My FB buddy, Paul Shell, in Arkansas, is a botanist and landscaper par excellence. Today, he posted a picture of Starfish peppers he was going to prepare as a sauce, I think. The Starfish pepper is a variety of Aji peppers.
My first taste of Aji peppers came from my friends Enrique and Monika Spindel. Aji is a group of South American pepper varieties from Peru and Brazil. Monika introduced us to Aji amarillo (yellow Aji). Monika grew up in Lima, Peru, and Aji was a common spice used in the dishes of her country of birth.
For spiciness, Aji amarillo falls somewhere between Jalapeño and Chile Pequin (Capsicum Texanum). The latter is a Texas native plant, and it is not unusual to find volunteers growing in semi-shade on residential properties. I have such a plant (pictured below).
Birds eat the fruits, and the seeds pass through their digestive tracts unharmed. When they excrete, the seeds land on the ground and later germinate. Thus, it is not uncommon to find the plants growing along fence lines – which is where my plant is. There used to be several plants along our privacy fence, but a couple of harsh winters killed all but this one. This evening, I picked fifty peppers or so. There are a couple of hundred left, and I’ll spend a bit of time tomorrow and this weekend harvesting more.
I may need to try growing some Aji varieties next year. Thanks, Paul.