Piri piri is a cultivar

Cultivar

A cultivar'Cultivar has two meanings as explained under Formal definition. When used in reference to a taxon, the word does not apply to an individual plant but to all those plants sharing the unique characteristics that define the cultivar. is a plant or group of plants selected for desirable...

 of Capsicum frutescens

Capsicum frutescens

Capsicum frutescens is a species of chili pepper that includes the following cultivar and varieties:*Piri piri, also called African Bird's Eye or African devil* Kambuzi pepper, Malawian pepper*Malagueta pepper*Tabasco pepper, used to make Tabasco sauce...

, one of the sources of chili pepper

Chili pepper

Chili pepper is the fruit of plants from the genus Capsicum, members of the nightshade family, Solanaceae. The term in British English and in Australia, New Zealand, India, Malaysia and other Asian countries is just chilli without pepper.Chili peppers originated in the Americas...

, that grows both wild and domesticated. It is a small, extremely spicy member of the Capsicum

Capsicum

Capsicum is a genus of flowering plants in the nightshade family, Solanaceae. Its species are native to the Americas where they have been cultivated for thousands of years, but they are now also cultivated worldwide, used as spices, vegetables, and medicines - and have become are a key element in...

genus

Genus

In biology, a genus is a low-level taxonomic rank used in the biological classification of living and fossil organisms, which is an example of definition by genus and differentia...

.

Plant characteristics

Plants are usually very bushy and grow in height to 45-120 centimeters, with leaves of 4–7 cm length and 1.3-1.5 cm width. The fruits are generally tapered to a blunt point and measure up to 8 or 10 centimeters long. Immature pod color is green, mature color is bright red or purple. Some varieties of birdseye measure up to 175,000 Scoville heat units

Scoville scale

The Scoville scale is a measurement of the spicy heat of a chili pepper. The number of Scoville heat units indicates the amount of capsaicin present. Capsaicin is a chemical compound that stimulates chemoreceptor nerve endings in the skin, especially the mucous membranes.The scale is named after...

.

Etymology

Piri piri is the correct spelling of the name used in the Portuguese language

Portuguese language

Portuguese is a Romance language that arose in the medieval Kingdom of Galicia, nowadays Galicia and Northern Portugal. The southern part of the Kingdom of Galicia became independent as the County of Portugal in 1095...

, namely in Portugal

Portugal

Portugal , officially the Portuguese Republic is a country situated in southwestern Europe on the Iberian Peninsula. Portugal is the westernmost country of Europe, and is bordered by the Atlantic Ocean to the West and South and by Spain to the North and East. The Atlantic archipelagos of the...

 and Mozambique

Mozambique

Mozambique, officially the Republic of Mozambique , is a country in southeastern Africa bordered by the Indian Ocean to the east, Tanzania to the north, Malawi and Zambia to the northwest, Zimbabwe to the west and Swaziland and South Africa to the southwest...

, to describe the African bird's eye chili. Other English language spellings may include pili pili in the Democratic Republic of the Congo

Democratic Republic of the Congo

The Democratic Republic of the Congo is a state located in Central Africa. It is the second largest country in Africa by area and the eleventh largest in the world...

 or peri peri, deriving from the various pronunciations of the word in parts of Africa

Africa

Africa is the world's second largest and second most populous continent, after Asia. At about 30.2 million km² including adjacent islands, it covers 6% of the Earth's total surface area and 20.4% of the total land area...

.

Piri piri sauces

Popular piri piri sauce products include:

• Nando's
  Nando's
  Nando's is a casual dining restaurant group originating from South Africa with a Portuguese/Mozambican theme. Founded in 1987, Nando's operates in thirty countries on five continents....
  
   Peri Peri sauce (South Africa)
• Nali Sauce
  Nali Sauce
  Nali Sauce is a popular sauce from Malawi dubbed, "'Africa's hottest peri-peri sauce'. It is one of Malawi's most popular sauces. The Nali sauce brands have attained cult status with chilli lovers both in Malawi and throughout the world for their hotness and taste...
  
   sauce lines (Malawi).
• Mazi Piri Piri Sauce (Peter Mantas)

See also

• Malagueta pepper
  Malagueta pepper
  Malagueta pepper, a kind of Capsicum frutescens, is a type of chilli used in Brazil, Portugal and Mozambique. It is heavily used in the Bahia state of Brazil . It apparently gets its name from the unrelated melegueta pepper from West Africa .It is a small, tapered, green pepper that turns red as it...
  
   (Capsicum frutescens var. malagueta, Solanaceae)
• List of capsicum cultivars
• Capsicum frutescens
  Capsicum frutescens
  Capsicum frutescens is a species of chili pepper that includes the following cultivar and varieties:*Piri piri, also called African Bird's Eye or African devil* Kambuzi pepper, Malawian pepper*Malagueta pepper*Tabasco pepper, used to make Tabasco sauce...
  
  
• Capsicum
  Capsicum
  Capsicum is a genus of flowering plants in the nightshade family, Solanaceae. Its species are native to the Americas where they have been cultivated for thousands of years, but they are now also cultivated worldwide, used as spices, vegetables, and medicines - and have become are a key element in...
  
  

External links

• Pepper Profile: African Birdseye at www.fiery-foods.com
• Pirri Pirri at www.pirripirri.com
• PlantFiles: Detailed information on Hot Pepper Capsicum frutescens 'African Devil' at davesgarden.com