North Carolina is renowned for an array of crops, including sweet potatoes, tobacco, cucumbers, and peanuts. However, one often underrepresented gem that thrives beautifully here is the pepper. As a matter of fact, North Carolina ranks fifth in the United States for pepper production! The majority of North Carolina’s organic peppers are grown in central and eastern NC, but there are farms in western NC that grow beautiful peppers.
Each year, our organic pepper kicks off in July with high volumes of organic green bell peppers. Thanks to North Carolina’s warm climate, our farmer-partners’ organic pepper harvest will often extend well into October (and occasionally November). This extended growing period allows us to offer a diverse selection of organic peppers!
organic peppers: a taste of diversity
For the 2024 season, we’re excited to feature a range of specialty organic peppers along with our organic bell peppers, including: shishitos, mini sweet peppers, and Escamillo peppers. These organic peppers are our must-have four peppers for the summer season. These organic varieties not only add a splash of flavor and color to your dishes but also play a crucial role in maintaining healthy soil and providing new opportunities for our farmer-partners. By offering a diverse range of organic peppers, we support sustainable farming practices and help our farmers explore new markets and possibilities.
organic shishito peppers
We are excited to offer organic shishito peppers in Happy Dirt clamshells this year for the first time! We’re always sad when the Florida season ends in March, so we thought, “Why not keep the party going in North Carolina?” So, we did!
When crop planning with one of our North Carolina farmer-partners, Miles of South Wind Produce, we asked if he would grow organic shishito peppers for us. And in true farmer fashion, he didn’t hesitate. His crop has been prolific this year, so it’s safe to say that Miles has ideal soil for organic shishitos peppers.
the rich history of organic shishito peppers
Originating from Japan, organic shishito peppers have a rich history dating back centuries. The Portuguese introduced peppers to Japan in the 16th century. It is believed that the Japanese cultivated the shishito pepper from the Spanish padrón chile pepper, which was highly sought after during that time. We’re not sure when the shishito pepper made its way to the United States, but The New York Time first mentioned the pepper in 1990! These mild, slightly sweet peppers were traditionally enjoyed as a staple in Japanese cuisine, often grilled or blistered for a delicious appetizer. The name “shishito” comes from the Japanese words “shishi” (獅子), meaning “lion,” and “tōgarashi” (唐辛子), meaning “chili pepper”, as the tip of the pepper looks like a lion’s head.
Shishitos are known to be sweet with mild heat, but one out of ten will be HOT. These peppers are best when lightly blistered, grilled, roasted or sautéed. They’re even delicious when eaten raw (just watch out for that one, rogue hot shishito). When cooked, shishito peppers have a savory, slightly smokey flavor. We created an organic shishito mushroom stir-fry for Women’s History Month in 2023, and it was mouthwatering to say the least. You can also pair them with Thai basil or cilantro, citrus, tomatoes, and goat cheese!
organic mini sweet peppers
Like organic shishito peppers, we have organic mini sweet peppers from our farmer-partner in Florida during the winter and early spring months. When the Florida season ends, we move to our farmer-partners in central and eastern NC in July. Although it’s not our first rodeo with organic mini sweet peppers, it’s our first time offering organic mini sweets in Happy Dirt clamshells. It’s also Miles’ first time growing organic mini sweet peppers for Happy Dirt.
When we planned organic shishitos with Miles, we also asked about organic mini sweet peppers, too. Might as well, right? You would be amazed at how perfectly Miles’ organic mini sweet peppers fit in a clamshell! Like his organic shishito peppers, his mini sweet pepper crop is loving the healthy soil. These peppers aren’t just colorful and sweet, they are really happy!
the history of organic mini sweet peppers
Unlike shishito peppers, mini sweet peppers are a relatively new variety of organic peppers. But like shishito peppers, mini sweet peppers are a hybrid. Mini sweet peppers made their commercial debut in the 1990s, as a hybrid of tradition bell peppers! Mini sweet peppers are crunchier and sweeter than bell peppers and tend to have little to no seeds. Along with breeding specifically for flavor and texture, the seed breeders specifically created the mini sweet pepper for size. You will typically find mini sweet peppers packaged in bags at the grocery store, but we chose to package our organic mini sweet peppers in clamshells because they nicely fill out the container! The clamshell also reminds us of a little lunchbox, which is perfect since the variety Miles grows is called the Lunchbox snack pepper!
organic bell peppers
North Carolina farmers grow a lot of specialty peppers, but the state ranks fifth in the nation for pepper production thanks to bell peppers! They are a staple in the state and have been a staple at Happy Dirt since day one. From the mountains to the coast of North Carolina, our farmer-partners grow organic bell peppers across the state. Happy Dirt farmer-owner Randy Massey has been one of our top growers for organic bell peppers for over a decade.
Over the years, we have focused on organic green bell peppers, but this year we’ve asked our farmer-partners for organic orange, red, and yellow bell peppers. And in case you didn’t know, green bell peppers are unripe color bell peppers. They are harvested before they have a chance to mature and change color.
organic escamillo peppers
While the majority of the organic peppers that Happy Dirt offers comes from our North Carolina farmer-partners, we do work with one of our farmer-partners in South Carolina to plan for specialty organic peppers! Our friends at Wild Hope Farm are growing a variety of specialty organic peppers for us this year, including organic Escamillo peppers!
Johnny’s Seeds, a seed company based in Maine, introduced the organic Escamillo pepper in 2015. The Escamillo pepper is the companion pepper to Johnny’s Carmen pepper, an Italian red pepper. Both are Johnny’s version of the corno di toro pepper, which is an Italian heirloom pepper.
The Escamillo pepper is a golden-yellow Italian frying pepper that is deliciously sweet no matter how you prepare it! It’s named after the bullfighter Escamillo, who was Carmen’s love interest in the French opera. Both the Escamillo pepper and the Carmen pepper are typically fried, but their flavor is incredible no matter how you eat them.
supporting small organic farms and specialty programs
One of our favorite aspects of working with smaller organic farms is building specialty organic programs that help these farms grow and succeed. We love discovering what works best in their fields and watching their crops thrive from year to year. If you’re interested in exploring specific specialty peppers, we would be delighted to trial them with one of our farm partners. Just let us know, and we’ll work to bring these unique varieties to your table.
At Happy Dirt, we believe in celebrating North Carolina’s diverse growing regions and crops. Join us in enjoying the vibrant flavors of North Carolina’s organic peppers and supporting Happy Dirt’s farmer-partners who grow healthy, happy organic produce.
If you are a wholesale buyer and are interested in offering North Carolina organic peppers to your customers, send us a note. And if you’re simply interested in learning more about your food system, scroll to the bottom of the page and sign up for our newsletter!
