Capsicum Annum or what is more commonly known as chilly, is an integral part of our households. They spice up our cuisine, even as it adds a dash of color to delicious fares. They come in a wide array of vibrant hues, red, green, yellow, being the most ubiquitous one's.

This herbaceous plant grows up to a length of about twenty centimeters. A chilly plant is short lived and Jwalamukhi, Jwalasakhi, Jwala and Anugraha are premium breeds that are nurtured in the plantations of Kerala. A chilly plant attains maturity after about seventy five days of sowing. The sowing process varied for dry and green chilly. The annual output of green chilly ranges between eight and ten tonnes and that of dry chilly between eighteen hundred and twenty two hundred kilograms.

Kerala cuisine is incomplete without chilly. Both grounded and paste forms of chilly is widely used in fares of Kerala. Pickels of Kerala also have generous doses of the spicy herb.

Chilly is a huge revenue earner for the economy of Kerala. Its contribution to the country’s exchequer is also huge. India is famed as the largest producer of chilly in the world.

The whole new ecological tourism has developed around the chilly plantations of Kerala. hordes of tourists makes a beeline for the chilly orchards of verdant Kerala to get up , close and personal with the serene nature and wonder at nature’s marvels.

Packets of chilly powder are among the most treasured souvenirs of Kerala. So, do not forget to stack your bags with plenty of chilly pouches, that will keep the memory of Kerala alive for a long time.

Last Updated on 25 May 2011

Spices of Kerala