Mathania Chili
Also known as Mathania Mirch · Mathaniya Chilli · Mathania Lal Mirch · Marwar Mathania Mirch · Jodhpuri Mirch
Mathania Chili is a Capsicum annuum landrace from Mathania, Jodhpur district, Rajasthan, India. Capsi’s sourced range is 6,672 SHU (Lab-verified). Flavor is earthy, sweet, smoky, pungent. Used for Laal maas, ker sangri, garlic chutney, mustard-oil pickle, whole dried pods. Heat is a range, not a single marketing number.
Mathania Chili is a long red Capsicum annuum kept around the village of Mathania, north of Jodhpur in Rajasthan. Cooks prize it for deep color, a sweet-earthy smell, and enough bite to season desert dishes without flattening them.
About 1/4.8 the typical heat of a Capsi Jalapeño (31,902 SHU).
Growing
~100 days to maturity
Fruit size
15–18 cm
Flavor & Use
Earthy and a little sweet when fresh, with a sharp aroma and a smoky note once dried.
Culinary
About
Pods are slender and tapered, about 15 to 18 cm long, ripening from green to a deep crimson. Skin is smooth on the plant and wrinkles as the fruit dries in the sun. Fresh fruit is grassy and a little sweet. Dried pods pick up smoke and earth. In Marwar kitchens the chilli goes into laal maas, ker sangri, garlic chutney, mustard-oil pickle, and the powder that colors gravies. Plants stay bushy at 60 to 90 cm and crop in 90 to 110 days after transplant. In Mathania it is a winter crop, sown after the monsoon and picked from December through March.
Backstory
Chilli reached western Rajasthan after the Portuguese brought Capsicum to India, most likely traveling north with Maratha armies in the 1700s. Farming families around Mathania have saved the type for seven or eight generations. The dry heat and sandy soil of the Thar fringe gave the pods their color and smell, and Marwari traders carried the dried fruit across India. Acreage has collapsed with falling groundwater, from tens of thousands of hectares a generation ago to under a thousand today. A geographical-indication filing in 2025 is still under examination.
Appearance
Growing
Heritage
ExploreMathania Chili is a traditional landrace.
Sources
FAQ
- How hot is Mathania Chili?
- Capsi’s sourced range is 6,672 SHU (Lab-verified). Capsi uses a sourced range and a trust tier, not a single marketing number. How we verify heat: https://web.thecapsi.app/learn/heat-and-capsaicin/how-we-measure-heat
- What does Mathania Chili taste like?
- Earthy and a little sweet when fresh, with a sharp aroma and a smoky note once dried.
- How do I grow Mathania Chili?
- Mathania Chili: about 100 days to maturity, arid climate, full sun.
- What can I substitute for Mathania Chili?
- Kashmiri Chili, Byadgi Chili, Cayenne, Jwala