Types of Peppers: Pepper Varieties You Should Try

There are almost as many types of peppers as there are people in the world. Well, maybe that’s an exaggeration, but there certainly are a lot of pepper varieties.

How Many Types of Peppers Are There?

When you are thinking about the different types of peppers, first, you can break them into two general pepper types:  hot and sweet.  Both hot peppers and sweet peppers can be delicious, it will really depend on what you are using them for as to which general type of pepper you will want to use.

Then, within, each of those general types of peppers you have specific pepper varieties.  A quick look online will tell you that there are upwards of 50,000 different pepper varieties!

Peppers are one of the easiest vegetables to grow. (Or, peppers actually a fruit that easy to grow?)  Since they are so easy, we usually add several types when we learn how to grow peppers in our garden each year.

That means we get a LOT of peppers.  We usually freeze peppers so that we can use them all year round.

With at least 50,000 types of peppers to choose from, it may seem a little overwhelming when you try to decide which peppers would be best to add to your garden. We always try to add a few sweet peppers and a few hot peppers since they are used in different foods.

Most of the types of peppers that we usually plant are pretty common – that way they can be used in multiple ways and multiple dishes over the year.

Scoville Heat Unit

The most common way to rank the heat or spiciness of peppers is through the Scoville Heat Unit (SHU) method. SHU measures the level of capsaicinoids, the chemical that burns in peppers. The SHU ranking goes from 0 (bell peppers) to over 3,000,000 (military grade pepper spray).

The Big List Of Peppers

You should consider adding one or multiple of these types of peppers to your garden plans this season.

Name	Type	Scoville Heat Unit
Chocolate Bell Pepper	Sweet	0 SHU
Shishito Peppers	Sweet	50 to 100 SHU
Banana Peppers	Sweet	0 to 500 SHU
Pepperoncini	Sweet	100 to 500 SHU
Cherry Peppers	Sweet	100 to 500 SHU
Piquillo Peppers	Sweet	500 to 1,000 SHU
Cubanelle Peppers	Sweet	1,000 SHU
Anaheim Peppers	Hot	500 to 2,500 SHU
Poblano Peppers	Hot	1,000 to 1,500 SHU
Pasilla Peppers	Hot	1,000 to 2,500 SHU
Jalapeño Peppers	Hot	2,500 to 8,000 SHU
Fresno Peppers	Hot	2,500 to 10,000 SHU
Yellow Chili Peppers	Hot	10,000 to 15,000 SHU
Serrano Peppers	Hot	8,000 to 22,000 SHU
Guajillo Peppers	Hot	2,500 to 30,000 SHU
Cayenne Peppers	Hot	30,000 to 50,000 SHU
Tabasco Peppers	Hot	30,000 to 60,000 SHU
Rocoto Peppers	Hot	30,000 to 100,000 SHU
Bird’s Eye Peppers	Hot	50,000 to 100,000 SHU
Piri Piri Peppers	Hot	50,000 to 175,000 SHU
Habañero Peppers	Hot	150,000 to 350,000 SHU
Scotch Bonnet	Hot	80,000 to 400,000 SHU
Ghost Peppers	HOT!!!	1,000,000 SHU
Naga Viper Peppers	HOT!!!	1,382,118 SHU
Trinidad Scorpion Butch T Peppers	HOT!!!	1,463,700 SHU
Komodo Dragon Peppers	HOT!!!	1,400,000 to 2,200,000 SHU
Carolina Reaper	HOT!!!	1,000,000 to 2,000,000 SHU
Dragon’s Breath	HOT!!!	2,480,000 SHU (unofficial)
Pepper X	HOT!!!	3,180,00 SHU

Chocolate Bell Peppers

Chocolate bell peppers are one of the more unusual vegetables you can grow.  They are a type of sweet pepper.  They are, as the name would suggest, a bell pepper variation.  Chocolate bell peppers will turn a beautiful chocolate color upon ripening.

Despite behind categorized as a sweet pepper, they, unfortunately, do not actually taste like chocolate. They are however, delicious in their own right and will make a fun and colorful addition to any garden.

Scoville heat units: 0

Shishito Peppers

Scoville heat units: 50 to 100

Need some help getting your garden crops planned? Check out the Ultimate Gardening Calculators for a system that will auto-calculate for you.

Banana Peppers

Here is my personal favorite of all the peppers; the banana pepper.

Banana peppers are considered to be a sweet type of pepper. They are called banana peppers because they are long and yellow and look, well, kind of like little bananas.

Banana peppers have a mild flavor so they make great toppings for things like sandwiches, salads, or pizza.  Again, like poblanos, banana peppers are one of the most versatile types of peppers.

One common use for banana peppers is to pickle them. So, that makes these a great pepper to grow a bumper crop of and then preserve for later.

Pickled banana peppers are even great just to snack on.  You can eat them alone or with a cheese and cracker platter – which makes a great, cheap and easy snack tray if you have guests over

You can also add banana peppers into things like salsa to give it just a little hint of sweet.  YUM!

Scoville heat units: 0 to 500

Pepperoncini

You probably recognize Pepperoncinis from your salad at Olive Garden. They are pretty similar to banana peppers in shape and color but can be a tad bit spicier at times. They are also a little smaller than banana peppers.

Scoville heat units: 100 to 500

Cherry Peppers

These peppers are also known as pimento peppers.

Scoville heat units: 100 to 500

Piquillo Peppers

Scoville heat units: 500 to 1,000

Cubanelle Peppers

Scoville heat units: 1,000

Anaheim

Anaheims are some of our favorite types of peppers. They are comparable to poblano peppers in size, shape, and flavor. They can have a little more kick depending on the strain you find.

They are typically harvested when green but are still good once they’ve turned red. They are best around 6 inches long.

Scoville heat units: 500 to 2,500

Poblano Peppers

Poblano peppers are considered to be hot peppers, but are on the lower end of the spiciness scale. Therefore, they are good for those of us who aren’t into the super spicy peppers.  They provide a little spicy kick to your food without burning your mouth off.

Poblano peppers are a decent sized pepper; only slightly smaller than a bell pepper. We like to use them to make stuffed peppers.

They are spicy enough to add a little flavor, but not so spicy that they overwhelm a dish if they are a main ingredient.  Given this, poblano peppers are really one of the more versatile types of peppers.

Poblano peppers can be frozen whole (just wash and chop off the top) for use later.  Or, if you are planning to make stuffed peppers like we do, you can go ahead and make them and then freeze the stuffed peppers for an easy ready made meal later on.

Since we use these as the main part of a dish, we usually plant several poblano pepper plants.  This allows us to make stuffed peppers several times over the course of the year.

Scoville heat units: 1,000 to 1,500

Fresno Peppers

Scoville heat units: 1,000 to 1,500

Pasilla Peppers

Scoville heat units: 1,000 to 2,500

Jalapeño Peppers

Jalapeño peppers may well be one of the most popular types of peppers.  When most people think of peppers, the jalapeño is THE pepper they think of.

Jalapeño peppers are also in the family of hot peppers.  They are also super easy to grow.  We planted them one year and then forgot about them. Despite the neglect, they flourished and we brought in a TON of Jalapeño peppers to spice up our meals.

You can get quite a few peppers off of a single plant, and as you pick, they will keep on producing.  These are great to grow for use in salsa and they also freeze well.  Since they can be used in several different foods, we usually plant several Jalapeño pepper plants.

Scoville heat units: 2,500 to 8,000

Yellow Chili Peppers

Scoville heat units: up to 15,000

Serrano Peppers

Scoville heat units: 8,000 to 22,000

Guajillo Pepper

Scoville heat units: 2,500 to 30,000

Need some help getting your garden crops planned? Check out the Ultimate Gardening Calculators for a system that will auto-calculate for you.

Cayenne Pepper

For a small pepper, cayenne can pack quite the punch. You will usually find them in the 2 to 5 inch range and ranging in color from green to red. Most people are familiar with cayenne peppers in their selection of spices. It is not uncommon for people to use dried cayenne pepper as a spice for certain recipes or as a pizza topping.

Scoville heat units: 30,000 to 50,000

Tabasco Peppers

If for nothing else, you’ve likely heard of Tabasco peppers from the hot sauce. They are a very small pepper, usually growing no longer than 2 inches. You can find them growing in multiple colors from yellow, green, orange, and red.

Scoville heat units: 30,000 to 60,000

Rocoto Peppers

Scoville heat units: 30,000 to 100,000

Bird’s Eye Peppers

Scoville heat units: 50,000 to 100,000

Piri Piri Peppers

Scoville heat units: 50,000 to 100,000

Habañero Peppers

Scoville heat units: 150,000 to 350,000

Scotch Bonnet Peppers

Scoville heat units: 80,000 to 400,000

Ghost Peppers

These are a type of hot pepper.  And hot they are!  In fact, hot may be considered an under statement when it comes to ghost peppers.  They are actually on record as one of the hottest types of peppers in the world.  So, don’t grow these unless you REALLY, REALLY like hot peppers.

Justin is a big fan of super hot, but a little goes a long way when it comes to ghost peppers.  So, we usually only plant one plant worth for this type of pepper.

They can be used fresh, dry, as a food or spice so they’re really are versatile….as long as you can handle the heat.

Scoville heat units: 1,000,000

Naga Viper Peppers

The Naga Viper pepper is a hybrid pepper. It was crossed with three of the hottest peppers available at it’s time of creation; the Naga Morich, Bhut jolokia, and the Trinidad Scorpion.

Scoville heat units: 1,382,118

Trinidad Scorpion Butch T Peppers

Was once considered by the Guinness Book of World Records to be the hottest pepper in the world with an official SHU of 1,463,700! This pepper gets it’s name because of it’s shape. It is said to have a point like a scorpion tail.

Scoville heat units: 1,463,700

Komodo Dragon Peppers

The Komodo Dragon pepper, while not as hot as some of later chilis on this list, packs a sneaky punch. It takes about 10 seconds for the full heat to sink in. This evil pepper will lull you into a false sense of security and then utterly destroy your hopes and dreams.

Scoville heat units: 1,400,000 to 2,200,000

Carolina Reaper

If these peppers are comic book villains, then the super villain lair is a place called (I’m not kidding) PuckerButt Pepper Company and is run by super villain and pepper breeder himself, “Smokin'” Ed Currie. This lair…er…farm is located in Rock Hill, South Carolina, hence the name.

This pepper is bright red, has a bumpy texture, and practically screams, “Eat me and you will die.” While no clinical tests have been performed, there has been speculation that this pepper can be dangerous to eat. It is suspected, at the very least, your body can have a stress response to the heat and cause headaches.

By the way, this pepper was certified in 2017 as the hottest pepper in the world with a SHU of 1,641,183 by the Guinness Book of World Records.

Scoville heat units: 1,000,000 to 2,000,000

Dragon’s Breath

The Dragon’s Breath pepper has the ability to numb skin upon contact. This phenomenon has led researchers to believe it’s oils could be used as an alternative anaesthetic for those that may be intolerant to traditional anaesthetics.

While this pepper has not officially been tested for entry as a world record it claims to have 2.48 million scoville heat units. Sadly, we may never get an official ruling on it’s SHU due to our next entry.

Scoville heat units: 2,480,000 SHU (unofficial)

Pepper X

As if the Carolina Reaper wasn’t enough, Ed Currie took 10 years to create this monstrosity of a hot pepper. This pepper is claimed to be twice as hot as the Carolina Reaper measuring with a SHU over 3 million (3.18, to be exact)!

Scoville heat units: 3,180,000 SHU (unofficial)

As you can see, there is a huge variety of peppers out there. This is just a small list of them ranging from sweet and mild to “possibly end up in the ER” hot.

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