Capsicum annuum var. glabriusculum

Tepin

Tepin ( Capsicum annuum var glabriusculum ), also Chiltepin or Chiltecpin, is a wild chili that can be found in the Sonoran desert, for example. It is regarded as " archetype " of the currently known chili, even if only a part of the cultivated Capsicum species Capsicum annuum to be assigned.

Origin and History

The use as a condiment, healing and miracle drugs dates back 9000 years. In many Indian tribes of the Tepin is considered sacred. In addition to the Sonoran Desert in the southwestern United States and adjacent Mexico, the U.S. state of Texas is a major distribution area.

Almost all of today's chili and all non -hot peppers are cultivation and breeding of Tepins.

The plant with little pea-sized fruit can be cultivated not good, even commercial cultivation trials are usually of minderem success, therefore Tepins are harvested directly from the wild bushes that are usually located in the shade of larger trees. There, the shrubs are up to 30 years old.

Spread

Since birds are not sensitive to the responsible in mammals for sharpness sensation capsaicin, they eat the berries from the bushes and later divorced, also mostly sitting on larger trees, the undigested seeds together with the simultaneously acting as fertilizer faeces. With this type of spread ( Ornithochorie - Bird spread ) Chiltepin plants are preferred to see trees which serve as shade.

Use as a spice

Chiltepin is used fresh or dried and crushed is used as a spice in soups, meat dishes and a side of sharpness, the fruits are used because of their unique taste. The sophisticated harvest Tepinfrüchte are very expensive and are among the most expensive spices in the world.

Etymology

The name derives from the Nahuatl language and means something like " flea Chili".