Chiltepin
(Capsicum annuum var. glabriusculum)

PLANT IMAGES

 

Family: Solanaceae
Species: C. annuum
Genus: Capsicum
Common names: chiltepin, chiltepe, and chile tepin
Parts Used: fruit


The tiny chile peppers of C. a. var. glabriusculum are red to orange-red, ellipsoidal, and about 0.8 cm (0.31 in) in diameter. Tepin is derived from a Nahuatl word meaning "flea". Tepin peppers, or "bird’s eye" or simply "bird" peppers (due to their consumption and spread by wild birds), are extremely hot, measuring between 50,000 and 100,000 Scoville Units. Some chile enthusiasts argue that the Tepin is hotter than the habanero or Red Savina, but this is supported with the so-called Craig Dremann score rather than the standard scale of a pepper's intensity, which is the Scoville score. In Mexico, the heat of the Chiltepin is called arrebatado ("rapid" or "violent"), because, while the heat is intense, it is not very enduring. This stands in contrast to the Chili Piquin, which is somewhat similar in size and shape to the Chiltepin, but delivers a decidedly different experience. Piquins are not as hot as Chiltepins (only about 30,000-50,000 Scoville Units), but they have a much slower and longer-lasting effect.