I was gifted a "Salemme" pepper plant a few years ago, from another Dad at my kid's football practice. When the guy handed it to me I immediately thought it was some sort of Thai variety. I kept asking what kind it was, but he responded 3 times: "It's a Salemme pepper!"
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From their website:
"The Salemme Pepper is so named as there is no known formal or scientific designation, nor known to have been previously cultivated. It resembles the Cabai Burong of Malaysia and the Kahari of India, however it is truly unique. This pepper has been in the Salemme family for generations, although from whence it arrived remains a mystery"
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The entire transaction between the guy and I was so weird, like some black market/mafia type thing, haha. He hands me this plant in the parking lot of a park (football practice), and tells me to go "Run it to your truck, quick!" I assumed he didn't want anybody to think it was a pot plant or something. Some lady saw us though. She goes, "Is that a Salemme pepper plant?" The guy gave me a look that said "We just got caught..." I was totally confused. Then she says, "You're not growing those, are you?!" (Again, I'm lost) We both stood there silently, not knowing what to say, and the lady says, "Don't worry, I won't say anything," then winked. Huh? I looked at him like, "What the hell was that about?" but he just smirked. The whole thing was very bizarre.
I later found out that this particular family has been trying to keep this pepper strictly in their family for generations. Turn out it's a Rooster Spur (Thai variety). Cat's outta the bag, I guess, haha