Maraba Pepper
Maraba Pepper is a small, vibrant Capsicum chinense cultivar from Brazil's Amazon region, featuring golden-yellow pods with striking purple shading and potent heat. It delivers deep herbal aromas and fruity notes, making it ideal for fresh culinary applications and ornamental growing.
The Maraba Pepper, likely named after the municipality of Marabá in Brazil's Pará state within the Amazon region, produces small pods measuring about 0.75 to 1 inch long and 0.375 to 0.5 inch wide. These jelly bean-shaped peppers ripen from green to a bright yellow, often showing attractive purple sunburn or shading on the surface. The flesh is medium-thick with smooth skin, and the plants grow compactly to 18-24 inches tall, yielding heavy crops of pendant pods in a late season of 80-90 days. Flavor is characterized by deep herbal aromas, juicy texture, fruity-lemony notes, and full-flavored heat reminiscent of other Brazilian wild peppers. It is commonly used raw to add color, potent heat, and aromatic depth to dishes. This chinense variety thrives in warm, tropical conditions and is valued both for its culinary versatility and ornamental appeal due to its vibrant coloration.
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Backstory
Maraba Pepper is named after the municipality of Marabá in the Amazonian state of Pará, Brazil. It is a traditional cultivar of Capsicum chinense originating from the region, appreciated for its striking appearance, intense herbal-fruity flavor, and ornamental value in gardens.
Flavor
Deep herbal aromas with fruity-lemony notes, juicy texture, and full-flavored heat similar to other Brazilian chinense peppers.
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- saveur.comSaveur magazine Chile Pepper Guide entry for Maraba
- chileplants.comChilePlants.com detailed Maraba pepper plant specifications
- scovillescale.orgScoville Scale database entry listing Maraba at 30,000-50,000 SHU
- rahiseedbank.com.auRahi Seed Bank description of Maraba Yellow Chilli characteristics and uses