Scotch Bonnet vs Habanero

[bobmac]

Can I substitute the latter for the former in an orange-juice-based marinade? There are so many other ingredients that I think the Scotch Bonnet is mainly for heat.

[Angela Alaimo]

Can I substitute the latter for the former in an orange-juice-based marinade? There are so many other ingredients that I think the Scotch Bonnet is mainly for heat.

←

Good news, Bob!

They are one and the same. One pepper, two names.

Make sure you wash your hands after handling your peppers, etc. etc.

[Daniel]

You definately can substitute the two.. The Scoth Bonnet isnt as hot as certain Habeneros though..I.E Red Savina

Edited December 6, 2005 by Daniel (log)

[Jason Perlow]

Both the Scotch Bonnet and the Orange Habanero (and the other types of Habaneros) are two different varieties from the same species of capsicum chinense, and are for the most part interchangeable in recipes.

http://davesgarden.com/pf/go/56662/

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Capsicum_chinense

[bobmac]

Thanks. I had read elsewhere that they were different. A second look reveals that the distinction is that they are the same species but that the Scotch Bonnet is not a cultivar. Sort of splitting hairs, although I do prefer wild blueberries to cultivated.

[kaneel]

Go for either one of them.......I cook with them all the time

Not for just the heat (i always use my mortal and pestal(sp?)by the way) ...add some to fired eggs or something and it gives a wonderful aroma to the food

AShiana

[Grub]

Thanks for letting us know about this. I've been cooking with habaneros for years, and always wondered about Scottish Bonnets -- was it just a linguistic term (as is often the case with spices and herbs), or truly different thing. Good stuff. Me :heard: egullet, and its informed members.

[Luckylies]

I actually find them to have a different taste. the SB is a bit frutier and more sweet, while the habaneo is fresher and cleaner tasting, more traditionally tasting of a pepper.

[Richard Kilgore]

Can I substitute the latter for the former in an orange-juice-based marinade? There are so many other ingredients that I think the Scotch Bonnet is mainly for heat.

←

Good news, Bob!

They are one and the same. One pepper, two names.

Make sure you wash your hands after handling your peppers, etc. etc.

←

I always wear disposable gloves. Make one little mistake without them and you'll wish you did.

[Jason Perlow]

You're right on with that, Richard. I remember harvesting a whole bunch of Red Savinas and Chocolate Habaneros I grew one summer, cutting them up and de-seeding for home made hot sauce, and not using gloves. I went to use the men's room shortly afterwards... Oh man oh man do I never want to repeat that. My you know what felt like it was on fire for hours -- even showering two or three times with heavy scrubbing didn't alleviate the fire.

[JohnL]

You're right on with that, Richard. I remember harvesting a whole bunch of Red Savinas and Chocolate Habaneros I grew one summer, cutting them up and de-seeding for home made hot sauce, and not using gloves. I went to use the men's room shortly afterwards... Oh man oh man do I never want to repeat that. My you know what felt like it was on fire for hours -- even showering two or three times with heavy scrubbing didn't alleviate the fire.

←

Probably the best treatment would have been to fill the bath tub with yogurt (lassiz even better) and.....

By the way--the Scotch Bonnet and the Habanero are NOT the same/identical. According to Mark Miller's "The Great Chile Book" and Amal Naj's seminal work "Peppers" the Scotch Bonnet is a close relative to the Habanero. (evidently chiles are like grapes they adapt and mutate at the drop of a hat--and like grape vies they are also prone to reflect climate and soils etc in their taste and heat). another relative is the "Jamaican Hot"--also the rocotillo (a pepper which I have searched for a long time and have never found).

[Jason Perlow]

By the way--the Scotch Bonnet and the Habanero are NOT the same/identical.

They are the same species but different varieties. Both capsicum chinense.

Incidentally there is also a great deal variation within the individual varieties themselves -- there are many kinds of Habaneros and Scotch Bonnets, and hybrids.

[theabroma]

A mild solution of tepid water and chlorine bleach will render the capsaicin molecule toothless. Gloves work, but a bleach wash after finishing work on the chiles is a more sure fire way, no pun intended!

Chiles are a wicked bunch o' plants to sort out, in part due to local names, regional sub-species, and cultivarsm and because they are, within species, air pollinators, which allows for a lot of mixing and matching. The C. chinense varieties found in the Caribbean Islands are shaped, spiced, and aromatized much like the Jamaican Scotch Bonnet, so named because of its purported resemblance to a tam o'shanter, and those found in Mexico are more similar to the Chinese lantern shaped habanero, with that distinctive apricot and Everclear aroma, and the legendary heat. The are, in terms of flavor and aroma profiles, about the same. The differences between the two from a culinary perspective could only be detected by a very experienced and devoted palate.

Gentlemen, as Jason has cautioned you, the children of C. chinense are cautionary tales of why one should wash hands before touching ... anything. Also, if you weal contact lenses, especially soft ones, be extra careful. A hydrophilic lens, having absorbed some hab juice, and floating lazily over the cornea is not a fun thing. And although there ARE places you can rinse with bleach water, the eyeball is NOT one of them.

Theabroma

Edited December 7, 2005 by theabroma (log)

[Daniel]

Thanks for the tip Theabroma... I have had a few painful experiences using the restroom after cooking with these guys and not washing my hands enough.. Oh baby, not fun at all...

Edited December 7, 2005 by Daniel (log)

[Bill Miller]

Is the datel pepper related to these two. I think it is native to Florida. I use a very flavorfull sauce called Dat'l Do It that is made from them.

[Jason Perlow]

Datil is also beleived to be a capsicum sinense/chinense.

http://pgrc3.agr.ca/cgi-bin/npgs/html/taxon.pl?8910

It is, however, probably the mildest of the varieties, and it is prized for its flavor without the overpowering heat.

[Jason Perlow]

A bit more about capsicum taxonomy:

http://growingtaste.com/vegetables/pepper.shtml

[theabroma]

Chile-Head

This guy is the mother ship of things about chiles, including some ace photos. He works in banking in Britain, and is just a pepper lover. A little enthusiastic, but hey ... !

Theabroma