Bell Pepper, My Favorite Vegetable

“Sili” in Filipino or chili in Mexican or Spanish is an herb or vegetables that Filipinos associate with one having a “hot” taste. The “siling labuyo” or bird’s eye chili pepper is very hot and leaves a momentary burning sensation in the mouth with just a bite of a single and small ripened fruit. It is used as ingredient of local dishes to make them pungent and spicy.  One variety of the capsicum family that I like most is the bell pepper.

The bell pepper is distinct from other pepper variety since it does not have a hot taste which is common to other peppers. It is also the largest of all the peppers. The reason for this is that bell pepper does not produce the chemical capsaicin that gives the other pepper variety a burning taste when people bite or chew it. Rather than hot its taste is somehow sweet and its flesh and skin is tender. For me, it’s one of the most delicious vegetables that I have eaten.

The bell pepper is botanically a fruit since it grows out of a flower and contains seeds, but culinarily it is used and consumed as a vegetable. In the local market, the bell pepper comes in three different colors- red, yellow and green, with the red as the most delicious of all.

For culinary purpose, the bell pepper is used as toppings of pizza. It is also used in combination with other vegetables to make stews or addition to meats such as beef and pork. Bell pepper is also ideal as one of components of green or vegetable salad. I like it as salad because of its pleasant taste and soft texture. I prepare it slightly boiled rather than raw to prevent bacteria contamination with mayonnaise or commercially sold green salad dressings to add flavor. Sometimes I simply dip it in vinegar with salt.

The bell-shaped fruit or vegetable is rich in Vitamin C, Vitamin A, Vitamin B6, riboflavin, folate, Vitamin E and fiber making it an ideal food for one who wants a balanced diet for a good health.

In the local market, bell pepper is one of the most expensive vegetables making it not budget friendly vegetable either for personal or commercial consumption.

 

The Philippine Wild Chili Pepper (Siling Labuyo)

Often mistaken for bird’s eye chili pepper, the cultivar siling labuyo is a species of capsicum fructescens in the capsicum genus. The name “siling labuyo” in Filipino means wild chili although at present this plant is widely cultivated because of its culinary importance in some Philippine dishes. The frail looking but fast growing plant probably got its name because it usually grows wildly almost anywhere in soil near a house.

Siling labuyo is a small plant that grows only at about a meter in height and has acuminate leaves and small star shaped white flowers. Its tiny and slightly tapered fruit is about 2-2.5 cm in length and turns red when ripe. The plant’s peculiarity is that the fruits are usually on the stalks upside down unlike any other fruits.

The “wild” chili was once listed as the hottest chili pepper in the Guinness Book of World Records. But now, it is only ranked in the middle in the list of hottest chilis in the Scoville Heat Scale. The heat of siling labuyo is measured in the range of 50,000-100,000 which is below that of the bird’s eye chili pepper at 100,000-225,000 range. The hottest chili in the Scoville list is the Carolina Reaper which is measured in the range of 1,600,000-2,200,000 heat units.

A bite of the tiny chili will cause intense burning feeling and irritation. However, it is its hotness that makes this chili a highly sought after food commodity. For some people, the hotter it is the better. The native chili is an indispensable ingredient in some of the cuisines of Maranao, Visayan and Bicolano tribes. In the Visayas and Mindanao regions, a raw fish dish called “kinilaw” is not complete without siling labuyo in it. Siling labuyo is also used to spice up canned or bottled sardines and commercially sold vinegar. It is also added in a condiment or dip for broiled pork or fish and roasted meat for a spicy hot meal. Moreover, Siling labuyo leaves are great for a stewed chicken dish called “tinola.”

“Boodle fight” is a kind of informal dinner in the Philippines that originated from the military. It is a sort of a buffet style meal where diners by the table partake on foods with their bare hands. This type of informally serving foods has found its way outside the military, so that some civilians adapted it in gatherings where foods are served. In a military “boodle fight” foods such as boiled rice, canned sardines, fried dried fish, broiled pork and pancit are laid on the table without utensils. Handful of Siling labuyo is deliberately inserted in the cooked rice. During the meal those who have the misfortune of putting and chewing the chili in his mouth would suddenly feel the burning sensation caused by the chili. However, such discomfort is only temporary since it will be gone after a few seconds, and then the partaker’s urge to eat returns to normal.

Aside from its culinary uses siling labuyo is also used in herbal medicine. Consuming it stimulates mucous flow from sinus cavity clearing nasal congestion, and because of it, the chili is used to treat cough and stuffed nose during cold and fever.  It is also said to lower cholesterol and fight inflammation. Crushed fruits are used to help clean wound to avoid infection. Mixed with oil and massaged on joints affected by gout and rheumatism, they help ease pain and inflammation.