The chili pepper that completely transformed kitchens worldwide
Peri-peri (PIRR-ee-PIRR-ee), or piri piri as we call it in Portuguese, is a cultivar of Capsicum frutescens. Don’t be mistaken: not all peppers from the Capsicum family are hot. The bell peppers in your family meals belong to this family too.
A globalization phenomenon
Chili peppers are a staple in almost every household in the world, but it wasn’t always like this. All chili peppers are native to South America, where people have been growing them for the past 6,000 years. When Christopher Columbus arrived in the late 15th century, the Europeans were intrigued by this spicy plant, used there mainly as an ornament. Demand for an alternative to the valuable black pepper was high, and European nations quickly understood that the small fiery red pepper could replace the highly profitable spice.
Portugal, racing for the lucrative spice trade centred on the Asian spice islands, saw an opportunity. With a well-established navy and a global presence, the Portuguese understood their advantage. Curiously, even before Columbus reached the Caribbean, people in West Africa already used a similar plant from a different family, the Guinea pepper, which gave food a hot flavour.
Pimenta malagueta in Portuguese
Because of the Guinea pepper (Aframomum melegueta), chili peppers are called pimenta malagueta in Portuguese. When Portuguese traders came across the chili pepper, they saw its business potential. Because of its heat, they associated it with the Guinea pepper and named it peri-peri, which means pepper in Swahili, the language of the Swahili people of the African Great Lakes region.
From Africa to the world
China, India and Thailand did not always use chili peppers in their food! In Thailand, a short-lived Portuguese presence failed to convert the locals to Christianity but succeeded in revolutionizing Thai cooking. European traders also introduced the spice to Japan.
As chilies were added to the cooking pots of Asia, they entered local trade routes and reached Indonesia, Tibet and China. The Portuguese presence in India (Goa) and Malaysia (Melaka) spread the chili trade to a scale never imagined. Chilies spread so quickly partly because they grow easily in many climates, which makes them cheap and always available.
Cooking with peri peri
Chili-based sauces are a worldwide favourite. In the USA, salsas and chili sauces have outsold tomato ketchup since the early 1990s, as people become more willing to try new flavours and spices.
Use chilies fresh, chopped into a salad or sauce, or dried and flaked over pasta. That zing is set to make your next meal a success. Start with the famous Portuguese peri peri chicken recipe, or learn it with us in one of our cooking classes in Lisbon.