# Fish pepper > Mediated Wiki article. Canonical URL: https://mediated.wiki/source/Fish_pepper > Markdown URL: https://mediated.wiki/source/Fish_pepper.md > Source: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fish_pepper > Source revision: 1352934777 > License: Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/) {{Short description|Cultivar of Capsicum annuum}} {{Infobox cultivar | name = Fish pepper | image = Fishpepper.jpeg | species = ''[Capsicum annuum](/source/Capsicum_annuum)'' | origin = [Caribbean](/source/Caribbean) | module = {{Infobox pepper |embed=yes |heat=Hot |scoville=5,000–30,000 }} }} The '''fish pepper''' is a small Chili pepper [cultivar](/source/cultivar) of the species ''[Capsicum annuum](/source/Capsicum_annuum)''. It is an heirloom variety developed and preserved by [African American](/source/African_Americans) communities in the [Chesapeake](/source/Chesapeake_Bay). The plant has [variegated](/source/Variegation) foliage and its peppers ripen from white with green streaks to a dark red color. The fish pepper has a wide range of pungency, with [Scoville scores](/source/Scoville_scale) from 5,000 to 30,000 units.{{Cite web|date=2014-11-29|title=Fish Pepper: Resurrecting Baltimore's Chili Pepper Past|url=https://www.pepperscale.com/fish-pepper/|access-date=2021-09-08|website=PepperScale|language=en-US}} The pepper was thought to be [extinct](/source/Extinction) for the better part of the 20th century until the rediscovery of fifty year-old seeds in an African American family's freezer.{{Cite web |title=The US pepper that was nearly lost |url=https://www.bbc.com/travel/article/20240216-the-us-pepper-that-was-nearly-lost |access-date=2024-02-18 |website=www.bbc.com |date=17 February 2024 }} ==History== ===Background=== ''Capsicum annuum'' is a species of the plant in the family [solanacea](/source/Solanaceae). Its origins are obscure, but it is believed to originally be native to southern [Mexico](/source/Mexico), where its center of diversity exists.{{Cite web|title=Origin and center of domestication of Capsicum annuum|url=https://stri-apps.si.edu/docs/publications/pdfs/Piperno_2_as_editor_of_a_PNAS_art_2014.pdf|website=stri-apps.si.edu}} Being cultivated by [Mesoamerica](/source/Mesoamerica)n societies since roughly 8000 [BCE](/source/BCE), it would later spread throughout most of southern [North America](/source/North_America) and [South America](/source/South_America).{{Cite web|title=Domestication of Capsicum annuum chile pepper provides insights into crop origin and evolution|url=https://phys.org/news/2009-06-domestication-capsicum-annuum-chile-pepper.html|access-date=2021-09-08|website=phys.org|language=en}} By the time of [Columbus's](/source/Columbus's_letter_on_the_first_voyage) [arrival](/source/Columbian_exchange) in the [Americas](/source/Americas), cultivation had been noted in the [Caribbean](/source/Caribbean).{{Cite web|title=Peppers: History and Exploitation of a Serendipitous New Crop Discovery|url=https://www.hort.purdue.edu/newcrop/proceedings1993/v2-132.html|access-date=2021-09-08|website=www.hort.purdue.edu}} ===Origin and historical use=== From the Caribbean, it made its way to the [Chesapeake](/source/Chesapeake_Bay) where it was noted to have been grown by enslaved Africans in Baltimore.{{Cite web|last=Maryland|first=Preservation|date=2017-07-28|title=Maryland Food History: The Fish Pepper|url=https://www.preservationmaryland.org/maryland-food-history-the-fish-pepper/|access-date=2021-09-08|website=Preservation Maryland|language=en-gb}} [Food historian](/source/Food_history) [Michael W. Twitty](/source/Michael_W._Twitty) believes them to have originally have been brought by [Haitians](/source/Haitians).{{Cite web|date=2021-04-04|title=The Story of Fish Peppers, a Legacy of the African American Garden|url=https://www.epicurious.com/ingredients/fish-peppers-african-american-garden-article|access-date=2021-09-08|website=Epicurious|language=en-US}} By 1870, particularly in [Baltimore](/source/Baltimore) and in [Philadelphia](/source/Philadelphia), the pepper became a popular ingredient among the Black community and was commonly used in many crab houses and [oyster bar](/source/oyster_bar)s (hence the name "fish pepper"). The fish pepper's rare trait of albinism was highly valued by chefs because the use of the peppers in their albino phase of ripening allowed white foods such as [cream of crab soup](/source/Cream_of_crab_soup) to be spiced without affecting the color of the final dish. Due to urbanization, fish peppers declined in popularity during the early 20th century, eventually disappearing from restaurant menus, marketplaces and the catalogs of seed vendors. === Rediscovery === The cultivar was saved from extinction thanks to a barter made by [Horace Pippin](/source/Horace_Pippin) in the 1940s. Pippin was a Black folk painter who lived in [Pennsylvania](/source/Pennsylvania). He traded seeds to a local beekeeper named H. Ralph Weaver in exchange for Weaver's celebrated [bee sting therapy](/source/Apitherapy), used to treat Pippin's arthritis.{{Cite web|last=Ly|first=Linda|date=2014-10-06|title=Fish Pepper: A Peculiar Pepper With Deep Roots in African-American History|url=https://www.gardenbetty.com/fish-pepper-a-peculiar-pepper-with-deep-roots-in-african-american-history/|access-date=2021-09-08|website=Garden Betty|language=en-US}} The seeds stayed in the Weaver family freezer for fifty years, until 1995 when Weaver's grandson, William Woys Weaver, discovered the seeds and sent them to the [Seed Savers Exchange](/source/Seed_Savers_Exchange).{{Cite web |date=2021-04-04 |title=The Story of Fish Peppers, a Legacy of the African American Garden |url=https://www.epicurious.com/ingredients/fish-peppers-african-american-garden-article |access-date=2024-02-18 |website=Epicurious |language=en-US}} The Exchange reconstituted the pepper seeds and cultivated the first fish pepper seedlings in half a century. Since their resurrection, the fish pepper has regained its former popularity and is readily available from seed websites and once again sees regular use in dishes at [Mid-Atlantic](/source/Mid-Atlantic_(United_States)) restaurants.{{Cite web|last=Weaver|first=William Woys|title=Fish Peppers|url=https://www.motherearthnews.com/organic-gardening/fish-pepper-zmaz09amzraw|access-date=2021-09-08|website=Mother Earth News|language=en}} ==Description== The color of the fruit range from green, orange, brown, white and red, being spicy and hot. The cultivar is celebrated for its unusual foliage. The plants have striking white and green mottled leaves, making the variety as valued as an [ornamental](/source/Ornamental_plant) in [landscaping](/source/landscaping) as it is in the kitchen for its unusual fruits.{{Cite web|last=Weaver|first=William Woys|title=Fish Peppers|url=https://www.motherearthnews.com/organic-gardening/fish-pepper-zmaz09amzraw|access-date=2019-06-08|website=Mother Earth News|language=en}} As they grow, the fruit's color varies greatly, progressing from a creamy white albinism to a deep blood red when mature. Fish peppers are typically hot peppers, and their heat can range from 5,000 to 30,000 on the [Scoville scale](/source/Scoville_scale).{{cite web|title=Fish Pepper: Resurrecting Baltimore's Chili Pepper Past|url=https://www.pepperscale.com/fish-pepper/|website=PepperScale|accessdate=12 August 2017|date=29 November 2014}} The peppers grow to roughly {{convert|1.5|to|2|in|cm}} in length, with the plant itself growing to roughly {{convert|2|ft|cm}} in height.{{cite web|title=Fish Pepper|url=https://www.cayennediane.com/peppers/fish-pepper/|website=Cayenne Diane|accessdate=12 August 2017}}{{cite web|title=Fish Pepper|url=https://www.rareseeds.com/fish-pepper/}} ==See also== *[List of Capsicum cultivars](/source/List_of_Capsicum_cultivars) *[Sea island red peas](/source/Sea_Island_red_pea) *[Carolina gold rice](/source/Carolina_Gold) ==References== {{reflist}} {{Capsicum cultivars}} Category:Chili peppers Category:Capsicum cultivars Category:African-American cuisine --- Adapted from the Wikipedia article [Fish pepper](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fish_pepper) by Wikipedia contributors ([contributor history](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fish_pepper?action=history)). Available under [Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International](https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/). Changes may have been made.