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Peruvian red rocoto

Nigel

Nigel

Just had a friend come back from a trip to Machu Pichu. I`ve been giving him progressively hotter peppers for a few months and the last one he had was a Brain Strain. His tolerance is excellent. Anyway, he found some red rocotos in a bar and had to persuade the people there to let him eat one - they said they were muy caliente and nobody could eat one. So he ate 2, in  front of the amazed local clientele. Anyway, being the great guy he is, he also brought me back about 7 or 8 seeds. He says the ones he ate looked most like this one. He also said they were hotter than Habaneros. I`m so excited to grow them!!!
 
 
 
My favourie favourite favourite chillis in the world are rocotos. For the most part of the past year in Peru every meal with my friends was accompanied with a Rocoto salsa, even now i am having serious withdrawls as you cant buy them here hahaha.
 
Peru have a ridiculous amount of varieties too. They ofcoarse are the same chilli but the characteristics change depending on the area/province they are grown. Rocotos from Huaraz are generally a little smaller than the one in your photo, but can pack some serious heat and great taste. In Arequipa it is not uncommon to find Rocotos atleast 50% bigger than the one you have there (if im judging your scale right).
 
Also despite how important the various types of chillis are to Peruvian cooking, you would be suprised how many Peruvians dont like or have a low tolerance to spice/heat.
 
Great thread! I think you owe your buddy a beer for that score :cheers:
 
That's sounds like it could end up being a good eatin pepper. Keep us in the loop and tell us how it goes and grows.  :surprised:
 
Peru Baseball - it was very hot...



with a 6 1/2in Aji Amarillo for size.



From Peru Market.

In Peru they boil a lot of their peppers first to get rid of the heat before using them.
Different Rocotos and Manzanos have heat in different areas of the pepper.
I've had some that the flesh was almost heatless with an apple/apricot taste and the placenta was scorching hot.
Others are just plain mild or hot through out.
 
All the manzanos I`ve had recently were at the very least least habanero hot, but only in the placenta/surrounding tissues. Remove that and they are very mild and taste very like you say - apple/apricot. Our local market only has a "Produce of the USA" on all their huge Manzanos
 
That Peru baseball is fantastic. Those amarillos ain`t too shabby, either.
 
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