Thai chili or Bird's eye chili is a variety of chili pepper of the species Capsicum frutescens. It is commonly found in Thailand, Malaysia, Indonesia, Cambodia, Vietnam, Laos, the Philippines and Singapore. It can also be found in Kerala, India.
Bird's eye chili plant is a perennial, bearing greenish white or yellowish white flowers, and chilis that are pointed skyward. The chilis are small with tapering ends, with most varieties are red, some yellow or purple color. Bird's eye chili has heat level of 50,000 to 100,000 SHU (Scoville Heat Unit).
Bird's eye chili is commonly used as a spicy and chili condiment, while its leaves are consumed as vegetables. It can also used to flavor vinegar, or make into vinegar-based pickle.
Some varieties that are more decorative, but slightly less pungent, are cultivated as ornamental plants, sometimes known as Thai Ornamental.
Numex twilight is a hybrid based on the Thai Ornamental pepper. It is one of the most unusual varieties of Capsicum annuum, developed at New Mexico State Uiversity. The plant can grow to 18 inches tall, and bears chili peppers that are purple at first, then yellow and orange, and finally becoming red when fully ripe, producing a rainbow effect on the green plant.
Another ornamental plant which has interesting ornamental chili is Numex continental of species Capsicum annuum. Numex continental has purple foliage, purple flower and purple chilis. The purple chilis are upright, then ripen to yellow, orange, and finally red.
Bird's eye chili can be used as a natural insect repellent or pesticide when mixed with water. It is suggested to be an effective cure for toothache, flatulence, or dyspepsia.
Thai Chili Pepper http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Thai_hot_peppers.jpg Pdmiller
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