Here are some extremely fascinating things I found: the History and Recipe of Bell Peppers. Initially, though, are bell peppers considered a fruit or a veggie? All right, so do potatoes, tomatoes, and eggplant; they’re all members of the nightshade family. With three or four lobes, bell peppers are a big, delicious vegetable. The flavor of red, orange, and yellow peppers is sweeter and nearly fruity; green and purple peppers have a slightly bitter taste.
When completely ripe, a bell pepper is a huge, fleshy, mild green pepper that becomes red or gold. The writer, Sturtevant quotes Lionel Wafer in 1699, who describes Bell-pepper and Bird-pepper growing in the Ithsmus of America. Edward Long in 1774, who lists nine types of Capsicum being grown in Jamaica; “the Bell is esteemed most proper for pickling,” Sturtevant repeats. Among Jefferson’s numerous allusions to Capsicum, one undoubtedly relates to bell pepper seeds. Which, were supplied from Mexico in 1824: “Large Pepper, a good salad with the seeds removed.” This was observed by a food historian.
Bell peppers along with hot peppers, for example, have been cultivated for over 9000 years; with the earliest cultivation occurring in South and Central American cultures. So far, the earliest fossil traces have been discovered in southwestern Ecuador, where families produced their own peppers approximately 6,100 years ago.
Bell Pepper History and Recipe: Part 2
So the phrase “Bell Pepper” may be traced back to the late 1600s, when “pirate” and ship’s surgeon Lionel Wafer wrote about them in his book “A New Voyage and Other Adventures.” The name pepper is derived from the Greek word pipari (pee-PAIR-ree), which signifies black spice…however, a bell pepper can be green, red, or orange, among other colors.
Among the demands made by the Goths when they sacked Rome in 410 AD were 5,000 pounds of gold and 3,000 pounds of black pepper. Debts and dowries were paid with peppercorns throughout the Middle Ages. Later, Columbus traveled to the Caribbean in pursuit of the scarce and expensive black pepper.
Instead, he discovered this fiery fruit, or as we call it a vegetable. The hot peppers carried back by the explorer fit right in because pepper was a term that was applied to other hot spicy items. Except the bell pepper wasn’t spicy, but it looked similar to the other hot peppers and had the shape of a bell.
Bell peppers are members of the same genus as fiery chili peppers, Capsicum amus, but they are the only ones that do not produce capsaicin, which gives chili peppers their heat. Every bell pepper variety starts off green and develops into red, yellow, orange, and so forth. All the colors—aside from green—are from different cultivars, but it’s the same variety. One of the most well-known recipes that uses bell peppers is the Stuffed Bell Pepper. Bell peppers are utilized in almost every aspect of cookery.
DID YOU KNOW? If you have 3 bell peppers; green, yellow, and red together in a package they are sometimes sold as “Traffic Light Peppers!”
Stuffed Peppers Recipe
Just by glancing at the bell pepper, you can know it’s going to be stuffed. The meat, sauce, and rice soften the harsh, spicy flavor.
Ingredients:
Fresh cooked peppers
Cooked ground beef
Cooked white rice
Cut up onion
Seasoning (whatever you choose)
ungreased glass pan (I prefer glass)
1 can of spaghetti sauce
mixing bowl
Preheat oven at 325 for temperature
Mix ground beef, white rice, onion, seasoning, and sauce in the mixing bowl. Make sure everything is mixed well. Fill each pepper full of the mixture. Put your filled peppers in the ungreased pan in the oven for about 20- 30 min. You will know when they are ready. Not really that long considering everything was already pre cooked but the onions.
Once you take them out, let them cool. You can add cheese if you choose before putting them in the oven. (I usually love it that way). Enjoy!! If you really like this recipe you can try my recipe for lasagna.