What’s in a Colour?
We live in a colorful world of fruits & vegetables, one in which we’re often advised to “eat the rainbow” in order to get the widest variety of nutrients.
But when you pick up a three-pack of capsicum at your local grocery store, you might notice that those colors are always the same—red, yellow & orange. But, paradoxically, there’s often a large display of single green peppers stacked up nearby. What gives?
Reason No. 1: Follow the Money
Green is most common colour of capsicums or bell peppers as they are referred to in America. “The green variety of capsicums are 40% cheaper on average,” he explains. “Putting one much cheaper pepper in a sealed package with costlier red, yellow &/or orange peppers gives customers the sense that they aren’t getting a good deal.”
It comes down, as so many things do, to economics. “You can buy the green ones in bulk & pay less overall”. Customers haven’t been thrilled about buying a green variety when it’s bundled up with those fancier types.
Reason No. 2: Chef Knows Best
If you’re using a recipe that calls for cooked peppers, you’re probably shopping for green capsicums. “They tend to be viewed as a better choice for cooking, But for raw applications, many prefer the sweetness they can find in other varieties. That sweetness varies by specific hue: yellow & orange capsicums tend to be sweeter than the green variety, & a red capsicum will be even sweeter still.
For that reason, home cooks may choose to reserve the colorful, more expensive peppers for recipes where they’re eaten raw. “They’re so good as dippers for things like hummus or ranch dip; not that you can’t cook them—they’re delicious in roasted red peppers & onions, chili & fajitas for example.
Really taking that “eat the rainbow” thing to the limit? You might be able to find even more colorful peppers in your local grocery store, or grow some truly gorgeous varieties in your home or community garden. There are now some varieties of capsicums that are brown, white, lavender & even dark purple.
Facts About Capsicums
Capsicums botanically are considered to be fruit, because their seeds are stored inside, but they’re culinarily considered a vegetable, like cucumbers.
You can tell which capsicums are male & female just by looking at the outside. “Males have three lobes, & females have four, sometimes five,” “The females produce more seeds, & that tends to make them less sweet. If you like sweeter capsicums, look for fewer lobes.”
The peppers we call chili peppers all have spiciness, measured in Scoville units from mild to very spicy. But capsicum don’t have any heat, & they ended up being named “bell” because a) they aren’t chili peppers & b) they’re shaped like a bell…….but only in America
All peppers start out green, then change colours as they mature. Even green capsicum such as Emerald Giants will turn red & grow sweeter if left on the plant, but by that time their texture will be too soft to be able to be distributed to a store or farmers’ market.
Bottom Line
If you’re sticking to a budget, green capsicum will probably always be a good choice for any cooking projects you’re doing. If you’re aiming to create a world-class tray of crudités, however, it might be worth it to splurge on a variety pack of red, yellow & orange capsicum, & save the green ones for other uses.
What is the Chili Pepper Scoville Scale
Chili Pepper Scoville Scale:
The Scoville scale & the heat meter list numerous chili pepper varieties sorted by their pungency & their capsaicin content in Scoville Heat Units (SHU). We have a simple Scoville Scale image & a detailed searchable & interactive html5 Scoville Scale table.
History:
The Scoville scale exists since 1912 & was invented by the American pharmacologist Wilbur Scoville. It serves to determine the degree of pungency of fruits of the genus Capsicum, which includes peppers & chilis. The Scoville scale was originally based on the so-called Scoville Organoleptic Test developed by Wilbur Scoville. Here, a sample of chili was prepared & repeatedly diluted with water until the test subjects no longer felt any heat. The degree to which the subjects could (subjectively) taste no more heat in the sample was called SHU (Scoville Heat Units). Of course, no subjective tests will be carried out today.
Determination of the Scoville Heat Units:
The degree of pungency of a chili is determined today by means of modern high-performance liquid chromatography (HPLC). This method recognizes the capsaicinoids responsible for the pungency, such as capsaicin & dihydro-capsaicin, & determines their concentration reliably. The result of an HPLC test is given in the ASTA severity level, but this can be converted by a formula into the usual SHU value.
Hottest Chili Pepper in the World
The world’s hottest chili pepper is the Carolina Reaper. It measures 1.5 million up to 2.2 million Scoville Heat Units.
Roasted Peppers Stuffed w/Tomato, Olives & Basil
Ingredients
4 small red capsicum, halved
2 roma tomatoes, quartered
1 small Spanish onion
12 Ligurian olives
2 garlic cloves, thinly sliced
2 tbsp oregano
2 tsp coarsely chopped thyme
2 tbsp balsamic vinegar
80 mls extra-virgin olive oil
2 buffalo mozzarella (250gms each)
crusty bread and a leaf salad
Method:
Preheat oven to 220C. Place capsicum cut side up in a roasting tray, place a tomato quarter in each half, scatter over onion, olives, garlic and herbs. Season to taste, drizzle with balsamic vinegar, then olive oil, and roast until capsicum begins to collapse (20-25 minutes).
To serve, coarsely tear mozzarella, scatter over capsicum and serve hot with crusty bread and a leaf salad.