, including some varieties of Capsicum annuum.
Capsicum pubescens is a plant of the genus Capsicum (pepper). The species name, pubescens, refers to the hairy leaves of this pepper. The hairiness of the leaves, along with the black seeds, make Capsicum pubescens distinguishable from other Capsicum species. Capsicum pubescens has pungent yellow, orange, red, green or brown fruits.
Capsicum annuum var. glabriusculum, a chili-pepper variety of Capsicum annuum, is native to southern North America and northern South America. Common names include chiltepín, Indian pepper, grove pepper, chiltepe, and chile tepín, as well as turkey, bird’s eye, or simply bird peppers. Tepín is derived from a Nahuatl word meaning "flea". This variety is the most likely progenitor of the domesticated C. annuum var. annuum. Another similar-sized pepper, 'Pequin' is often confused with tepin, although the tepin fruit is round to oval where as the pequin's fruit is oval with a point, and the leaves, stems and plant structures are very different on each plant.
Capsicum annuum is a fruiting plant from the family Solanaceae (nightshades), within the genus Capsicum which is native to the northern regions of South America and to southwestern North America. The plant produces berries of many colors including red, green, and yellow, often with pungent taste. It also has many varieties and common names including paprika, chili pepper, jalapeño, cayenne, bell pepper, and many more with over 200 variations within the species. It is also one of the oldest cultivated crops, with domestication dating back to around 6,000 years ago in regions of Mexico. The genus Capsicum has over 30 species but Capsicum annuum is the primary species in its genus, as it has been widely cultivated for human consumption for a substantial amount of time and has spread across the world. This species has many uses in culinary applications, medicine, self defense, and can even be ornamental.
Capsicum chinense, commonly known as a "habanero-type pepper", is a species of chili pepper native to the Americas. C. chinense varieties are well known for their unique flavors and many have exceptional heat. The hottest peppers in the world are members of this species, with a Scoville Heat Unit score of 2.69 million measured in the C. chinense cultivar, Pepper X in 2023.
The poblano is a mild chili pepper originating in the state of Puebla, Mexico. Dried, it is called ancho or chile ancho, from the Spanish word ancho ("wide"). Stuffed fresh and roasted it is popular in chiles rellenos poblanos.
Capsicum baccatum is a member of the genus Capsicum, and is one of the five domesticated chili pepper species. The fruit tends to be very pungent, and registers 30,000 to 50,000 on the Scoville heat unit scale.
Siling labuyo is a small chili pepper cultivar that developed in the Philippines after the Columbian Exchange. It belongs to the species Capsicum frutescens and is characterized by triangular fruits that grow pointing upwards. The fruits and leaves are used in traditional Philippine cuisine. The fruit is pungent, ranking at 80,000 to 100,000 heat units in the Scoville Scale.
A guajillo chili or guajillo chile or chile guaco or mirasol chile is a landrace variety of the species Capsicum annuum with a mirasol chile fruit type. Mirasol is used to refer to the fresh pepper, and the term guajillo is used for the dry form, which is the second-most common dried chili in Mexican cuisine. The Mexican state of Zacatecas is one of the main producers of guajillo chilies. There are two main varieties that are distinguished by their size and heat factors. The guajillo puya is the smaller and hotter of the two. In contrast, the longer and wider guajillo has a more pronounced, richer flavor and is somewhat less spicy. With a rating of 2,500 to 5,000 on the Scoville scale, its heat is considered mild to medium.
The Fresno chile or Fresno chili pepper is a medium-sized cultivar of Capsicum annuum. It should not be confused with the Fresno Bell pepper. It is often confused with the jalapeño pepper but has thinner walls, often has milder heat, and takes less time to mature. It is, however, a Fresno County chile, which is genetically distinct from the jalapeño and it grows point up, rather than point down as with the jalapeño. The fruit starts out bright green changing to orange and red as fully matured. A mature Fresno pepper will be conical in shape, 50 mm (2 in) long, and about 25 mm (1 in) in diameter at the stem. The plants do well in warm to hot temperatures and dry climates with long sunny summer days and cool nights. They are very cold-sensitive and disease resistant, reaching a height of 60–75 cm (24–30 in).
Guntur Sannam or Capsicum annuum var. longum, is a variety of chili pepper that grows in the districts of Guntur, Prakasam, Warangal (Telangana), and Khammam in India. It is registered as one of the geographical indications of Andhra Pradesh.
The ghost pepper, also known as bhut jolokia, is an interspecific hybrid chili pepper cultivated in Northeast India. It is a hybrid of Capsicum chinense and Capsicum frutescens.
New Mexico chile or New Mexican chile is a cultivar group of the chile pepper from the US state of New Mexico, first grown by Pueblo and Hispano communities throughout Santa Fe de Nuevo México. These landrace chile plants were used to develop the modern New Mexico chile peppers by horticulturist Fabián García and his students, including Roy Nakayama, at what is now New Mexico State University in 1894.
Bird's eye chili or Thai chili is a chili pepper variety from the species Capsicum annuum that is native to Mexico. Cultivated across Southeast Asia, it is used extensively in many Asian cuisines. It may be mistaken for a similar-looking chili derived from the species Capsicum frutescens, the cultivar siling labuyo. Capsicum frutescens fruits are generally smaller and characteristically point upwards.
Capsicum is a genus of flowering plants in the nightshade family Solanaceae, native to the Americas, cultivated worldwide for their chili pepper or bell pepper fruit.
Paprika is a spice made from dried and ground red peppers. It is traditionally made from Capsicum annuum varietals in the Longum group, including chili peppers. Paprika can have varying levels of heat, but the chili peppers used for hot paprika tend to be milder and have thinner flesh than those used to produce chili powder. In some languages, but not English, the word paprika also refers to the plant and the fruit from which the spice is made, as well as to peppers in the Grossum group.
The habanero is a hot variety of chili. Unripe habaneros are green, and they color as they mature. The most common color variants are orange and red, but the fruit may also be white, brown, yellow, green, or purple. Typically, a ripe habanero is 2–6 centimetres long. Habanero chilis are very hot, rated 100,000–350,000 on the Scoville scale. The habanero heat, flavor, and floral aroma make it a common ingredient in hot sauces and other spicy foods.
The fish pepper is a small Chili pepper cultivar of the species Capsicum annuum. It is an heirloom variety developed and preserved by African American communities in the Chesapeake. The plant has variegated foliage and its peppers ripen from white with green streaks to a dark red color. The fish pepper has a wide range of pungency, with Scoville scores from 5,000 to 30,000 units. The pepper was thought to be extinct for the better part of the 20th century until the rediscovery of fifty year-old seeds in an African American family's freezer.
Common name: pepper. Latin name: Capsicum annuum L. ... Harvested organ: fruit. Fruit varies substantially in shape, pericarp thickness, color and pungency.
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