Hand-collected in Iquitos, Peru, by my friend, Joseph Simcox aka The Botanical Explorer.
Peruvians are accustomed to spicing their meals with various peppers found in markets throughout the country, such as Ají Rococo, Ají Escabeche, Ají Panca, among others. However, in the jungle there are others which are little known to the world - the Ají pucunucho is one of them. Endangered enough so that this variety is now listed by The Slowfood Foundation for Biodiversity. There is also a known red fruited variant.
Conical, thin-walled, wrinkly orange 1 1/2- inch fruits with a tell-tale pointed tip - and by tell-tale I mean "This is going to hurt!" Being the wimp that I am, I sent a few mature peppers to a friend who is into the 'fire-eating' thing - after, nearly crying (and a quick trip to the bathroom) he said, "That was hot - maybe hotter than a Trinidad Scorpion."
Proceed with caution!
Sold in a 2.62" wide x 3.5" deep pot.
PUCUNUCHO
VARIETY CHARACTERISTICS
SPECIES: C. chinense
HEAT LEVEL: FIRE - SCORCHING
FRUIT COLOR: Light Green > Orange
ORIGIN: Iquitos, Peru
SCOVILLE HU: Unknown but promised to be FIRE hot.DISCLAIMER: PROCEED WITH CAUTION
The peppers offered in the FIRE -SCORCHING section are seriously hot. They should NEVER be grown where anyone - especially a child - could mistakenly pluck one off the plant and take a bite unknowingly. Even handling these peppers can cause the skin to burn.
Knowledge is power: Treating CHILI BURN: You're Best Solutions