Bird's eye chili (Thai: พริกขี้หนู, RTGS: phrik khi nu, IPA: [pʰrík kʰîː nǔː], literal: mouse dropping chili; Tagalog: siling labuyo) is a chili pepper of the species Capsicum frutescens L. in the family Solanaceae, commonly found in Cambodia, Laos, Vietnam, Thailand, Malaysia, Indonesia, the Philippines and Singapore.
It can also be found in India, mainly Kerala, where it is used in traditional dishes of the Kerala cuisine (pronounced in Malayalam as kanthari mulagu). This species (known as kochchi in sinhalese) is also found in rural areas of Sri Lanka, where it is used as a substitute for green chillies. It is also a main ingredient in kochchi sambal, a salad made using freshly scraped coconut ground with thai chillies and seasoned with salt and lime juice.
The term Bird's eye chili is also used for the North American Chiltepin pepper, both due to their small round shape and because they're widely spread by birds.
The bird's eye chili plant is a perennial with small, tapering fruits, often 2-3, at a node. The fruits of most varieties are red, some are yellow, purple or black. The fruits are very pungent. The flowers are greenish white or yellowish white.
Taxonomically, it has long been thought that the bird's eye chili belongs to Capsicum frutescens L.,but there are now some who list the bird's eye chili as belonging to Capsicum chinense.
The bird's eye chili is small but packs quite a lot of heat. At one time it was even listed as the hottest chili in the Guinness Book of World Records but other hotter varieties of chili have since been identified. It measures around 50,000-100,000 Scoville units which is at the lower end of the range for the hotter Habanero chili.
Bird's eye Peppers
- Plant height - up to 2meters
- Stem color - Green
- Leaf color - Green
- Leaf size - 3–8 cm by 2–4 cm
- Fruit color at maturity - green, orange and red
- Fruit shape - conical
- Fruit length - 2–3 cm
- Fruit width at shoulder - .5 cm
- Fruit weight - 2-3 grams
- Fruit surface - smooth
- Seed color - Light tan
- Seeds per chili - 10-20
The fruit of the bird's eye chili is popularly used as a spice and as a chili condiment in Filipino, Indonesian, Laotian, Malaysian, Thai, and Vietnamese cuisine. It is what gives local dishes, such as the Filipino bicol express, their fiery zing.
The chilies can also be used to flavor vinegar.
The leaves are also edible and can be eaten as a vegetable, for instance in the Filipino dish tinola.
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