[Sca-cooks] Discussion of usage of capsicum peppers in Asiainourperiod.

[Terry Decker]

>> The fact that chiles were eaten in Asia before the end of period
>> makes them, in some people's minds, perfectly fine as representative
>> of Asian food in period.
>
> There is a just post period description of a Thai curry which contained
> white pepper as the heat source.

White pepper (if it is the same white pepper referred to in ancient texts) 
is not a capsicum pepper.  It is a form of Piper nigrum.

>
> The civilization was a keen up taker of chilies and had early contact
> with the Portuguese.

>
> Drake - the proud father of dozens of newly hatched Siamese Fighting
> Fish.

Then the question would be when did the Portuguese take up the use of 
capsicum peppers.

We know that they were known in Europe in 1541 (Fuchs) and that they were 
probably initial brought to the Old World in 1492.  We don't know how 
widespread their use was, but since the primary users apparently were Turks, 
capsicums may not have been widely known.  So the first probable route was 
from the New World to Spain to Portugal to China.  The first Portuguese ship 
to China arrived in 1513 at Canton.  A factory was presumably built around 
1516.

The second probable route is directly from Mexico into the Phillipines via 
the Manila galleons (beginning in 1567) and then into the China trade.

In many ways the second route for New World foodstuffs into China is more 
likely since it is coming directly from the source where we know they were 
used by the Europeans who were there.

In terms of spreading the use across China, the Phillipine connection is 
more satisfactory based on multiple points of contact, where the Portuguese 
in Canton represent a single point of contact.  In any event, capsicum 
peppers probably weren't a force in Southeast Asian cusuine until late in 
the 16th Century.

Bear