The Pequin (or Piquín) is a tiny but extremely potent Mexican wild-type chili known for its explosive heat and complex smoky-fruity flavor. Despite its small size, it packs a serious punch and is a favorite for hot sauces, salsas, and pickling.
Pequin peppers are very small (¼–½ inch long), round to oval “berry-like” pods that grow upright on the plant. They ripen from green to bright red. The skin is thin and the flesh is juicy. Heat is very high (30,000–60,000 SHU) — significantly hotter than a jalapeño but not superhot.
No photos of Pequín here yet. Got one? Share it with us.
One of the oldest cultivated wild-type chiles in Mexico and Central America. The name “Pequín” comes from “piquín,” meaning “small but spicy.” It grows wild in many parts of Mexico and is highly valued for its intense flavor in small quantities.
Promote a product tied to Pequín? This slot is open.
Reach out →Smoky, fruity, and nutty with bright floral notes and a clean, intense heat that lingers. Despite the tiny size, the flavor is surprisingly complex.
Huge shout-out to the breeders, growers, researchers, and seed savers linked below — their independent work is what lets us fact-check our own. Go visit them.
These references are used to verify what we publish — not as the source of the content itself. Seed catalogs, breeder pages, research papers, and cultivar databases let us cross-check every fact before it lands here. Open any card to read the original or dig deeper.
