Chilli

• Origin : Mexico

• Found by : Christopher Columbus

• Family : Solanaceae

• Genus : Capsicum
 Species & cultivars

Capsicum annuum - Bell peppers, Paprika

Capsicum frutescens - Tabasco, Thai peppers
Capsicum chinense - Naga, Habanero (Hottest pepper)
Capsicum baccatum South American Aji peppers
Capsicum pubescens - South American Rocoto peppers
 Quality Attributes
Pungency – Capsaicin
Colour - Carotenoid pigments (Capsanthin,
capsorubin)
Three groups :
–Chillies – Highly pungent
Whole & ground
–Capsicum – Mildly pungent form
–Paprika – Sweet or mild pungent -
Always ground
 Uses
• Domestic culinary purposes
• Preparation of curry powder
• seasoning of processed foods
• Medicinal useS
• Produce pharmaceuticals
 Chilli cultivation
• Countries - India, Pakistan, China,
America, Africa, Sri Lanka
• Dry zone - North Central Province
• Intermediate zone
• Major chili growing districts :
Anuradhapura Mahaweli - H
Vavuniya Kurunegala
Putthalama Moneragala
Hambantota Ampara
• Per capita consumption (dry chilli) 2.32 kg/annum

• National annual requirement (dry chilli) 42,634 Mt.

• The annual production (dry chilli) 18,616 Mt.

• Imported amount (dry chilli) 31,242 Mt.

• The average extent under chilli 14,083 ha

• Contribution to GDP 750 Million Rs.

• Cost of production (dry chilli) Rs.65.00/kg

• Retail price (dry chilli) Rs.300.00/kg

• Retail price (green chilli) Rs.200.00/kg

Production & Imports of chilli - 1995-2001
Year Extent (ha) Production Imports (Mt)x1000
(Mt)x1000
1995 30597 21.3 10.82
1996 26098 18.4 9.79
1997 24146 17.9 13.27
1998 21632 15.6 19.21
1999 21751 15.0 20.36
2000 19832 13.9 23.36
2001 17410 12.4 25.81
 Chilli varieties in Sri Lanka
MI-1 MI-2 KA - 2

Arunalu (BL - 39) MI-Hot

Harvesting Green Chilli

Red Chilli Packaging Storage

Chilli Oil
Cleaning

Drying Grinding Crushed Chilli

Grading
Chilli Powder Oleoresins
Packaging

Storage
 Harvesting
• Green chilli –
Well matured green pods
10-12 picks / season

• Dry chilli –

- Fully red or > 80%

red stage pods
- 7-9 picks / season
 Cleaning
• Remove dust & dirt
– Winnowing baskets
-Machines

• Washed with portable water

 Drying
• Sun drying
– Traditional sun drying
– Improved CFTRI method of sun
drying
– Using solar dryers

• Artificial drying
 Traditional sun drying
• Most popular method
• Heap indoors 2-3 days - Develop uniform
red colour (22-25°C)
• Flatten by trampling or rolling
• Spread out under sun on hard dry ground
• Frequent stirring
• Heap & cover by gunny bags during night
• Again spread during day time
Cont……
• Again spread during day time

Fresh pods moisture content 65-80%

After 5 – 15 days sun drying 10%

100 kg (Fresh pods) yields 25-35kg dried chills

 Improved CFTRI method of sun drying
• Dryer with 4 layers of wire mesh trays or single tray of
perforated Aluminum
• Chilies dip in "Dipsol" emulsion (5 minutes)
• Drain excess emulsion
• Spread the pods on racks (5-10 kg/m2 )
• Sun drying
• MC: 65-80% 7 days MC: 10%

Dipsol = K2CO3 + Refined groundnut oil + Gum acacia+

Butylated hydroxy anisole
 Cabinet solar dryer
• Use for small amount of chillies
• Put fresh chillies to the dryer
• Sun drying
• No contamination
with dust or dirt
• No re-wetting
 Exell solar dryer
• Use to dry large
amount of chillies
(Over 30kg/day)

• Final MC: 10%

 Artificial Drying
• Commercial processors practice artificial drying
• Many methods
Wood or husk burning dryer
Combined wood burning and solar dryer
Cont….
Tunnel dryers
Stainless-steel continuous belt dryers
Belt-trough dryers
Dried in heated buildings
• Washed, inspected, and spread out chillies on trays
• Dry as whole pod or sliced pods (2.5cm)
• Temperature inside the dryer : 50-600C
• Moisture content reduces up to 7% - 8%
 Grading
• Pods grade according to colour and size
• Done by manually
• Bright red colour is the best

Grinding
• Grinding mill placed in separate & well ventilated room
• Two types of grinders
- Manual grinders - Mechanical grinders
• Two types of ground products
- Crushed chillies - Chilli powder
 Packaging

Packaging materials for:

• Chilli powder
300 gauge-LDPE or polypropylene
• Whole chilli
200 gauge - LDPE and HDPE
• Green chilli
150-200 gauge - perforated polyethylene bags
 Storage
• Discolouration of red pigment depends on
 - MC of pods at the time of storage
 - Storage temperature
• Storage - little effect on pungency
• Storage MC - <10%
• Compressed at 2.5 kg /cm2
 Chilli Products
Crushed Chilli Chilli Powder
Chilli Oil Chilli Oleoresin
Chilli Sauce Chilli Pickle
Chilli Paste Chilli Chutney
 Crushed Chilli
• Dry the chillies
• Remove stalks
• Ground hygienically
 Chilli Powder
• Dry the chillies
• Remove the stakls
• Ground to get fine to medium powder
 Chilli Oil

• Spicy oil or condiment

• Red in colour
• Made from vegetable oil, soybean oil sesame
oil,Olive oil
• Add other spices – Pepper, garlic,paprika
• Spices soaked in oil
• Two methods - Hot or cold infusion
 Hot Infusion

• Heating oil and chilies together

• Pouring the mixture into a bottle
• Refrigerated
• The solids typically settle to the bottom of the
container
 Cold Infusion

• whole or crushed dried chilies put into the

bottle with the oil
• The bottle refrigerated for at least a month
• longer waiting period create better flavor
 Uses
• Ingredient in cooked dishes as well as a
condiment
• Dipping sauce for meat
 Chili Oleoresins
• Clean the chillies by removing stalks
• Dried until crisp – MC: 5% - 8%
• Ground to a coarse powder
• Extract with a suitable solvent

Fat soluble product requirement – Use water immiscible

solvent - Dichloroethane , Benzene
Water dispersible oleoresin - Use water miscible solvent
- Acetone, ethanol
• Distillation
– To remove solvent from the
crude oleoresin
• Appearance is less important
• Higher capsaicin content is
essential
 Uses
• Give red colour and pungency in processed
foods
– sausages, seafood, meat products
• Used in chicken feed
– chicken meat and egg yolk get an attractive reddish
shade
• Medicine
– Internally – Powerful stimulant & carminative
– Externally – Counter- irritant
 Chili drying – NC province
• Mature red pod s to harvest
• Cover all chili to increase redness
• Pod break by flatten or press (pricking)
• Use canvas , mat to sun dry chili
• Select defect pods , white pods etc
• 2-3 day during & remove defect, white and remove
to improve even quality colour pods (3 - 4 times)
• Sun drying maximum 5 days
• Store in poly-sack . Gunny in low RH place
White pods in red chili – quality reduce

• Fungus disease – Anthracnose

• Green , immature pods
• Insect damage
• Fluctuation of water in the flied , low water
level
 References

• www.agridept.gov.lk : Department of Agriculture, Sri Lanka

• www.howtopedia.org