Over the years, I've tried a few C. baccatum but keep falling back on the old C. chinense favorites, as well as a few C. annuums for variety. I've never quite caught the spark for C. baccatums despite trying a few over the years. There is a little variation in feedback on Sugar Rush Peach, although it mostly seems to be very positive. What's the consensus from the experienced growers on this type? Is it all that it's hyped up to be in the seed catalogs?
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baccatum What's the consensus on Sugar Rush Peach?
- Thread starter NJChilehead
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I like the Sugar Rush Peach. Good flavor and the plants are productive. However, the heat levels seemed to vary quite a bit on the ones I have grown.
Does it live up to the hype? Well, I suppose that would be a matter of opinion. I think it is a good pepper and well worth growing if you have never had the chance to try it before. But there are other baccatum varieties that I personally prefer over SRP, such as Brazilian Starfish, Aji Fantasy Orange, and Aji Rainforest, to name a few.
Does it live up to the hype? Well, I suppose that would be a matter of opinion. I think it is a good pepper and well worth growing if you have never had the chance to try it before. But there are other baccatum varieties that I personally prefer over SRP, such as Brazilian Starfish, Aji Fantasy Orange, and Aji Rainforest, to name a few.
HellfireFarm
Business Member
I must have gotten some bad seeds. Mine were nothing special flavor-wise.
Tinkerbelle
Extreme Member
It didn't impress me compared to some of the other peppers I grew
Thanks for your help folks! I suppose (like so many other pepper types) that it's worth just growing and seeing how it does in my yard! @BlackFatalii I've never tried those Aji types-what makes them stand out above the sugar rush peach? I know that most baccatums have that soapy taste, do these types have a different flavor?
I prefer the flavor of the three I named over the flavor of the SRP. Just my personal preference. To me, the SRP had a pleasant sweetness with a hint of floral in some of the pods (it reminded me a little of rosewater), but the floral aspect disappeared pretty quickly. Heat levels on the pods I grew seemed to vary wildly from almost none at all to pretty darn spicy, but that was a few years ago. Perhaps the heat levels have stabilized more since then, I don't know.
Brazilian Starfish has an interesting pod shape and is a big productive plant. The pods are very sweet and sometimes I also detect a berry-like flavor. Yes, occasionally there is also an initial floral/soapy undertone. But the floral (when it is present at all) usually dissipates quickly, leaving just the good flavors. Heat on these is around Serrano level. It is one of my favorite peppers for eating fresh off the plant.
Aji Fantasy Orange is one I grew for the first time last season. It had a nice citrusy undertone that I liked. It was less sweet than the Starfish, and had only a very slight soapy/floral that went away quickly. These were even less floral than the Starfish peppers. They seemed to be around Cayenne level heat to me.
The Aji Rainforest peppers that I grew had a sweet flavor similar to Brazilian Starfish but with more rounded to pear-shaped pods growing on relatively more compact plants (Starfish plants can get pretty tall and big). There was also a floral undertone with these, but it was fairly subdued and was more flowery than perfumy in character, if that makes sense. These also seemed a bit warmer than the Starfish to me. The ones I grew seemed to be a little below Cayenne heat level.
Thank you for the info! Looks like next year I need to try a few more baccatums!
I have not grown the Sugar rush peach yet, however it's interesting you mention the three peppers you did, as I am growing all three this season.
They sounded really good for flavor & looks.
@Bou @BlackFatalii @bob65 @growyourown Follow up question for those who have grown it and liked it: I recently read that it does not taste very good raw, that it must be cooked. Is this also accurate in your experience? Thanks again!
i found it nice fresh. not much flavour, just a general bell-type mild taste. good low-level heat to it. i felt like it would be good in a salad or on a burger, or anywhere else you might use a jalapeno or banana/wax.
what you read could also be referring to the fact that many baccatums, to some people, will have a soapy taste to them. obviously that would make it yucky when fresh if that is the case for you.
what you read could also be referring to the fact that many baccatums, to some people, will have a soapy taste to them. obviously that would make it yucky when fresh if that is the case for you.
Thank you! This is good feedback. Your idea of using them as a banana/jalapeno substitute gives me some ideas of pickling them and putting them on pizza/sandwiches, or maybe doing the jalapeno popper thing with bacon and cheese. Thanks again, I'm looking forward to trying these.
yeah so for me last year, in addition to simply trying to grow baccatum for the first time, the aim was to try some interesting kinds that were lower on the heat scale, but still hotter than what my wife was used to tolerating.
she said the small sliver of SRP i gave her to taste DID NOT SEEM hotter than jalapeno. it might have just been the small size of the piece or from a larger less spicy pod, because i think they claim to be somewhere 15-25k SHU.
then when i made a batch of taco meat for her and used 50/50 jalapeno/SRP (maybe 4 pods each) versus jalapeno only, she said it was noticeably spicier than usual, towards the top of her comfort zone but not too much to handle.
she said the small sliver of SRP i gave her to taste DID NOT SEEM hotter than jalapeno. it might have just been the small size of the piece or from a larger less spicy pod, because i think they claim to be somewhere 15-25k SHU.
then when i made a batch of taco meat for her and used 50/50 jalapeno/SRP (maybe 4 pods each) versus jalapeno only, she said it was noticeably spicier than usual, towards the top of her comfort zone but not too much to handle.
@growyourown this is good info, thanks! I'm back in the rabbit hole again, researching new varieties. I grew the same chiles for so many years (almost all C. chinense) that I neglected to branch out into other types and even other species. Can you believe this is my first year growing C. pubescens? Aye yi yi. Anyway, now I'm looking forward to the sugar rush peach even more.
that was me last year. i tried to grow all five major types, but i did not succeed in growing any frutescens to fruit. this will change this year, a lotah bih already has one forming on it.
Bou
Extreme Member
I disagree. Mine were very good, sweet with an almost tropical flavor. I ate a lot of them raw (I called them lip stingers!), then made sauce and powder with the leftover fruit. IMO the best way to enjoy their full flavor is raw.
Good luck with them! I think the only C. frutescens that I've grown was Tabasco. That's another species that I haven't explored.
That's great to know. I'm really looking forward to trying them. What was your seed source? Mine came from Baker Creek.
Bou
Extreme Member
I think I got some from a friend of mine
For what it's worth, I now grow the Amarillo version from THSC (not sure if they are related as the shape of the plant and peppers are quite different from the SRP) which I find much more flavorful while being a little less spicy.
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