What is "cayenne pepper"

Pepper \Pep"per\, n. [OE. peper, AS. pipor, L. piper, fr. Gr. ?, ?, akin to Skr. pippala, pippali.]

1. A well-known, pungently aromatic condiment, the dried berry, either whole or powdered, of the Piper nigrum.

   Note: Common, or black, pepper is made from the whole berry, dried just before maturity; white pepper is made from the ripe berry after the outer skin has been removed by maceration and friction. It has less of the peculiar properties of the plant than the black pepper. Pepper is used in medicine as a carminative stimulant.

2. (Bot.) The plant which yields pepper, an East Indian woody climber ( Piper nigrum), with ovate leaves and apetalous flowers in spikes opposite the leaves. The berries are red when ripe. Also, by extension, any one of the several hundred species of the genus Piper, widely dispersed throughout the tropical and subtropical regions of the earth.

3. Any plant of the genus Capsicum, and its fruit; red pepper; as, the bell pepper. Note: The term pepper has been extended to various other fruits and plants, more or less closely resembling the true pepper, esp. to the common varieties of Capsicum. See Capsicum, and the Phrases, below. African pepper, the Guinea pepper. See under Guinea. Cayenne pepper. See under Cayenne. Chinese pepper, the spicy berries of the Xanthoxylum piperitum, a species of prickly ash found in China and Japan. Guinea pepper. See under Guinea, and Capsicum. Jamaica pepper. See Allspice. Long pepper.

   1. The spike of berries of Piper longum, an East Indian shrub.

   2. The root of Piper methysticum (syn. Macropiper methysticum) of the family Piperaceae. See Kava.

      Malaguetta pepper, or Meleguetta pepper, the aromatic seeds of the Amomum Melegueta, an African plant of the Ginger family. They are sometimes used to flavor beer, etc., under the name of grains of Paradise.

      Red pepper. See Capsicum.

      Sweet pepper bush (Bot.), an American shrub ( Clethra alnifolia), with racemes of fragrant white flowers; -- called also white alder.

      Pepper box or Pepper caster, a small box or bottle, with a perforated lid, used for sprinkling ground pepper on food, etc.

      Pepper corn. See in the Vocabulary.

      Pepper elder (Bot.), a West Indian name of several plants of the Pepper family, species of Piper and Peperomia.

      Pepper moth (Zo["o]l.), a European moth ( Biston betularia) having white wings covered with small black specks.

      Pepper pot, a mucilaginous soup or stew of vegetables and cassareep, much esteemed in the West Indies.

      Pepper root. (Bot.). See Coralwort.

      pepper sauce, a condiment for the table, made of small red peppers steeped in vinegar.

      Pepper tree (Bot.), an aromatic tree ( Drimys axillaris) of the Magnolia family, common in New Zealand. See Peruvian mastic tree, under Mastic.

Cayenne \Cay*enne\, n. [From Cayenne, a town and island in French Guiana, South America.] Cayenne pepper. Cayenne pepper.

1. (Bot.) A species of Capsicum ( Capsicum frutescens) with small and intensely pungent fruit.

2. A very pungent spice made by drying and grinding the fruits or seeds of several species of the genus Capsicum, esp. Capsicum annuum and Capsicum Frutescens; -- called also red pepper. It is used chiefly as a condiment.

n. 1 Any of several very hot chilli peppers. 2 A powder condiment or spice formed from the dried chilli pepper varieties above.

1. n. plant bearing very hot and finely tapering long peppers; usually red [syn: cayenne, chili pepper, chilli pepper, long pepper, jalapeno, Capsicum annuum longum]

2. ground pods and seeds of pungent red peppers of the genus Capsicum [syn: cayenne, red pepper]

3. a long and often twisted hot red pepper [syn: cayenne]

The cayenne pepper, also known as the Guinea spice, cow-horn pepper, red hot chili pepper, aleva, bird pepper,' or, especially in its powdered form, red pepper, is a cultivar of Capsicum annuum related to bell peppers, jalapeños, paprika, and others. The Capsicum genus is in the nightshade family ( Solanaceae). It is a hot chili pepper used to flavor dishes. It is named for the city of Cayenne in French Guiana.

The fruits are generally dried and ground, or pulped and baked into cakes, which are then ground and sifted to make the powdered spice of the same name.

Cayenne is used in cooking spicy dishes, as a powder or in its whole form (such as in Korean, Sichuan, and other Asian cuisine), or in a thin, vinegar-based sauce. It is generally rated at 30,000 to 50,000 Scoville units. It is also used as an herbal supplement, and was mentioned by Nicholas Culpeper in his Complete Herbal, 1653, as "guinea pepper", a misnomer for "guiana pepper".