Bell pepper

Bell pepper
Red, yellow and green pepper
Scientific classification
Kingdom: Plantae Division: Magnoliophyta Class: Magnoliopsida Subclass: Asteridae Order: Solanales Family: Solanaceae Genus: Capsicum Species: C. annuum
Binomial name
Capsicum annuum L.

Heat: None (SR: 0)

Bell pepper is the common name for a cultivar group of the species Capsicum annuum, widely cultivated for their edible, bell-shaped fruits, which are characterized by a glossy exterior of different colors, including red, yellow, green, and orange. Bell peppers are sometimes grouped with less pungent pepper varieties of Capsicum annuum known as "sweet peppers." There also are varieties of C. annuum that are pungent or hot, such as the cayenne and jalapeños peppers. Bell peppers contain a recessive gene that eliminates capsaisin, the alkaloid that causes "hotness" in other plants in the genus Capsicum.

Overview

Bell peppers belong to the Solanaceae, the potato or nightshade family, a group of flowering plants in the Solanales order. Solanaceae includes some of the more important food and drug-producing plants, including potato, tomato, eggplant, tobacco, chili pepper, and deadly nightshade. Members of Solanaceae are characterized by five-petaled flowers, typically conical or funnelform, and alternate or alternate to opposite leaves.

The genus to which bell peppers belong is Capsicum. Capsicum contains approximately 20-27 species (Walsh and Hoot 2001), five of which are domesticated: C. annuum, C. baccatum, C. chinense, C. frutescens, and C. pubescens (Heiser and Pickersgill 1969). (Other taxonomic schemes may exhibit far less variety in species. See ITIS 1999a). Fruits of Capsicum can vary tremendously in color, shape, and size both between and within species, which has led to confusion over the relationships between taxa (Eshbaugh 1975). Chemosystematic studies help distinguish differences between varieties and species. For example, C. baccatum var. baccatum had the same flavonoids as C. baccatum var. pendulum, which led researchers to believe that the two groups belonged to the same species (Ballard et al. 1970).

The fruit of Capsicum plants have a variety of names depending on place and type. Common names include chili pepper, capsicum, red or green pepper, or sweet pepper in Britain, and typically just capsicum in Australia and Indian English. The large mild form is called bell pepper in the US. They are called paprika in some other countries (although paprika can also refer to the powdered spice made from various capsicum fruit).

Many varieties of the same species can be used in many different ways; for example, C. annuum includes the "bell pepper" variety, which is sold in both its immature green state and its red, yellow, or orange ripe state. This same species has other varieties as well, such as the Anaheim chiles often used for stuffing, the dried Ancho chile used to make chili powder, the mild-to-hot jalapeño, and the smoked, ripe Jalapeño, known as a Chipotle.

The fruit of most species of Capsicum contains capsaicin (methyl vanillyl nonenamide), a lipophilic chemical that can produce a strong burning sensation in the mouth (and, if not properly digested, the anus) of the unaccustomed eater. Most mammals find this unpleasant; however, birds appear unaffected (Mason et al. 1991; Norman et al. 1992). The secretion of capsaicin is an adaptation to protect the fruit from consumption by mammals while the bright colors attract birds that will spread the seeds.

The amount of capsaicin in Capsicum species and varieties is highly variable and dependent on genetics, giving almost all types of capsicums varied amounts of perceived heat. The only Capsicum without capsaicin is the bell pepper, a cultivar of Capsicum annuum, which has a zero rating on the Scoville scale. Chili peppers are of great importance in Native American medicine, and capsaicin is used in modern Western medicine—mainly in topical medications—as a circulatory stimulant and pain reliever. Although black pepper and Sichuan pepper cause similar burning sensations, they are caused by different substances—piperine and alpha-hydroxy-sanshool, respectively.

Varieties

The color can be green, red, yellow, orange and, more rarely, white, purple, blue, and brown, depending on when they are harvested and the specific cultivar. Green peppers are unripe bell peppers, while the others are all ripe, with the color variation based on cultivar selection. Because they are unripe, green peppers are less sweet and slightly more bitter than yellow, orange, purple or red peppers. The taste of ripe peppers can also vary with growing conditions and post-harvest storage treatment; the sweetest are fruit allowed to ripen fully on the plant in full sunshine, while fruit harvested green and after-ripened in storage are less sweet. Peppers are native to Central and South America. Pepper seeds were later carried to Spain in 1493 and from there spread to other European and Asian countries.

Nomenclature

The term "bell pepper" is one of the many names for some fruits of the Capsicum annuum species of plants. The misleading name "pepper" (pimiento in Spanish) was given by Christopher Columbus upon bringing the plant back to Europe. At that time peppercorns were a highly prized condiment.

Today, the term "bell pepper" or "pepper" or "capsicum" is often used for any of the large bell shaped capsicum fruits, regardless of their color. In British English, the fruit is simply referred to as a "pepper", whereas in many Commonwealth of Nations countries, such as Australia, India, Malaysia and New Zealand, they are called "capsicum". Across Europe, the term "paprika", which has its roots in the word for pepper, is used—sometimes referred to by their color (e.g. "groene paprika", "gele paprika", in Dutch, which are green and yellow, respectively). Paprika also refers to the powdered spice made from the same fruit. In France it is called "poivron" or "piment." In Japan, the word ピーマン ("pîman," from the French) refers only to green bell peppers, whereas パプリカ ("papurika," from paprika) refers to bell peppers of other colors. In the United States and Canada, the fruit is often referred to simply as a "pepper" or referred to by color (e.g. "red pepper", "green pepper"), although the more specific term "bell pepper" is understood in most regions. It is also to be noted that Bell Peppers are indeed fruits, even though most treat them as vegetables.

In parts of the U.S. around southern Ohio, Northeastern Pennsylvania and northern Kentucky the term "mangoes" (or "mangos") has sometimes been used to refer to bell peppers. However, as the actual mango fruit has become more common in the region, this usage has faded.

In Russia it is commonly called болгарский перец (bolgarskiy perets), meaning Bulgarian pepper. In France, it is called poivron, with the same root as poivre (meaning black pepper). In Denmark the bell pepper is referred to as "peberfrugt", meaning pepper-fruit.

In Brazil it's commonly called Pimentão, meaning Big pepper. It's widely used in a variety of dishes, like pasta, rice and other dishes from Cuisine of Brazil.

Uses and nutrition

Pepper, sweet, green raw Nutritional value per 100 g
Energy 20 kcal   80 kJ
Carbohydrates     4.64 g - Sugars  2.40 g - Dietary fiber  1.7 g   Fat 0.17 g Protein 0.86 g Thiamin (Vit. B1)  0.057 mg   4% Riboflavin (Vit. B2)  0.028 mg   2% Niacin (Vit. B3)  0.480 mg   3% Pantothenic acid (B5)  0.099 mg  2% Vitamin B6  0.224 mg 17% Folate (Vit. B9)  10 μg  3% Vitamin C  80.4 mg 134% Calcium  10 mg 1% Iron  0.34 mg 3% Magnesium  10 mg 3%  Phosphorus  20 mg 3% Potassium  175 mg   4% Zinc  0.13 mg 1%
Percentages are relative to US recommendations for adults. Source: USDA Nutrient database

In popular culture

• Green peppers are Kermit the Frog's favorite pizza topping.

Gallery

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  Green Bell Peppers on display at a Grocery Store

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  A variety of colored bell peppers

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  A whole and halved red bell pepper

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  A whole purple pepper

See also

Wikibooks Cookbook has more about this subject:

Bell pepper

• List of capsicum cultivars
• Scoville scale
• Paprika

References

ISBN links support NWE through referral fees

• Integrated Taxonomic Information System (ITIS). 1999a. Solanaceae ITIS Taxonomic Serial No.: 30411. Retrieved May 25, 2008.

• Integrated Taxonomic Information System (ITIS). 1999b. Capsicum L. ITIS Taxonomic Serial No.: 30491. Retrieved May 25, 2008.

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• Plants For a Future (PFAF). 2008. Capsicum annuum Plants For A Future. Retrieved June 3, 2008.

journal

| author = Walsh, B.M.
| coauthors = Hoot, S.B.
| year = 2001
| title = Phylogenetic Relationships of Capsicum (Solanaceae) Using DNA Sequences from Two Noncoding Regions: The Chloroplast atpB-rbcL Spacer Region and Nuclear waxy Introns
| journal = International Journal of Plant Sciences
| volume = 162
| issue = 6
| pages = 1409-1418
| url = http://www.journals.uchicago.edu/IJPS/journal/issues/v162n6/010108/010108.text.html 
| accessdate = 2007-12-20
| doi = 10.1086/323273 

}}</ref>

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External links

• Bell Pepper page at World's Healthiest Foods

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