Capsicums (chillies and sweet peppers) are a vital part of many cuisines all over the world. They are the essence of spicy Mexican chilli salsa, Hungarian goulash, and most Asian curries. While native only to South America, capsicums are now one of the most widely cultivated crops worldwide.
Many English speakers call these plants peppers, but this can be confusing because black pepper is a different plant altogether. The confusion may have arisen when capsicums were first taken to Asia and began to replace black pepper as a spicy ingredient in food. The term capsicum may be used to refer to both the small spicy ones (usually called chillies), and the large, sweet, non-spicy ones (often called peppers).
Today, there are thousands of different varieties of capsicum including colourful ornamental ones, sweet salad peppers, and spicy blow-your-head-off chillies. Many botanists believe the origins of all these different types can be traced back to about five of the 30 or so species of Capsicum. These species can still be found growing wild in various locations in South America, with the highest species diversity in Brazil. Surprisingly, only five of these species have been domesticated. So the thousands of varieties we know today can be traced back to one of these five species.
People across the Americas have been eating and cultivating capsicums for 6000 years. Chillies and peppers were first domesticated in the Americas and they are one of the earliest farmed crops in South America. However, it is difficult to work out exactly when people started to farm capsicums. The main reason this is so difficult is because edible varieties grew successfully in the wild, meaning it is hard to know when people stopped gathering them from the wild and started to plant and cultivate them. Recently, fossilised grains of domesticated Capsicum species were found on grinding stones and cooking pots used in the Americas 4000 years ago, indicating that people were routinely farming them around 2000 BC.
Although capsicums were being grown and eaten thousands of years ago throughout South America, it is believed that capsicums were only exported after Christopher Columbus’ voyage in the 1400s. When Columbus tasted the small red berries of a chilli plant, he thought he had reached India and called them red pepper because the spice reminded him of black pepper. Columbus bought some chilli plants back to Europe and is often credited with introducing chillies to Europe, and subsequently to India, Africa, China, and Japan. Unlike eggplant, chillies were welcomed into the cuisines of Europe and within 100 years after Columbus’ voyage, capsicums had spread around the world and had become part of many national cuisines. Today, they are the defining ingredient in many traditional cuisines worldwide, including countries such as Italy, Spain, Hungary, Thailand, India, Vietnam and China. Capsicum is now one of the most widely cultivated plants in the world.
Capsaicin--the pungent, spicy compound in capsicums)--is used as a self defence spray and is also used by police across the world for riot and crowd control. The spray causes people to have trouble breathing and is very painful; the effect lasts about 20 minutes. Capsaicin has also been used to repel mice from gnawing on underground electrical cables and to keep squirrels from eating bird seed.
Introduction
A truly global ingredient, capsicums (chillies and sweet peppers) are a vital part of many cuisines all over the world. They are the essence of spicy Mexican chilli salsa, Hungarian goulash, and most Asian curries. While native only to South America, capsicums are now one of the most widely cultivated crops worldwide.
Many English speakers call these plants peppers, but this can be confusing because black pepper is a different plant altogether. The confusion may have arisen when capsicums were first taken to Asia and began to replace black pepper as a spicy ingredient in food. The term capsicum may be used to refer to both the small spicy ones (usually called chillies), and the large, sweet, non-spicy ones (often called peppers). Another confusion arises in the English speaking world regarding the spelling of spicy capsicums – is it chile, chilli or chilli? It seems that all three versions are used in different parts of the world to describe the plant, the fruit, and the delicious meals made from them.
Wild capsicums
Today, there are thousands of different varieties of capsicum including colourful ornamental ones, sweet salad peppers, and spicy blow-your-head-off chillies. Many botanists believe the origins of all these different types can be traced back to about five of the 30 or so species of Capsicum. These species can still be found growing wild in various locations in South America, with the highest species diversity in Brazil. Surprisingly, only five of these species have been domesticated. So the thousands of varieties we know today can be traced back to one of these five species.
Finding out which plants are the original ancestors of modern crop plants and trying to determine their place of origin is very challenging. To solve this puzzle for capsicums, botanists look closely at different capsicum varieties growing in the wild. Botanists also look at other crop relatives growing in the same location because areas which have the greatest diversity of crop relatives are often thought to be the centre of origin for that crop. Back in the lab, or herbarium, botanists look at a wide variety of characteristics in order to work out the relationships of the various types.
Botanists are aiming to collect herbarium specimens and seeds of all wild and domesticated varieties of capsicum; of course, this work is all done with the proper permissions from the authorities of the countries where wild capsicums grow, and in collaboration with local botanists from many countries. When complete, this collection will be very important for improving commercial capsicum varieties including enhancing disease resistance, nutritional quality, yield, and even efficiency of harvesting.
Collecting all varieties of capsicum sounds easy but it is proving to be increasingly difficult because the capsicum’s natural habitat is threatened by tropical deforestation. Also, new species are discovered all the time, so discovering diversity is an ongoing task. It is possible that a complete collection of all capsicum species may never be gathered.
Domestication of capsicums
People across the Americas have been eating and cultivating capsicums for 6000 years. Chillies and peppers were first domesticated in the Americas and they are one of the earliest farmed crops in South America. However, it is difficult to work out exactly when people started to farm capsicums. The main reason this is so difficult is because edible varieties grew successfully in the wild, meaning it is hard to know when people stopped gathering them from the wild and started to plant and cultivate them. Recently, fossilised grains of domesticated Capsicum species were found on grinding stones and cooking pots used in the Americas 4000 years ago, indicating that people were routinely farming them around 2000 BC.
Domestication of capsicum probably occurred in a similar way to the domestication of the tomato. Ancient people of South America grew wild plants, and then selected seeds from preferred plants to sow the next season. Over many years, this gave rise to plants with bigger fruit and all kinds of different colours and tastes. Today’s plant breeders are using similar techniques to create new varieties.
To find out more about plant breeding, click here.
Spread of capsicums
Although capsicums were being grown and eaten thousands of years ago throughout South America, it is believed that capsicums were only exported after Christopher Columbus’ voyage in the 1400s. When Columbus tasted the small red berries of a chilli plant, he thought he had reached India and called them red pepper because the spice reminded him of black pepper. Columbus bought some chilli plants back to Europe and is often credited with introducing chillies to Europe, and subsequently to India, Africa, China, and Japan. Unlike eggplant, chillies were welcomed into the cuisines of Europe and within 100 years after Columbus’ voyage, capsicums had spread around the world and had become part of many national cuisines. Today, they are the defining ingredient in many traditional cuisines worldwide, including countries such as Italy, Spain, Hungary, Thailand, India, Vietnam and China. Capsicum is now one of the most widely cultivated plants in the world.
Use of capsicums
Capsicums are mostly used as a seasoning or a salad vegetable. Below, we have listed many different ways the capsicum plant is used across the world – from an essential kitchen ingredient to a self defence spray. Firstly, a bit of information on their most famous characteristic.
Firepower
The most famous attribute of the capsicum is its fire power (pungency). Some are very sweet and some are so spicy they make our eyes water. The level of pungency in capsicums depends upon the amount of a substance called capsaicin. Pungency is inherited from one plant to another. This occurs in a similar way as blue eye colour is inherited in humans. Pungency, as opposed to non-pungency, is a dominant trait. So if two plants – one pungent and one non-pungent – cross pollinate then only 1 in 4 of the resulting plants will be non-pungent. This is a good example of Mendelian genetics. To find out more about Mendel click here.
Some wild species of chilli (Capsicum chacoense from Bolivia) are variable in their pungency; this seems to be related to defence from attack by microbes that can kill the plant seeds.
The spicy heat of chillies is rated in Scoville Heat Units; the higher the number, the hotter the chilli. The hottest chilli in the world is a very new breed of capsicum plant created by two plant breeders in the UK. It is called Dorset Naga and recently passed the Red Savina habañero to gain the top spot on the Scoville Scale. Originally Scoville Heat Units were assigned using a panel of five human chilli tasters who tasted a chilli and recorded the heat level. This test has been replaced by a more exact test that measures the amount of capsaicin in each fruit. Many people around the world still enter chilli eating competitions where the aim is to eat the hottest chilli on the table.
Some scientists have studied why people love to eat spicy foods and why they try to eat hotter and hotter chillies. The studies show that chillies can give people the same sensation they get from a roller-coaster ride by causing the release of compounds called endorphins.
In the kitchen
Chilli tasting experts (a bit like wine tasters) are able to distinguish between very subtle chillie flavours: ancho is sweetish, mulatto is chocolaty, mirasol is fruity, and chipotle is smokey. And different flavours can be enhanced by different cooking techniques such as grinding the pods, toasting before grinding, or soaking the chillies in water. The famous Tabasco sauce is produced differently from many other salsas. The chillies are mashed, soaked, aged, and then strained and bottled. They are not cooked and this is thought to be the secret to Tabasco’s unique flavour.
Sweet peppers are also used in many cuisines all over the world. They contain a lot of vitamin C and are used for both flavour and colour. In many parts of the world, the spicy pungent flavour is used to enhance the insipid taste of many basic nutrient foods.
Medicinal uses
Capsicums are also used for many medicinal purposes. Capsaicin (the spicy compound) is a digestive irritant, a stimulant, and can be used to relieve arthritis, muscle cramps, and toothache. Chillies are known to raise body temperature and increase the flow of saliva and gastric juices. Many people, while using spicy chillies in the kitchen, experience skin irritation, stinging eyes, and even blisters and eating too much can aggravate stomach ulcers.
Ornamental chillies
Some chillies are grown as ornamental plants for their unusual fruit shapes, thick foliage, and very colourful fruits – some plants have fruit of four or five different colours on the same plant at the same time, reflecting colour changes during fruit ripening. In New Mexico, people dry red chillies in colourful strings called ristras. The ristra is placed near the front door of the house as a symbol of hospitality. A similar method of drying chillies is used in southwestern China.
Other uses
Capsaicin (the pungent, spicy compound in capsicums) is used as a self defence spray and is also used by police across the world for riot and crowd control. The spray causes people to have trouble breathing and is very painful; the effect lasts about 20 minutes. Capsaicin has also been used to repel mice from gnawing on underground electrical cables and to keep squirrels from eating bird seed. It appears to have evolved as a plant defence against microbe attack.
How capsicums have changed
Plant breeders are always looking for ways to improve crops and new varieties of capsicums are being bred all the time. There are bigger ones, sweeter ones, ones with different shaped or more nutritious fruit, and plants with greater resistance to drought and pests. We often think of plant breeding as a fairly modern practise, but by the time Europeans arrived in Mexico, Aztec plant breeders had already developed dozens of different types of capsicum fruit. Capsicums are an important crop and improvements are still being made to chilli and pepper plants even though there are already many different types available. Recent improvements include increased quality and yield (number of fruit per plant), more variety of colours, and enhanced nutritional value. One new variety of green New Mexican chilli provides the entire minimum daily requirement of vitamin C; it has three times as much vitamin C as a Valencia orange.
An ongoing challenge in chilli growing communities is to create a chilli plant with the hottest, most fiery chillies, to bump the current one off the top of the Scoville scale (see Firepower section, above).
