When did chili peppers enter China?

The chili pepper is a very pungent food, also known as lazi, lajiao, niujiaojiao, and so on. It is an annual or limited-perennial plant of the genus Capsicum in the nightshade family, and because it has functions such as sterilization, preservation, seasoning, nutrition, and dispelling cold, it has played a positive role for humans in preventing and treating disease, improving genes, and promoting human evolution. Now let us take a look together at when chili peppers entered China!

When did chili peppers enter China?

The chili pepper is one of the oldest crops cultivated by humans, and it was already growing on the continents around 7000 BC. Archaeologists estimate that in 5000 BC, the Maya began eating chili peppers. In 1492, Columbus's voyage not only discovered the New World but also brought back chili peppers. But for China, chili peppers did not enter China until the late Ming Dynasty. After chili peppers reached China, they first entered Hangzhou, Zhejiang and its surrounding areas, and then gradually spread throughout the country.

Where are chili peppers produced?

The world's major chili pepper producing countries are India, China, Mexico, Brazil, and Spain. In China, chili pepper production areas are mainly distributed in Henan, Xinjiang, Gansu, Inner Mongolia, Shandong, Hebei, Yunnan, and other places. In Chinese chili pepper history there were four major production areas, commonly known as “one Ze and three Dus”. “One Ze” is Jize County in Hebei Province, and the “three Dus” are Chengdu in Sichuan Province, Yidu in Shandong Province (now renamed Qingzhou), and Wangdu in Hebei Province. Among them, Chengdu pepper is mainly the high-pungency “chaotianjiao”, Yidu pepper is mainly the low-pungency “Yidu red”, and Jize pepper is the medium-pungency “yangjiaojiao”.

What varieties of chili peppers are there?

1. Bell pepper: The bell pepper plant is stout and tall, with oblong or ovate leaves, upright or drooping fruit stalks, and nearly spherical, cylindrical, or flattened spherical fruit. It is not spicy in taste and is slightly sweet or slightly pepper-flavored. It is cultivated in both northern and southern China, and the sweet pepper usually sold on the market is this variety.

2. Chaotianjiao: The chaotianjiao plant is mostly dichotomously branched, with ovate leaves. The flowers are usually solitary in the dichotomous forks, white or tinged with purple. The fruit stalks and fruits are both upright, and the fruit is conical and extremely spicy in taste. It is cultivated in both northern and southern China, and among the people it is often grown as a bonsai.

3. Clustered pepper: The clustered pepper plant can reach 1 m in height, with ovate-lanceolate leaves. The flowers are usually solitary on the lower part of the branches, the fruit stalks are stout, and the berries are finger-shaped or conical and slightly curved, with a very spicy taste. It is cultivated in both northern and southern China, usually as a bonsai or planted in small amounts as a vegetable or seasoning.