Peruvian cherry peppers are they hot? Peruvian cherry peppers might resemble cherries; however, they are somewhat spicy or hot.
These tiny peppers look like a teardrop and come from the Peruvian Amazon. They provide an extremely high spicy taste for their small size. With only a hint of sweetness, these cherry peppers provide heat the same as the average jalapeno pepper, with hotness of ~5,000 Scoville Heat Units (SHU) on the Scoville Scale.
Peruvian Cherry Pepper A Good Alternative
Perhaps you are someone who cannot get enough spicy food in your life. The one who always orders extra hot Indian, Thai or Chinese dishes puts hot sauce on the whole thing and swears by the feeling of a perspiring lip or burning throat.
Perhaps you are the opposite, choosing to play it on the safe side and consume something if you know it will not cause you the particular kind of pain that the capsaicin in hot foods can induce.
Regardless of your spectrum, some form of pepper is perhaps a regular part of your daily diet. If you want to try it, Peruvian cherry pepper is a less popular type of hot pepper.
While often confused with pimento, this type of pepper has fiery features that are unique on their own. Round and small, these small cherry-shaped peppers are bursting with fantastic flavor and quickly grow in many areas of Peru. First, appear green but slowly change into bright red color as they mature.
Peruvian Cherry Pepper: Getting to Know More About These Amazing Peppers from Peru
Peruvian cherry peppers are mild to moderately hot peppers. They are round, small, and red, hence the name. This cherry pepper is commonly picked and found on salad bottles, jars, or bars on grocery store shelves.
The Peruvian cherry peppers are often used as a condiment and part of an antipasto platter or can be stuffed and made into poppers. These cherry peppers have small, even pods, with an average of two to seven centimeters in length and diameter.
It has smooth, taut, and glossy skin, ripening from green to dark red once mature. These peppers are also bound to a bit ovate in shapes attached to fibrous, dark green stems. The best thing about this pepper is that it is low in calories and is packed with essential and good nutrition.
All varieties are excellent sources of essential vitamins and minerals such as vitamins A, C, folic acid, potassium, and fiber. Moreover, the spicy ones liven up bland food, making it more pleasing and satisfying.
Is Peruvian Cherry Pepper and Sweety Drops the Same?
These small tear-shaped hot peppers are derived from the Peruvian Amazon and are recognized as sweety drops.
Peruvian Cherry peppers, also called Incan Red Drop, have a sugar-like sweetness and are a perfect ingredient when making pasta, salads, pizza, and foods. This is a unique form of hot pepper Highlands of Peru.
Are Peruvian Cherry Peppers Hot or Sweet?
As the name suggests, Peruvian cherry peppers look like cherry. On the other hand, they are spicier or hotter. They provide a relatively strong spicy flavor in spite of having a small size.
With only a hint of sweetness, the cherry peppers from Peru provide heat like jalapeno pepper, making it a perfect ingredient for salad, pizza and other cuisines.
Can I Eat Peruvian Cherry Peppers Raw?
Peruvian cherry peppers can be purchased dried, fresh, canned or pickled. This type of pepper comes in different hues like green, red, and orange. Eaten cooked or raw, these tasty hot peppers can be utilized in other dishes like pasta, salads and pizza.
Is Peruvian Cherry Pepper Similar to Pimento?
Peruvian cherry pepper looks the same as pimento; it is often used in the same way and is mistaken for pimiento. However, there are disparities between the two.
Both are bright red, small, and often pickled before b before being used for salads, sandwiches, and charcuterie boards; however, their taste is relatively different, particularly in terms of the heat level is sweet, measuring 3 to 4 inches long and 2 to 3 inches wide with a vivid red hue and has a heart shape. You may be familiar with the pimento as the renowned pepper used to stuff olives.
Pimentos are less spicy and sweeter than the Peruvian cherry pepper. In spite of the many differences, the two types of hot peppers can be used interchangeably in recipes. When you are ordering a salad, or about to get a pepper off of a cheese board, or place hot peppers on your sandwich, make sure you know if it is pimento or cherry pepper, specifically if you are sensitive to spicy foods.
Delicious Things to Do with Peruvian Cherry Peppers
Thinking about what to do with your Peruvian cherry peppers? It doesn’t matter if you are a beginner cook or a skilled chef; Peruvian cherry peppers are a good and tasty addition to a lot of cuisines. These small, cherry-shaped hot peppers are perfect for grilling, stuffing, roasting as well as adding to salads, sauces and pasta.
Pasta Topping
A tasty way to use Peruvian cherry peppers is to sauté them with olive oil and garlic, then toss them with pasta.
Salad Topping
Adding Peruvian cherry peppers to salad greens is a delicious, healthy way to experience its fantastic flavor. Begin with mixed greens and add tomatoes, crumbled cheese, cherry peppers, and your favorite or preferred vinaigrette.
They are also the ideal addition to a chilled Italian pasta salad. Just utilize cooked rotini, black olives, peppers, mozzarella, a chunk of salami, and your preferred Italian dressing.
Salad Dressing
Not just do these hot peppers make a tasty salad topping, but they are also used as a special ingredient in making homemade salad dressings.
Stuffed Cherry Peppers
Fill a Peruvian cherry pepper with provolone, prosciutto, or fresh mozzarella. Other stuffed ideas are cheese fillings, different fillings or garnishes, and meat fillings.
Pizza Topping
Chop Peruvian cherry peppers and put them on your pizza together with sausage crumbles, mushrooms, and pepperoni.
Where to Buy Peruvian Cherry Peppers
Unlike common pepper varieties, Peruvian cherry peppers are hard to track down as their fibrous and tough skin makes them less common to use raw. However, they are commonly found pickled to be utilized in salads, condiments, and sandwiches.
Visit the local store’s preserved foods section to look for pickled cherry peppers in a bottle. Also, visit the salad bars section of the nearest store to find preserved Peruvian cherry peppers.
Conclusion
Peruvian cherry peppers are a less known type of pepper, but you will be amazed by their fantastic flavor and nutrient content. If you want to try fresh Peruvian cherry peppers, you can visit the farmer’s market during early fall and late summer.
Once you are there, look for a producer specializing in this kind of pepper and ask if they have fresh ones available.
From there, it is up to you to make stuffed peppers, homemade pickles, or an experimental dish that substitutes another diced capsicum with these Peruvian cherry peppers.
