# Tobago Seasoning

Also known as Tobago Seasoning Pepper, Trinidad Seasoning Pepper.
Species: Capsicum chinense.

Tobago Seasoning is a Capsicum chinense landrace from Tobago, Trinidad and Tobago. Capsi’s sourced range is 129 SHU (Lab-verified). Flavor is smoky, tropical fruit, mild. Used for seasoning, jerk, salsas, sauces, pickling. Heat is a range, not a single marketing number.
About 1/194 the typical heat of a Capsi Jalapeño (25,086 SHU).

## Heat sources

- 129 SHU · Lab-verified
  Malak Alghamdi, Thirumurugan Rathinasabapathy, Slavko Komarnytsky (2025) Int. J. Mol. Sci. · HPLC
  DOI: 10.3390/ijms26104916
  https://doi.org/10.3390/ijms26104916

- 500 SHU · Vendor Claim
  Baker Creek Heirloom Seeds
  https://www.rareseeds.com/products/pepper-hot-tobago-seasoning

- 500 SHU · Vendor Claim
  Pepper Joe's
  https://pepperjoe.com/products/tobago-seasoning-pepper-seeds

- 1,000 SHU · Vendor Claim
  Pepper Joe's
  https://pepperjoe.com/products/tobago-seasoning-pepper-seeds

- 500–1,000 SHU · Vendor Claim
  True Leaf Market
  https://trueleafmarket.com/products/tobago-seasoning-pepper

## Heritage

Landrace

Tobago Seasoning is a traditional landrace.

Credit: 1999

Collected from a Scarborough market in Tobago in March 1999 by Dr. Jeff Nekola. Catalogs and grower notes treat it as a traditional mild chinense seasoning type with no named parents.

## Page sources

- [Alghamdi et al. 2025 HPLC study measuring Tobago Seasoning at 129 SHU](https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC12112534/)
- [Baker Creek listing: heirloom, ~500 SHU, Caribbean seasoning use](https://www.rareseeds.com/products/pepper-hot-tobago-seasoning)
- [Pepper Joe's: 500 SHU, elongated red pods, Trinidad & Tobago origin](https://pepperjoe.com/products/tobago-seasoning-pepper-seeds)
- [Reimer Seeds: 1,000 SHU, USDA NA 83015 note, Trinidad & Tobago](https://www.reimerseeds.com/tobago-seasoning-pepper-seeds)
- [True Leaf: 500–1,000 SHU, elongated green-orange-red pods](https://trueleafmarket.com/products/tobago-seasoning-pepper)
- [Jeff Nekola archive noting Scarborough market collection March 1999](https://www.sci.muni.cz/botany/nekola/Heirloom/PeppersT.htm)

## FAQ
### How hot is Tobago Seasoning?

Capsi’s sourced range is 129 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 Tobago Seasoning taste like?

smoky tropical fruit with habanero-like aroma and almost no heat

### How do I grow Tobago Seasoning?

Tobago Seasoning: about 95 days to maturity, tropical climate, full sun, hardiness zones 9-11.

### What can I substitute for Tobago Seasoning?

Trinidad Perfume, Ají Dulce

Page: https://web.thecapsi.app/pepper/tobago-seasoning
Catalog: https://web.thecapsi.app/data