Spices have an interesting and bloody history. While we often hear about the European conquests of the Americas and the rise of colonial empires spanning the globe, we don’t often consider that the root of Western conquest and dominance of the world can be traced back to a simple desire to make rotten meat taste better. The following 10 violent struggles reveal how far nations went for the coveted aroma of pepper, nutmeg, cinnamon, and more.

10 The Amboyna Massacre

The island of Ambon in the Moluccas was a rich hub of the spice trade shared between the English and Dutch. After several years of bloody conflict, the English and Dutch East India Companies agreed to peace in 1619, but Dutch ships continued to harass English merchant vessels, inflating the cost of pepper back in England.

In 1623, a Japanese mercenary employed by the English was spotted by the Dutch, probing fortifications with suspicious questions. Dutch merchant‑governor Herman van Speult concluded the English were planning a strike. Under torture, the Japanese revealed a supposed English plot, and several Englishmen were also captured and subjected to the same fate. The English presence on the island numbered fewer than 20 men, while the Dutch boasted 200 European troops, 300 native soldiers, and a contingent of Japanese mercenaries—making any English offensive wildly unrealistic.

Nevertheless, van Speult pressed on. He forced chief English factor Gabriel Towerson to confess to the alleged conspiracy under duress, then ordered the beheading of ten Englishmen and nine Japanese mercenaries. Those who freely admitted to the plot were allowed to leave. The condemned men smuggled out notes protesting their innocence, writing, “tortured with that extream (sic) Torment of Fire and water, that Flesh and Blood could not endure it, and we take it upon our Salvation, that they have put us to Death Guiltless.” The executions, steeped in dubious legality, sparked a surge of anti‑Dutch sentiment among an outraged English public, straining Anglo‑Dutch relations for generations.

9 Vasco da Gama’s Campaign Of Terror

In 1502, Vasco da Gama commanded the third Portuguese expedition to the Indian Ocean, leading a fleet of twenty ships to wrest control of the spice routes from Muslim powers. The Portuguese had previously erected a factory in Calicut, mistakenly believing they possessed a monopoly over the region’s spice trade. After seizing a vessel bound for Jeddah, the Portuguese were massacred by enraged Muslim traders. In retaliation, they destroyed twelve Muslim ships and bombarded Indian ports, yet they still craved revenge and monopoly.

Bestowed the title Captain‑Major by the Portuguese king, da Gama arrived near Cannanore (modern‑day Kannur, India) and immediately embarked on a campaign of terror along the Arabian coast, raiding coastal settlements. He soon spotted the Meri, a Gujarati or Egyptian vessel carrying Muslim pilgrims back from Mecca, including many of Calicut’s wealthiest citizens. The Portuguese fired warning shots at the defenseless Meri.

Da Gama negotiated with a wealthy passenger named Jauhar Al Faquih, who first offered money, then his own wife, his nephew as collateral, and finally four ships’ worth of spices. He even pledged to smooth relations between da Gama and the Zamorin of Calicut. Da Gama, however, demanded everything. After stripping the ship of treasure—and twenty children he vowed to turn into friars at the Church of Our Lady at Belém—he initially offered five ships’ worth of food in return, then ordered his men to set portions of the Meri ablaze. When the pilgrims managed to extinguish the flames, da Gama returned to reignite them. The pilgrims offered even more wealth and jewels, but da Gama remained relentless, seeking vengeance for the earlier Portuguese deaths in Calicut.

The Portuguese confined the pilgrims below decks, stoking fires with gunpowder charges for days while preventing the ship’s escape, ultimately sinking it and killing nearly four hundred souls. Da Gama then pressed closer to Calicut, where his men captured and dismembered thirty fishermen, leaving their bodies floating for families to discover.

8 Banda Islands Massacre

Nutmeg was a wildly popular spice in 15th‑century Europe, prized for flavoring and for masking the taste of poorly preserved meat. It was also believed to cure the plague, prompting women to wear nutmeg satchels around their necks for protection. In Asian markets nutmeg cost a penny, yet could fetch two pounds and ten shillings on London streets—a profit margin of roughly 68,000 %.

The sole source of nutmeg lay in the Banda Islands of the East Indies, where local sultans kept a neutral stance toward the spice‑crazy European merchants. The Dutch coveted control of these islands, then dominated by the Portuguese. In 1612, the Dutch East India Company swept in and seized the archipelago.

The Dutch imposed a draconian protection regime: banning nutmeg export, drenching trees in lime to render them infertile before shipment, and imposing the death penalty on anyone caught stealing, cultivating, or selling nutmeg. When the indigenous population rebelled against these oppressive rules, company head Jan Pieterszoon Coen ordered a full‑scale massacre.

The Dutch executed every Bandanese male over fifteen, employing quartering and beheading. Village leaders were decapitated and their heads displayed on poles outside settlements. Within fifteen years, the population plummeted from roughly fifteen thousand to just six hundred.

One island, Rum, briefly escaped Dutch domination thanks to British protection, but after several failed attempts at military seizure, the Dutch finally took control—trading the seemingly insignificant island of Manhattan for Rum. Nutmeg helped make the Dutch East India Company the world’s richest corporation until 1770, when French horticulturist Pierre Poivre smuggled nutmeg to Mauritius, breaking the monopoly. A 1778 tsunami destroyed half the Banda nutmeg trees, and the British captured the remaining trees in 1809.

7 Battle Of Diu

The Battle of Diu, fought in 1509, stands as one of history’s most decisive naval engagements, turning the Indian Ocean into a Portuguese lake. An international coalition of Ottomans, Egyptians, Gujaratis, Calicutis, Venetians, and Ragusan forces united to expel the Portuguese interlopers and preserve established trade routes through the Red Sea and Arabian Gulf.

The joint fleet, comprising ships of the Sultan of Gujarat, the Mamluk Burji Sultanate of Egypt, and the Zamorin of Calicut, received support from Ottoman, Venetian, and Ragusan vessels. In 1508, Mamluk admiral Amir Husain Al‑Kurdy surprised a Portuguese fleet, killing its commander, Lourenço de Almeida, son of Viceroy Francisco de Almeida. The following year, the viceroy sought revenge.

During the 1509 clash, the coalition fielded around one hundred ships, boasting superior firepower, tonnage, and manpower. The Portuguese, however, fought with just eighteen ships under Viceroy Francisco de Almeida, who held decisive advantages: superior artillery, well‑trained gunners, seasoned crews, and advanced armaments such as armor, arquebuses, and innovative clay grenades stuffed with gunpowder.

The coalition’s fleet consisted of hastily built Mediterranean war galleys, Indian dhows, and a couple of new Venetian ships. Their sailors were relatively inexperienced, mainly Greek and Turkish mercenaries armed with bows and arrows. In contrast, the Portuguese carracks and caravels were larger, possessed greater range, and featured powerful cannons that kept smaller vessels at bay. When the galleys and dhows attempted to close in, their low draft prevented boarding, while Portuguese guns rained down from above.

The coalition fleet was utterly destroyed, while the Portuguese lost no ships. The colors of the Egyptian Sultan and Admiral Amir Husain were captured and sent back to Portugal. No fleet would challenge Portuguese dominance in the Indian Ocean again until the English and Dutch arrived later. Some captured ships, including two Venetian‑built galleons, were kept as war booty; these galleons were later copied by the Portuguese, further cementing their stranglehold on Indian Ocean trade.

6 Conquest Of Malacca

Malacca was a prosperous trade hub ruled by a Muslim sultan purportedly descended from Javanese ancestors who seized the peninsula from the Kingdom of Siam centuries earlier. The city was cosmopolitan, sitting at the crucial junction between East Asia and the Indian subcontinent, and was divided into four districts representing the main trading groups: Chinese, Javanese, Gujaratis, and Bengalis.

The Malay peninsula first encountered the Portuguese when Diogo Lopes de Sequeira arrived in 1509, referring to the region as the Golden Chersonese. Prospects for profitable trade seemed promising after the Portuguese established a factory, but the Malaccan prime minister, urged by Muslim merchants, plotted to destroy the Portuguese fleet. A plan was hatched to invite Portuguese officers to a banquet, murder them, and seize their ships. A Javanese woman who had fallen in love with a Portuguese man swam out to warn the squadron, but the officers ignored her plea.

The Malays seized the factory and captured roughly twenty men, including chief factor Ruy de Araujo. Sequeira abandoned the prisoners and returned to Portugal, dispatching two ships to the Malabar coast to inform Viceroy Afonso de Albuquerque. De Araujo sent letters to Albuquerque complaining of forced conversion to Islam, prompting the viceroy to assemble a fleet of eighteen ships to rescue the captives and exact revenge on the Sultan of Malacca in 1511.

Negotiations dragged on for weeks. The Portuguese demanded the prisoners before signing a treaty; the Sultan demanded a treaty before releasing them. The Malays bolstered their defenses, but when Albuquerque set fire to boats and structures near the harbor, the Sultan relented and released the prisoners. Albuquerque, suspecting further treachery, was advised by de Araujo that control of the city hinged on a particular bridge linking its two halves. Plans were made to launch an attack on July 25, the feast day of Saint James the Greater, the viceroy’s patron saint.

The first assault on the bridge failed, though some cannons were seized and fires ripped through the city, including the royal palace. A second attack saw the Portuguese convert a tall junk into a siege ladder, scaling the bridge, defending it, while other troops used the diversion to land elsewhere. An attempt by the Sultan to deploy war elephants backfired; the Portuguese held firm, causing the elephants to panic, crushing their riders—including the hapless Sultan—and collapsing back through the Malaccan lines.

Eventually the Portuguese withdrew to their ships. A week later they discovered the Sultan had fled inland. The Portuguese seized a massive booty of gold, silver, jewels, silks, and spices, establishing a Portuguese administration over the city and constructing a fort from stone taken from local mosques and the tombs of former sultans.

5 Massacre At Bantam

Cornelius de Houtman, one of the first Dutchmen dispatched to break Spanish and Portuguese control of the spice trade, was by all accounts a decidedly unsavory character. He secured his post through personal connections, yet proved unpredictable, incompetent, and erratic. One of his ships sank, taking 145 sailors’ lives. He openly insulted local merchants, who, despite his demeanor, welcomed competition to the Iberian powers, and he brought ill‑advised cargo for the sweltering tropics, including heavy woolen cloth and blankets.

Discipline aboard his vessels had deteriorated, though a truce formed by the time the fleet reached Sumatra, where natives rowed out in dugout canoes to exchange rice, watermelons, and sugarcane for glass beads and trinkets. The fleet soon arrived at the wealthy port of Bantam, where de Houtman hoped to purchase spices at low prices. However, political turmoil had driven prices astronomically high.

De Houtman was incensed. As one crewman recorded: “It was decided to do all possible harm to the town. Bantam was bombarded with cannon fire, and all prisoners were put to death. The fighting paused briefly as the Dutch commanders debated the best way to dispose of the prisoners: stabbing them, shooting them with arrows, or bombarding them with cannons. Soon the attack resumed, with the local king’s palace hit by cannon fire and one group of prisoners tortured seemingly for the hell of it.”

Another crew member wrote, “After we had revenged ourselves to the approval of our ship’s officers, we prepared to set sail.” They then sailed to the port of Sidayu, where they were attacked by natives who boarded one of the ships, hacking twelve Dutchmen to death. The Dutch retaliated, pursuing the Javanese in rowboats and executing them, before sailing onward toward yet another massacre.

4 Madura’s Welcome Party

De Houtman, still fuming from the Bantam episode, arrived at the island of Madura off the Javanese coast. The locals, blissfully unaware of the prior carnage, prepared a warm welcome for the Dutch visitors. The local prince organized a grand parade with a flotilla of prau boats, slowly advancing toward the Dutch, centered by a magnificent barge for the prince.

As the prau boats neared, the Dutch grew paranoid, fearing an ambush or treachery. Opting for caution, de Houtman opened fire on the flotilla, killing everyone aboard the prince’s barge. Cannon fire sank most of the boats; the Dutch then lowered rowboats and concluded the massacre with hand‑to‑hand combat.

Only twenty natives aboard the flotilla survived de Houtman’s paranoid onslaught. The prince’s body was stripped of its jewels and dumped into the water. One sailor described the scene: “I watched the attack not without pleasure, but also with shame.” Despite their victory over the welcoming party, the Dutch fleet was in dire straits: tropical diseases ravaged the crew, factions formed behind competing commanders, and the ships were fouled with barnacles, riddled with shipworms, and baked dry by the scorching sun. Moreover, they had yet to secure any spices.

A dispute erupted with another commander, Jan Meulenaer, over whether to head to the Banda Islands or return home. The argument ended with Meulenaer’s suspicious death, apparently poisoned. De Houtman was arrested, though later released. Ultimately, the fleet decided to abandon the expedition, returning home empty‑handed, with two‑thirds of the crew dead from disease or misadventure, scant spices, and a trail of carnage. Yet, due to soaring spice prices back in Dutch markets during their absence, the meager loot they managed to acquire proved profitable.

3 The Dutch‑Portuguese War

During their struggle for independence from Spain, the Dutch chose to strike where it hurt most: disrupting Spanish and Portuguese trade routes across Africa, the Americas, and Asia. Both Portugal and Spain were under Habsburg rule, making them hated enemies of the Dutch. The Portuguese trading stations scattered throughout the Indian Ocean and Asia were especially lucrative, and the Dutch aimed to undermine them to fund their war effort.

Dutch merchants, seasoned in the Spanish‑Portuguese trade network, were expelled from Antwerp after its capture by the Spanish, taking valuable expertise with them. Between 1597 and 1602, sixty‑five Dutch ships set sail for Asia—about thirteen per year. In 1602, regional trade companies merged to form the Dutch East India Company (Vereenigde Oost‑Indische Compagnie, VOC). Though later famed for its trading empire, the VOC began as a war instrument, receiving government subsidies while accumulating massive debts.

From 1597 to 1609, the Dutch captured thirty Spanish and Portuguese ships in Asia, most of which were likely merchant vessels—averaging two to three captures per year. Portuguese voyages to Asia usually numbered five to ten annually. The Dutch attacks on Iberian shipping in Asia, alongside their efforts in Africa, Brazil, and the Caribbean, took an economic toll on their rivals.

Historians debate whether the Dutch assaults dealt decisive damage or merely slowed Portuguese growth. Some argue the period saw a boom for Portuguese shipping, citing successes against the Dutch in Brazil. Nonetheless, the conflict laid the groundwork for the Dutch maritime empire, which eventually eclipsed Iberian dominance.

2 Portuguese Conquest Of Ceylon

In the early 16th century, the Portuguese dominated the Indian spice trade and set their sights on the island of Ceylon—today’s Sri Lanka—renowned for its cinnamon. The island was divided among four kingdoms: Kotte, Sitawaka, Kandy, and Jaffna. The Portuguese employed tactics similar to those used on the Malabar coast, seeking a local ally to sign a commercial treaty and then using that ally as a foothold against rivals.

In 1518, Viceroy Lopo Soares de Albergaria landed near Colombo with a sizable fleet and erected a fort. After quelling initial resistance, he forced the king of Kotte to become a vassal of Portugal, unlike the “friend” status granted to rulers on the Malabar coast. An agreement was engraved on sheets of beaten gold, stipulating that the king would deliver 300 bahars of cinnamon, twenty ruby rings, and six elephants to the Portuguese.

The fort was reinforced the following year to withstand sporadic attacks from Muslim merchants upset by the Portuguese encroachment on the cinnamon trade. During one siege, Portuguese forces allegedly seized a nearby town, tied women and children to doorways, and set the city ablaze.

Over time, the Portuguese presence expanded despite resistance from local powers. By 1597, King Philip of Spain and Portugal also ruled Ceylon, though the kingdom of Kandy remained outside Portuguese control. Kandy forged friendly ties with the Dutch, and although the Kandians were later neutralized as a threat by the Portuguese, the Dutch eventually pushed the Portuguese off the island throughout the 17th century, seizing control of the lucrative cinnamon trade.

1 War Of Chioggia

Long before Atlantic powers circumnavigated Africa and entered Asian trade, the spice market was dominated by Mediterranean powers such as Venice and Genoa. These two maritime republics were fierce economic rivals, with Venice fearing Genoese attacks on its trading stations throughout the Levant and the Black Sea.

In 1378, Venice dispatched two fleets to harass Genoa: a smaller force under Vettor Pisani to the western Mediterranean and a larger fleet under Carlo Zeno targeting Genoese stations in the Levant. While Pisani’s fleet decimated a Genoese squadron off Italy, Zeno disrupted Genoese outposts in the east. The Genoese, initially surprised, soon rallied and capitalized on Zeno’s best ships being elsewhere.

In 1379, a Genoese fleet was sent to attack Venice directly, while the mainland faced harassment from Hungarians allied with Genoa. Pisani attempted to withdraw but was compelled by commissioner Michael Steno—who held senatorial authority over the admiral—to engage. The Venetian fleet suffered heavy losses. After reinforcements arrived, the Genoese launched an assault on the city, supported by Hungarian and Carrarese forces.

The Venetians closed the outer lagoon passages and erected formidable defenses, yet a gap near the island of Brondolo and the town of Chioggia remained. Chioggia lay separated from Venice by a lagoon of shallow waters and intricate channels, challenging for heavy Genoese vessels to navigate.

Pisani, previously imprisoned, was released and appointed commander‑in‑chief. He devised a clever tactic: during night raids, he sank vessels laden with supplies, blocking the route from Chioggia to Venice and the passage to open sea, effectively trapping the Genoese fleet.

For a year, Venice and Genoa engaged in a grueling siege of chicken. On New Year’s Day 1380, Zeno returned from his adventures, and the Venetians launched a vigorous attack. By mid‑year, the besiegers had no choice but to withdraw.

The war ended as both a victory and a defeat for Venice. Although forced to cede the island of Tenedos and recognize Genoa’s sovereignty over Cyprus, the conflict unified the city, preventing its collapse and enabling Venice to expand its trade routes across the Mediterranean and into the Indian Ocean—where it would dominate the spice trade until Western navigators rounded Africa.

A list of ten peppers can only scratch the surface. There are over 50,000 different varieties available, and pepper enthusiasts are breeding new ones all the time. Peppers are spicy because they contain capsaicin; the higher the concentration of capsaicin, the hotter your pepper is.

In 1912, an American pharmacist, Wilbur Scoville, came up with a way to measure the heat of a pepper. The Scoville scale is still used today; a low Scoville number means that your pepper is mild, and a high number means that your pepper packs a punch.

For many pepper lovers, a meal isn’t a meal without the extra zest that a spicy pepper adds. Peppers can make a bland meal tastier and are good for you as they are an excellent source of fiber, folic acid, potassium, and vitamins A and C.

In the United States, there are a great number of pepper fans and an equally great number of websites that cater to their tastes. You can easily find articles, recipes, and tips on how to grow peppers with a click of your mouse.

You will see that each pepper here has a Scoville number. Some peppers have a wide range on this scale; eating some of them is a little like Russian roulette. Be careful!

10 Carolina Reaper

The Carolina Reaper was developed by “Smokin” Ed Currie in South Carolina. In 2017, Guinness World Records recognized this monster as the hottest chili pepper in the world. People who have been brave enough to try it say it first seems mild and then whack! Your mouth is on fire. A jalapeño pepper can reach 8,000 Scoville Heat Units (SHU)—the Carolina Reaper reaches more than 1,500,000 SHU, with one sample measuring 2,200,000. A grower in Britain has claimed that he has bred a hotter pepper; Smokin Ed has countered that he has, too—we will wait to see who reigns the hottest!

After eating a Reaper, you might feel that the world is ending, but there’s no evidence that they are dangerous to your health. Just don’t rub your eyes after handling one.

A little goes a long way with this pepper, so it’s probably best to just use them to liven up salsas. One suggestion is to put a little in a bottle of vodka and let it sit for a few weeks. That will certainly liven up a dinner party.

9 Paprika

Paprika is the Hungarian word for pepper and is a staple ingredient in many Hungarian dishes. The Hungarians recognize eight classes of paprika, ranging from very mild to hot. But paprika is not native to Hungary; it originated in Mexico.

Generally, paprika is a mild pepper that measures 250 to 1,000 SHU. You’re probably familiar with it as a dry spice powder. Cooks will often use the mildest paprika power simply as a coloring. This is a shame as paprika has a unique taste that can add a lot to various dishes.

Try paprika in soups or stews. It goes well with beef, chicken, and pork and can add a little zest to any vegetarian dish. You could also use paprika to rub into meat before barbecuing.

8 Jalapeño Peppers

Jalapeños can measure anywhere between 2,500 and 8,000 SHU. In Spanish, the name means “from Xalapa”—the capital city of Veracruz in Mexico. It’s now grown in various areas around the world and does well in the western and southwestern states of the U.S., among other places in the world.

You can grow jalapeños at home from seed, but it’s best not to use seeds from green peppers as these are not mature. Give your jalapeños plenty of soil, and make sure your pot is well-drained. You should soon have a crop of smooth, firm jalapeños 2-4 inches long.

Try jalapeños in macaroni cheese—they really make a difference in this family favorite.

7 Cayenne Peppers

The aptly-named English botanist mentioned Cayenne pepper in 1652, so we’ve known about them for a long time. You can find powdered Cayenne in most stores, but the name is sometimes used as a generic term for hot pepper, and some brands may contain a mixture of true Cayenne and other peppers. Cayenne rates 30,000 to 50,000 SHU, so it is quite hot.

There are various varieties of Cayenne, and they are easy to grow at home. You can use them fresh or dried. Cayenne is a common ingredient in various well-known commercial sauces—the excellent Original Louisiana Hot Sauce is one, but you can make your own sauce, too.

This simple recipe comes from Mike Hultquist at chilipeppermadness.com:

Ingredients:

• As many Cayenne Peppers as you want
• Garlic
• Vinegar (Mike uses white-wine vinegar, but you could use any type)
• Salt

Preparation:

1. Collect your peppers from the garden, and clean and dry them.
2. Chop finely with garlic.
3. Put in a pot with vinegar and salt.
4. Bring to a boil, then simmer for 20 minutes.
5. Leave it to cool.
6. Put the mixture in a blender until smooth. You can sieve it afterward if you want it extra smooth.

6 Scotch Bonnet

This very hot pepper is not for the faint-hearted. With a Scoville rating between 100,000 and 350,000, even the mildest Scotch Bonnet packs a punch. The name comes from the pepper’s supposed resemblance to a traditional Scottish tam o’ shanter cap.

The Scotch Bonnet pepper is widely used in Caribbean cuisine and is responsible for the zing in jerk dishes with pork or chicken. But you can use Scotch Bonnets in any dish. Add a little to your favorite marinade before roasting or barbecuing—they will make a big difference.

You can grow these peppers indoors from seed. Plant them before the end of winter.

5 Shishito Peppers

Shishito peppers come from East Asia and have a mild rating of 50 to 200 SHU. One or two are a lot spicier than the others in a bunch of twenty Shishito peppers. In this way, they are very similar to Padron peppers, a Spanish cuisine favorite. Shishitos are about as long as your finger.

The best way to prepare Shishito peppers is to fry them in oil. Pop a hole in the peppers first to allow the expanding air inside to escape as they cook. You can serve them as a side dish sprinkled with salt. Your guests hold them by the stems as they eat them.

If you want to grow your own Shishitos, they like a lot of sunlight. Indoors, place them in a south-facing window.

4 Hatch Green Chile

The small town of Hatch in New Mexico proudly calls itself the “Chile Capital of the World.” And, if you are a fan of chile, Hatch should be on your bucket list of places to visit. Every year, on Labor Day weekend, the 2,000 inhabitants of Hatch celebrate the Hatch Chile Festival, but you can visit anytime to discover a town that lives for and loves chiles. Hatch, with its dedicated shops and restaurants, is on Interstate 25, about 40 miles north of Las Cruces.

The Hatch Green is just one of the many chiles grown in the area. With a Scoville rating of 1,000 to 8,000, this moderately hot pepper goes well in many dishes.

Check out this link for a host of recipes that use this essential ingredient in New Mexican cuisine.

3 Poblano Peppers

The mild and smoky Poblano adds an extra flavor to a wide range of dishes. Generally, the Scoville rating ranges from 1,000 to 2,000, but you can find that the occasional Poblano is a little hotter than the rest. Larger Poblanos can reach six inches long and three inches wide.

A great recipe idea is to stuff larger poblanos with your favorite filling and roast them. These make a tasty side dish with barbecued meat.

Like most peppers, you can grow Poblanos in a garden bed or pot. You should plant seeds after the last frost.

2 Serrano Peppers

Serrano peppers are native to the mountainous regions of Hidalgo and Puebla in Mexico. Serranos are hotter than jalapeños with a SHU of between 10,000 and 25,000. They are generally eaten raw and can be sliced into any dish.

If you like to make your own cheeseburgers, try dicing some Serranos into the cheese topping to add an extra tang to a tasty burger.

Serranos like the sun. If you want to grow them in a pot, keep them in a sunny location. If you want to raise plants outside, sow the seeds inside and let them germinate for eight weeks before transplanting them.

1 Habanero Peppers

Habaneros are hot peppers that can measure between 150,000 and 575,000 SHU. The pepper gets its name from the Cuban capital, Havana, although it isn’t a feature of typical Cuban cuisine. It originally comes from the Amazon basin, but the biggest producer nowadays is the Yucatan peninsula in Mexico.

Havana was the port where traders first came across the pepper. People considered Habaneros the hottest peppers until “Smokin” Ed Currie came up with the Carolina Reaper.

Many pepper fans name the Habanero as their favorite pepper. It has a delicate taste that you can appreciate despite its heat.

You can use them in any dish that calls for a dash of chile, but you won’t need to use a lot of Habanero. Try adding a little to a Margarita cocktail to get a party off to a good start.

Habenero peppers grow well indoors and will produce a lot of fruit—you might find yourself giving away gallons of your hot sauce to friends and neighbors.