This is the pepper that most people in North America use as the baseline by which to measure other hot peppers. It is commonly available, with both seeds and plants available at most nurseries. This is a good "gateway pepper" for those wanting to venture into growing and eating hot peppers, as it is hot enough to provide some real bite, without the agonizing burn of the hot peppers with MUCH higher scores on the Scoville scale, which measures the "heat" of peppers. This pepper can be eaten raw, if you are tolerant of heat, or as an ingredient in many dishes.

Reply to this comment

I have good results with Jalapenos and without a lot of special effort. Whereas bell peppers here tend to be thin walled (I garden organically, don't fertilize regularly, and I may neglect watering at times), jalapenos turn out lots of really nice fruit. Small brown cracks develop as the fruit ages, while still green; they can still be used.

Reply to this comment