Dedo de Moça Pepper

Sweet and fruity with smoky undertones, developing into a peppery finish with lingering stingy heat.

The Dedo de Moça, translating to 'lady's finger' in Portuguese, is an elongated chili pepper that resembles a slender finger, typically measuring 3 inches long and 0.5 inches wide. The pods hang pendant from the plant and mature from green through orange to a vibrant red. With medium-thick flesh and smooth skin, they offer a versatile texture ideal for fresh use or drying. The flavor profile begins with sweet and fruity notes accompanied by subtle smokiness, transitioning into a peppery taste that builds to a stingy, lingering heat without excessive bitterness. This makes it perfect for enhancing Brazilian dishes such as feijoada, moqueca, rice, beans, meats, salads, and sauces. When dried and ground, it becomes pimenta-calabresa, a common condiment in southern Brazil. The plants are tall and somewhat gangly, reaching up to 5 feet in height, and are known for high yields after about 90 days of growth in full sun with fertile, well-drained soil. It belongs to the Capsicum baccatum species and has been cultivated traditionally in Brazil for generations.

A traditional Brazilian cultivar named for its resemblance to a woman's finger ('dedo de moça'). It has been widely grown and used in southern and southeastern Brazil for centuries, forming a key part of the country's culinary heritage alongside other baccatum varieties.