Tennessee Cheese Pepper
Also known as Cheese Red Pepper · Cheese Red
The Tennessee Cheese Pepper is a sweet heirloom Capsicum annuum cultivar known for its thick-walled, tomato- or apple-shaped fruits that ripen from green to vibrant red. It delivers a candy-like sweetness with zero heat and excels in stuffing, pickling, and paprika production.
Growing
~82 days to maturity
Fruit size
6–10 cm
Flavor & Use
Exceptionally sweet with a candy-like taste and no heat.
Culinary
About
The Tennessee Cheese Pepper, also known as Cheese Red, is an open-pollinated heirloom variety originally from Spain but preserved by a family in Kingston, Tennessee. Plants produce good yields of upright, apple- or tomato-shaped peppers with very thick flesh and walls. Fruits measure approximately 3 inches long or 76-102 mm in diameter, starting green and maturing to rich red. The flavor is exceptionally sweet with a candy-like taste, making them addictive when eaten fresh. They are excellent for stuffing due to their shape and thick walls, as well as for pickling, fresh salads, cooking, and drying into high-quality paprika. The compact plants grow 18 to 36 inches tall, mature in 60-90 days from transplant, and thrive in full sun with fertile, well-drained soil. This non-GMO variety is suitable for garden plots, raised beds, and greenhouses.
Backstory
An heirloom variety recovered from seeds donated by a couple living in Kingston, Tennessee, originally from Spain where similar pimiento-type peppers are traditional staples in many dishes.
Appearance
Growing
Heritage
We don't have a documented family for this pepper yet.