An encyclopedia of chilli peppers: varieties and their heat, history, the Scoville scale, growing and recipes. Every fact is backed by the sources listed under each article.
Basics
Ground paprika: Szeged, Kalocsa and pimentón
Three EU protected designations: Szeged, Kalocsa and smoked pimentón de la Vera.
History of chilli
From the Andes via Columbus to Hungarian paprika and Nobel Prizes: how chilli conquered the world.
Scoville scale
How chilli heat is measured, from Scoville's 1912 test to modern HPLC – with a heat table.
Chilli varieties
7 Pot (Seven Pot)
Trinidad superhot said to spice seven pots of food. Over a million SHU.
Ají amarillo
The star of Peruvian cooking, a Capsicum baccatum that ripens more orange than yellow.
Bhut Jolokia
The “ghost pepper” from north-east India – the first chilli above a million SHU and Guinness record holder in 2007.
Carolina Reaper
Guinness record holder from 2013 to 2023, over 1.5 million SHU.
Cayenne
Long slim peppers for drying and grinding, 25,000–50,000 SHU – and why shop-bought cayenne may not come from them.
Chiltepín
The tiny wild pepper spread by birds – Texas's State Native Pepper.
Fatalii
A yellow superhot linked to central Africa – what we know and what we don't.
Guajillo
Dried mirasol, one of the most used chillies in Mexican cooking.
Habanero
The hot, aromatic pepper of Yucatán with a protected designation of origin – named after Havana, born in the Amazon.
Jalapeño
Mexico's best-known chilli: mild heat of 2,000–8,000 SHU, smoked and dried as chipotle.
Lemon Drop (ají limón)
A Peruvian Capsicum baccatum – what we know and what we don't.
New Mexico chile (Hatch)
New Mexico's pride: roasted green or dried red? Fabián García, Big Jim and the Hatch Valley.
Padrón (Pemento de Herbón)
Galician peppers of which “some are hot and some are not”. EU Protected Designation of Origin.
Peperoncino (Calabria)
Calabria's chilli, an EU Protected Geographical Indication since 2026.
Pepper X
The world's hottest chilli according to Guinness: an average of 2,693,000 SHU (2023).
Piment d’Espelette
The Basque pepper dried on house façades, protected origin since 2000.
Poblano, ancho and mulato
The mild pepper of Puebla: fresh for stuffing, dried as ancho for mole.
Red Savina
The habanero that held the Guinness record in the 1990s – and what independent tests showed.
Rocoto (locoto)
The Andean chilli with hairy leaves, purple flowers and black seeds.
Scotch bonnet
The habanero's Caribbean cousin shaped like a Scottish cap – the soul of Jamaican jerk.
Serrano
The Mexican mountain chilli, hotter than a jalapeño, eaten mostly fresh in pico de gallo.
Tabasco
The Capsicum frutescens cultivar behind the famous Louisiana sauce since 1868. 30,000–50,000 SHU.
Thai chilli (phrik khi nu)
The small, fiery chillies of Thai cooking, 50,000–100,000 SHU.
Trinidad Moruga Scorpion
The Trinidad pepper NMSU measured at over 1.2 million SHU in 2012 – the first with pods above 2 million.
Growing
Growing chillies: from seed to harvest
A complete guide for a central European climate: sowing, seedlings, planting out, care, pests, harvest, overwintering and seed saving.
Recipes
Chilli oil
How to make chilli oil without risking botulism.
Drying chillies
Dehydrator, oven or string: temperatures, ristras and storage.
Fermented hot sauce
How to ferment chillies safely: how much salt, how long, why measure pH, and kahm yeast vs. mould.
Pickled chillies
Quick fridge pickles and the rules for canning.
Pico de gallo
Fresh Mexican salsa with serrano or jalapeño.
Sakay sauces
We also make our own fermented hot sauces from the chillies we write about. You can find them in our shop (in Czech).