Differences of paprika from bell pepper

3.03.2018 Country kitchen

The debate about whether paprika belongs to the varieties of bell pepper has not ceased for many years. Each of the parties will find a lot of arguments in defense of its theory and all of them will be quite convincing.

I would like to understand the situation and finally put everything in its place. So, the main question tormenting the minds of many inquisitive culinary specialists and gardeners is what is the difference between paprika and bell pepper and whether it exists at all.

Content

1 The history of paprika and bell pepper
2 Is there a difference between paprika and bell pepper?
3 Reviews

The history of paprika and bell pepper

To describe the full picture and understand the origins of the development of confusion, you should turn to historical information. Christopher Columbus, traveling on a trip to India, arrived in America with the aim of acquiring black pepper and other seasonings.

Columbus mistakenly believed that he had reached the designated goal, which was originally India. The seafarer acquired vegetables of a nightshade culture. And we needed fruits growing on winding vines belonging to the pepper family. Subsequently, the fruits brought by Columbus acquired a generalized name - capsicum.

Capsicum is a plant that requires special growing conditions (warm and long daylight hours), as it is from Central and South America. The history of culture lasts more than 20 centuries. It has many names, but there is one, the main Latin designation - Capsicum annuum. In total there are more than 700 species, with sweet and bitter fruits:

Bulgarian (sweet pepper) - varieties are diverse in shape, weight and color of the fruit. Taste from the sweetest to medium spicy. The view is universal in cooking;
red (bitter pepper) - the shape, color and weight of the fruits are different for different varieties, the taste is weak to very burning. The view is also universal in cooking, but it is used in small quantities as a seasoning.

Bell pepper is a type of vast and diverse culture, a variety of vegetable pepper. The first acquaintance of our compatriots with culture dates back to the late 16th century. It is called sweet all over the world, so why is it called differently here? Most of the vegetable varieties were imported to Russia from Bulgaria, where, with the efforts of breeders, the largest number of large-fruited sweet peppers was bred.

Now let's move on to paprika, in fact, this is a spice made from different types and varieties of culture of the nightshade family. Most often, red, sweet or spicy fruits are dried and crushed, but other, sometimes even the sharpest, varieties are used. There is also a yellow, very burning paprika, however, it is not in demand.

Various varieties of paprika are grown in Russia, Ukraine, Slovakia, Turkey, Hungary and Chile. And the birthplace of culture is South America. The plant is perennial, it can be dug up, transplanted into bulk containers and grown at home in the winter. Bushes erect, fleshy fruits.

The main country producing paprika is Hungary. It is there that they make the best spice, which is popular all over the world. In total, about 8 Hungarian pepper powders, commonly used in cooking, are known.

Paprika has a rich composition of vitamins and minerals. But the main benefit is that capsaicin and lipocaine are present in the fruits, these substances strengthen the body's immunity, help cope with various infections. Well, their main benefit is the prevention of the development of cancer cells.

Is there a difference between paprika and bell pepper?

The answer to the main question is unambiguous, there are no differences between bell pepper and paprika. These are just different names or designations of the same plant belonging to the extensive genus Capsicum annuum. Differences are determined only by the taste of the type of pepper used to make the seasoning.

Reviews

Kristina. Very interesting and informative, information on this subject varies greatly. Now it became clear to me why buying the same seasoning, sometimes I get different results. I’ll take a closer look at the description on the packaging; my family does not like spicy dishes. I would like to find a spicy paprika, I think it gives the dishes a special piquancy and at the same time lacks pungency.

Denis. How many conversations about this. I was sure that paprika had nothing to do with bell pepper, thanks for the clarification. I have never met a yellow paprika, you need to search in foreign catalogs. We used to buy red ground pepper and split it into hot and sweet. I wanted to surprise my wife and give her a seasoning of yellow hot pepper.