Why More Matters Month-CDC is Here! Vegetable of the Month

Vegetable of the Month: Chili Peppers

Hot peppers (chilies) are often used to spice up dishes, and they are especially popular in ethnic cuisine including Mexican, Indian, Thai, Vietnamese, Arab and Spanish cooking. Chilies are an excellent source of vitamin C if you can withstand their powerful bite.

	Chili Peppers Serving Size 1/2 cup (75g) 46g Amount Per Serving % Daily Value Calories 30 Calories from Fat 0g Total Fat 0g 0% Saturated Fat 0g 0% Cholesterol 0mg 0% Sodium 5mg 0% Total Carbohydrate 7g 2% Dietary Fiber 1g 4% Sugars 4g Protein 1g Vitamin A 20% Vitamin C 300% Calcium 2% Iron 6% * Percent Daily Values are based on a 2,000 calorie diet.

Contrary to popular belief, the hottest part of the chili pepper is not the seeds but where the seed attaches to the white membrane inside the pepper. This area has the highest concentration of capsaicinoids. Capsaicinoids are flavorless, odorless substances that act on pain receptors in the mouth and throat. Capsaicin is the primary capsaicinoid. Capsaicinoids can be found throughout the flesh of chili peppers though their concentration varies in different areas so that one part of a pepper may be hot and another part of the same pepper quite mild.

The seeds are often hot because they are in such close contact with the white membrane.

There are several varieties of chili peppers (see box below) and each differs in flavor and heat intensity. Even within each variety, there may differences in how ‘hot’ each particular chili is. Typically, larger chilies are more mild because they contain less seeds and white membrane in proportion to their size. Most varieties can be found dried, canned, or fresh.

To view all the varieties follow this link...

http://www.fruitsandveggiesmatter.gov/month/chili_peppers.html