Pretty In Purple Pepper Guide: Heat, Flavor, Uses

What are Pretty in Purple peppers?

With its eye-catching purplish hue, the Pretty in Purple pepper is a top choice for those seeking a colorful ornamental chili. Its pods shine with a purple hue – like there’s an inner purple brightness to the fruits. While the plant is compact, it blooms a multitude of chilies. This allows the Pretty in Purple to work as both accent color or as a focal point for edible landscaping projects, in both large gardens or small containers. These chilies also perform reasonably well in the kitchen, with a very eatable jalapeño-like heat (4,000 to 8,000 Scoville heat units.)

Pretty in Purple pepper fast facts

How hot are Pretty in Purple peppers?

Ornamental peppers are known for surprising spiciness, sometimes eclipsing a cayenne pepper (30,000 to 50,000 Scoville heat units or SHU). But the Pretty in Purple doesn’t reach those heights. In fact, its Scoville heat rating of 4,000 to 8,000 SHU places it in the same range as many jalapeño peppers (2,500 to 8,000 SHU). This is a sweet spot of heat in the kitchen.

Let’s compare that some other colorful ornamental peppers. The NuMex Centennial ranges from 1,000 to 5,000 SHU (roughly half the heat of the Pretty in Purple) while the Bolivian Rainbow Pepper sits at 10,000 to 30,000 SHU and the NuMex Twilight hits even more (30,000 to 50,000 SHU.) Overall, few ornamentals sit in this very eatable Scoville range.

–> Discover More: Our Colorful Peppers Guide

What does the Pretty in Purple pepper look like and taste like?

If purple is your thing, there are few chilies that match the beauty of the Pretty in Purple pepper. The pods are typically half inch by half inch and, as they mature, they take on stunning shades of purple to yellow, orange, and finally a vibrant red.

These different shades will appear on one plant as the chilies grow and age at different times. The pods stand upright among the leaves and they are a heavy spread – creating a real swath of purple, reds, and yellows among grin and variegated purple-green foliage. Even their stems takes on slight purplish shades and the plant showcases lovely violet-colored flowers in late spring/early summer. This is a real pretty purple pepper for those looking for a little royal hue in the garden or home landscaping.

And there’s a fine peppery taste to these chilies. They aren’t nuanced like most culinary peppers, but they certainly aren’t as flavorless as most other ornamental peppers. Plus (and it’s a big plus) their heat is in a very eatable range for most.

How can you use them?

As an ornamental hot pepper, the Pretty in Purple is suited for both a starring role and accent coloring in landscaping projects. A lot of fruits grow on the compact plant, so the purple tone really draws the eye. The plants compactness, too, makes this chili a very good option for container gardening. This is a great option for edible landscaping for small spaces like balconies and urban gardens.

The Pretty in Purple can be a jalapeño substitute for recipes where the jalapeño’s bright grassy flavor aren’t critical. Given one plant grows a heck of a lot of these tiny chilies, you’ll have plenty of opportunity for the subbing. Try them in salsas (especially for the fun extra of the purple hue) and salads. They also make good pickling peppers.

Where can you buy Pretty in Purple peppers?

Look to your local gardening center for Pretty in Purple seeds, but you may be more likely to find them online where they’re easily sourced.

With their beautiful purple hue and eatable heat. you’ll enjoy the Pretty in Purple pepper in both in your landscaping and kitchen. This is an eye-catcher in the garden and on the plate.

Must-read related posts

• The Hot Pepper List: We profile 150+ chilies. Search them by name, spiciness, use cases, flavor, and more.
• The Purple Peppers Guide: Discover more royally-colored chilies, like the purple cayenne pepper.
• Can You Eat Ornamental Peppers? Are they all edible? Are there things to consider?