Origins
The Yatsufusa pepper is one of the rare peppers that originates from Japan. In some places, it is known as the Japanese pepper.
Taste and Smell
As the Japanese are not as fond of spiciness as the rest of Asia, the Yatsufusa pepper has a mild heat. The peppers are harvested as both a green, unripened pepper and a fully-matured red. While the red Yatsufusa are hotter than the green, both have a taste similar to cayenne or Thai peppers.
Uses
Both young and mature peppers are used in all sorts Japanese cuisine. Fresh peppers are sliced up and added to stir-fries, soups, and curries. A popular condiment called shichimi togarashi is made of mature peppers that are are dried and ground into a paste. The Yatsufusa can also be added to a meat rub to give it a pleasant heat.
Cultivation
The Yatsufusa plant is planted from late spring to early summer and can take up to eighty days to mature. It grows in an upright manner and has dark green foliage. The mature Yatsufusa plant can grow up to 24″ tall and has clusters of peppers standing upright at the end of each branch. These peppers grow in groups of five or six and each pepper is two to three inches long by a third of an inch wide. The peppers begin as a light green color and deepen to red as the pepper matures.
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