Aji Delight Chilli

A baccatum aji with no heat at all. That is a genuine rarity. The no-heat mutation turns up often enough among the annuum peppers and almost never in this species, so what you get here is the full fruity aji character with none of the burn. It looks every inch a hot pepper, glossy and tapered and ripening to a deep red, and then behaves like a tomato.

The pods are bullet-shaped, 7 to 8cm, with firm thick walls and a real crunch. The flavour is sweet, fruity and aromatic with the bright freshness the ajis are known for, and most growers pick up a distinct note of apple in it. Since there is nothing to manage, you can use them by the handful: raw in salads, through an omelette, chargrilled until the skin lifts away, or dried and ground into a mild fragrant paprika.

It is an easy plant, vigorous and spreading, and it crops heavily and keeps cropping the more you pick. It also ripens earlier than most baccatums, which matters in a short British season. If you want a first chilli, or one the children can eat straight off the plant, this is it.