Chile

Chile, comprising various Capsicum species, is also known as chili, chilli, chilly, pepper, green pepper, pod pepper, red pepper, and countless regional and varietal names. “Chile” is the only accepted spelling in New Mexico, where they take their chiles very seriously (and which distinguishes it from “chili,” a term that usually refers to uniquely American dishes made with chiles, such as chili con carne).

Capsicum is part of the Solanaceae, a New World family of plants that includes potatoes, tomatoes, eggplants, tobacco, and a number of poisous plants (such as the nightshades). Genetic evidence points to a beginning near Bolivia for the Capsicum genus, but the plants have been introduced to every arable part of the globe. In frost-free tropical America, it is a perennial—but it is grown as an annual in most of the United States.