Italian Hot Peppers

G

Gerry G

I’m a newbee to this website so forgive me if this topic has already been dissected, inspected, neglected, or resurrected. I’m looking for a particular pepper to grow in my garden this year.

I’m a big fan of Hot Italian Peppers, and purchase them at my local farmer’s market. I roast them, then pack them in olive oil for snacks on crostini’s. Every time I query the purveyors about the botanical name of this product, they shrug their shoulders and say “Italian Hot Pepper”. I suspect that the product is actually ‘Capsicum annuum’. Is that a correct assumption? And, if so, is this a pepper that can be grown successfully in S.E. PA?

As a lover of this pepper, I’m on the constant lookout for those with the “heaviest” or “fleshiest” bodies. So many of the Cayenne’s are skinny with scarcely any “meat”.

I’d appreciate any help from the “Pepper-meisters” in this forum so I can select the correct seeds. Thanks.
 
Welcome

look here....

is an Italian site that I attend ... You will surely find what you're looking ... Italian meaty chili there are those who want

i prefer this one

DSCN0001.JPG
 
welcome gerry g, in Italy we have all kinds of hot pepper c.annum, the region best known for chilies and Calabria, there are more varieties, Lazzareto, Calabrese horn, round, red pepper bunch of soverato etc. ..
are not peppers with a lot of pulp but lend themselves well to being dried, spicy oil, sauces, and also as the "bomba Calabrese"
 
Welcome and good luck.My wife brought back seeds from Rome last year.Don`t think it`s what you want but I was really happy .Be glad to send you a few.Have a great new years ! Rich
 
"Italian hot pepper" probably means Cubanelle.

Cubanelle is one of a bunch of different kinds of peppers that could be generic Italian peppers at a farmer's market.

A similar type would be the Anaheim, which is a bit hotter than a Cubanelle.

Another hot Italian pepper would be the Italian Roaster II (available at tomatogrowers.com). Despite being called a Roaster, you'd never roast it because the flesh is too thin. It's really more of a frying/grilling pepper.

If what you want is a really, really fleshy, thick pepper, then you may want to go in a different direction - sweet Italian pepper. Godfather (from Burpees) or Marconis (available just about anywhere) are fleshy, thick Italian style peppers.

(Capsicum Anuum is just a species of pepper, one of the four. Most peppers you run into day-to-day except for Habaneros are Capsicum Anuums. Jalapenos, bells, all of the above peppers, etc. etc. are all anuums.)

Personally, I think the Italian Roaster II's are pretty great, and very easy to grow too.
 
Wow … you folks really make a newbee feel welcome.

“megamastger71”– thanks for the website referral. The pix is close, but not quite there.
“leo-c” – you got me going in the right direction. I didn’t realize that c.annuum was so inclusive.
“hixs” – thanks for the offer, but not quite what I was looking for.
“PepperLover” – enjoyed your website, very inclusive
“mega” - have tried the Cubanelle and Anaheim, too mild. Habaneros, too hot, Jalapenos, just right for heat, but, for some inexplicable reason, don’t particularly care for them. The Italian Roaster looks good.

Y’all got me doing intensive web-searches between football games yesterday. Somehow I stumbled upon a website www.chileplants.com which offered me the most comprehensive info-source for hot peppers. I was able to refine my search by levels of “heat”, “flesh thickness”, “uses”, etc.

The peppers that seemed to come closest to my criteria were (c.annuum) Cayenne Large Thick, Italian Roaster Hybrid, Georgia Flame, and Hot Portugal.

I guess this is where I switch from the “Hot Pepper Talk” to “Growing Hot Peppers” Forum. Hope I catch you there. Thanks again for all of your help, and best wishes for a Happy New Year, and a "hot" growing season.
 
based on what you're describing, I don't think you'd be disappointed with the Ital Roaster. They're about the heat level of a mild Jalapeno, but with a different, more "neutral" taste. One of my favorite peppers, useful in a lot of different foods.

One thing, though, this cultivar is very susceptible to blossom end rot. So if you go with it, be sure to amp up the calcium when you transplant (eggshells, lime, etc), and try to keep the moisture level consistent all season long, especially during fruiting. That'll help somewhat. I lose about 1/2 my Ital Roaster pods to b.e.r., but that still leaves me 1/2 the others, and that's good enough LOL
 
Actually have cherry hot calabrese ans pugelese in hand.They both seem to come from boot and toe end of italy.Gave out some seeds today so if I can help let me know. Rich
 
mega said:
...

One thing, though, this cultivar is very susceptible to blossom end rot. So if you go with it, be sure to amp up the calcium when you transplant (eggshells, lime, etc), and try to keep the moisture level consistent all season long, especially during fruiting. ...
Click to expand...

Here is an article that may be helpful. It is about BER in tomatoes but the author discusses how studies have shown the same thing with peppers. As you mentioned, moisture level appears to be part of the equation.
 
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