Malagueta pepper
Encyclopedia
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
(Zingiberaceae
).
It is a small, tapered, green pepper that turns red as it matures at about 5 cm (2 inches) in length. With a range of 60,000 to 100,000 Scoville units, its heat level is about the same as Tabasco peppers. Two sizes are seen in markets, which will sometimes have different names: the smaller ones are called malaguetinha in Brazil and piri piri in Portugal and Mozambique, and the larger ones are called malaguetão in Brazil and malagueta in Portugal. They are not different varieties, just peppers of different maturities from the same plant.
This pepper is used to season many regional dishes and sauces in Brazil and Mozambique. In Portugal, it is mainly used to season poultry dishes.
The malagueta chile (spelled “mala”), used in Brazilian cooking, is often confused with melegueta pepper (spelled “mele”), also known as "grains of paradise," a cardamom
-like West African spice, Aframomum melegueta
, from the Zingiberaceae (ginger) family. Botanical and culinary writers have made the error of referring to the chilli as the African spice, thinking it to be one and the same. One way to avoid confusion is to refer to the former as the "malagueta chilli" and the latter as "melegueta pepper."
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...
, is a type of chilli used in Brazil, Portugal and Mozambique. It is heavily used in the Bahia
Bahia
Bahia is one of the 26 states of Brazil, and is located in the northeastern part of the country on the Atlantic coast. It is the fourth most populous Brazilian state after São Paulo, Minas Gerais and Rio de Janeiro, and the fifth-largest in size...
state of Brazil
Brazil
Brazil , officially the Federative Republic of Brazil , is the largest country in South America. It is the world's fifth largest country, both by geographical area and by population with over 192 million people...
. It apparently gets its name from the unrelated melegueta pepper from West Africa
West Africa
West Africa or Western Africa is the westernmost region of the African continent. Geopolitically, the UN definition of Western Africa includes the following 16 countries and an area of approximately 5 million square km:-Flags of West Africa:...
(Zingiberaceae
Zingiberaceae
Zingiberaceae, or the Ginger family, is a family of flowering plants consisting of aromatic perennial herbs with creeping horizontal or tuberous rhizomes, comprising ca. 52 genera and more than 1300 species, distributed throughout tropical Africa, Asia, and the Americas.Many species are important...
).
It is a small, tapered, green pepper that turns red as it matures at about 5 cm (2 inches) in length. With a range of 60,000 to 100,000 Scoville units, its heat level is about the same as Tabasco peppers. Two sizes are seen in markets, which will sometimes have different names: the smaller ones are called malaguetinha in Brazil and piri piri in Portugal and Mozambique, and the larger ones are called malaguetão in Brazil and malagueta in Portugal. They are not different varieties, just peppers of different maturities from the same plant.
This pepper is used to season many regional dishes and sauces in Brazil and Mozambique. In Portugal, it is mainly used to season poultry dishes.
The malagueta chile (spelled “mala”), used in Brazilian cooking, is often confused with melegueta pepper (spelled “mele”), also known as "grains of paradise," a cardamom
Cardamom
Cardamom refers to several plants of the genera Elettaria and Amomum in the ginger family Zingiberaceae. Both genera are native to India and Bhutan; they are recognised by their small seed pod, triangular in cross-section and spindle-shaped, with a thin papery outer shell and small black seeds...
-like West African spice, Aframomum melegueta
Aframomum melegueta
Aframomum melegueta is a species in the ginger family, Zingiberaceae. This spice, commonly known as grains of paradise, melegueta pepper, alligator pepper, Guinea grains or Guinea pepper, is obtained from the ground seeds; it gives a pungent, peppery flavour...
, from the Zingiberaceae (ginger) family. Botanical and culinary writers have made the error of referring to the chilli as the African spice, thinking it to be one and the same. One way to avoid confusion is to refer to the former as the "malagueta chilli" and the latter as "melegueta pepper."