SC - Paprika-History of

[Decker, Terry D.]

>In a message dated 97-11-06 07:38:09 EST, Cariadoc writes:
>
><< The
> Whole Chile Pepper Book, Little, Brown Co., Boston 1990. ) that refers to
> Capsicums in Hungary in 1569 in a noblewoman's garden, called "turkish red
> pepper." I don't know if they were the particular variety used for paprika,
>>>
>
>The variety of pepper used to make paprika is a considered to be a sweet
>pepper. 
>
>According to  "Food in History", hot peppers became extremely populer  during
>the 1500's. 
>
>They were also used by the Germans and English in beer making to give it
>body.
>
> However "sweet peppers" (of which paprika is one) were not introduced until
>the 1700's and even then it was grown and used extensively by the peasants of
>Provence as a "breakfast" food.
>
>From there it spread to other parts of Europe, speciffically Poland from whom
>the Hungarians adopted it as their national spice as well as and the Polish
>name for paprika (pierprzyca) making it the definitive spice in Goulash. 
>
>Based on this information, IMO, the hot peppers (capsicums) became widely
>used (e.g. "extremely popular" throughout the countries who spoke Romance
>languages shortly after Columbus introduced them to Spain. The introduction
>of sweet peppers in the 1700's would preclude it's use during any of the time
>period covered by the SCA and the use of paprika as a spice in Hungarian
>dishes most probably began at the earliest circa 1725 C.E. but more likely
>between 1740 C.E. and 1750 C.E.before  gaining widespread popularity and
>national recognition in the last half of the century.
>
>al-Sayyid Ras

To quote James Trager's Foodbook:

<quote>
Chili and cayenne come from the Capsicum frutescens and the Capsicum
annuum (Guinea pepper), paprika from the Capsicum tetragonum.  The mild
puffy green, or bell, pepper is the immature Capsicum grossum which when
it is ripe, is the hot red or yellow pepper.  Capsicums vary in taste
somewhat according to where the grow, hence the distinctive flavor of
Hungarian paprika, the dried powder derived from the sweet red
tetragonum pepper grown in Hungary.
<end quote>

According to a source I can not remember or locate at the moment,
Capsicum peppers were introduced into Italy by the Spanish.  The
Venetians used them as trade goods in the Near East and they were traded
north into Central Europe from Turkey, hence their presumed Turkish
origin.

Bear  
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